Civil rights leaders discuss the lessons of the '60s for the Trump era

"In the nearly six decades since the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., the civil rights movement has reinvented itself time and again, moving from a fight to eliminate Jim Crow to more contested political and economic terrain, from affirmative action to affirmative actions. Leaders across the movement say that one year into the Trump administration, they face a new inflection point."

"Top administration officials have urged White men to file complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, casting programs benefiting women and people of color as discriminatory. The Supreme Court is expected to rule on a case this year that could eliminate a key provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which transformed who gets sent to the House, state legislatures, city councils and school boards."

""The level of attack is so great, it's going to require a greater sense of coordination and strategy," said Bernice King, the youngest child of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King. "That's why it's important for people to study my dad's movement because they were very good at coordinating efforts across all their different campaigns.""

In nearly six decades since Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, the civil rights movement has repeatedly reinvented itself, shifting from eliminating Jim Crow to contested political and economic battles including affirmative-action debates. One year into the Trump administration, leaders confront a new inflection point as the administration moved to dismantle federal diversity, equity and inclusion programs and encouraged complaints alleging discrimination against White men. A Supreme Court decision could strip a key provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act, altering electoral representation. Movement leaders call for greater coordination, strategic campaigning, and renewed emphasis on women and youth leadership.

Read at The Washington Post