This 1964 pamphlet by Bayard Rustin offers a firsthand account of his efforts to promote nonviolent resistance during the Harlem riots. Rustin describes organizing a group of volunteers who protected residents and dispersed crowds, emphasizing the moral and strategic importance of nonviolence amid social unrest.
SNCC and CORE Reject Protest Moratorium at New York Strategy Meeting
This report covers a New York gathering of leading civil rights figures—including Bayard Rustin, Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young, James Farmer, and John Lewis—where SNCC and CORE declined to endorse a proposed moratorium on demonstrations until after the upcoming November election, signaling a split over tactics between direct-action proponents and calls for strategic pause.
Bayard Rustin Attempts to Restore Peace During Harlem Riots
Bayard Rustin with Youth Activists Preparing for Demonstration
Bayard Rustin is pictured speaking with young activists—Carolyn Carter, Cecil Carter, Kurt Levister, and Kathy Ross—who appear to be children, as they prepare for a civil rights demonstration. The photograph captures an early generation of youth involvement and Rustin’s mentorship role in guiding youthful organizers during the 1960s civil rights movement.
Bayard Rustin’s “Negro Revolution in 1965” Address at the Center for Democratic Institutions
In this address, Bayard Rustin argues that the civil rights movement seeks integration into American society as it exists, yet is inherently revolutionary because fulfilling Black demands requires transforming institutions that cannot remain unchanged. He calls for a strategic shift from protest to broad coalition-based political action, insisting that only a unified movement for full employment and social investment can address systemic injustice without pitting Black and white workers against one another.
