In this article published in Fellowship, Bayard Rustin warns that racial violence during World War II threatens to deepen divisions across the United States. He calls on pacifists to move beyond abstract advocacy and organize nonviolent direct action against Jim Crow, arguing that confronting racial injustice at home is essential to building lasting peace.
Non-Violence vs. Jim Crow (Parts I and II)
In these two reports published in Fellowship magazine, Bayard Rustin recounts his experiences confronting racial segregation through nonviolent direct action in the American South and Mid-Atlantic. From refusing segregated bus seating to challenging discriminatory beach and taxi practices, Rustin illustrates how disciplined noncooperation could expose injustice and challenge Jim Crow.
