Voting Rights Act

Coming of Age Politically: The Shift from Protest to Electoral Power

In this piece, Bayard Rustin argues that by the early 1970s the civil rights movement had entered a new phase, shifting from protest to “political self-expression” through voting, organizing, and coalition-building. He urges a move toward professional, interracial politics focused on winning power in Congress and securing broad economic reforms rather than retreating into race-based isolation.

The Professionalization of the Movement: Lessons from 1972

Written during the 1972 election cycle, Bayard Rustin argues that the post–Voting Rights Act era demands a second phase of the Civil Rights Movement focused on disciplined electoral politics, coalition-building, and the unglamorous work of organizing rather than symbolic protest.