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TITLE: Servants of the People; The 1960s Legacy of African American Leadership
CITATION: Williams, E. Lea. Servants of the People; The 1960s Legacy of African American Leadership.
New York: St. Martin’s Griffin, 1998.
CATEGORY
Servant Leadership
Literature
Nonfiction/Biographies
Classic Literature
Multicultural
RECOMMENDATION FOR PROGRAM
9th Grade:
English
World History
Perspectives
10th Grade:
English
World History
Communications
LEADERSHIP STYLES & THEMES
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Styles: Servant and Transformational Leadership
Themes: Social change
SUMMARY
Lea E.Williams sketches African American history from the Reconstruction to the 1960s and
describes major leadership theories. She then profiles "forerunners" (A. Philip Randolph and
Frederick D. Patterson), "negotiators" (Thurgood Marshall and Whitney M. Young Jr.), and
"provocateurs" (Adam Clayton Powell Jr. and Fannie Lou Hamer), and studies the implications of
this past for those who would "claim the legacy" in the twenty-first century. Drawing on biographies
and memoirs as well as civil-rights movement histories, Williams seeks to isolate the critical
similarities and differences displayed by these leaders to stimulate thought and discussion in
communities and in classrooms. Part 4 of the book--"Supplement for Teachers and Future Leaders"
--offers "Lessons for Leaders" and a chronology as well as detailed notes and a bibliography, which
are both extremely useful and interesting.
LEADERSHIP & INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS APPLICATIONS
This book is an extremely well written example of African American Leadership. It gave a
complete account of the leadership and its background. Though extremely factual and somewhat
difficult to read, it is, in my opinion, the best of its kind. The book profiles the African American
leaders of the sixties in such a way that you understand how and why they led in the way that they
did. The book also raised interesting questions about segregation as well as leadership styles and
their effectiveness.
This book would be a beneficial read for any student. It not only provides a thorough history
lesson, but a lesson on leadership as well. It would fit in well with United States History course, but
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also in leadership “perspectives”. Though I do not typically enjoy books crammed with facts such as
this, I really did enjoy this book and reading about the influential leaders it profiles. Though the
leaders are not the most commonly known for 1960’s black leadership, the book makes the
connection between not only the leaders it profiles, but also with other influential and possibly more
well known leaders of the time.
STUDENT INTEREST RATING
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CONTEXT QUOTABLES
“”If people think that it was Martin Luther King’s movement, then today they – young people – are more
likely to say, “gosh, I wish we had a Martin Luther King here today to lead us.”… If people knew how that
movement started, then the question they would ask themselves is, “What can I do?”” (13). This quote basically
describes the goal of this book, to learn not about the leaders, but about their leadership and how to
take that information to become an effective leader yourself.
“Whatever the complex interconnections of circumstances and individuals, it is unquestionable than an
enomous resevoir of talent was unleashed during civil rights movement, spawning a style of African American
leadership that was vocal, charismatic, visionary, and deeply committed to social change and political empowerment. It
was the most exciting cadre of black leaders to emerge since abolition.” (13-14). This summarizes why the 1960s
were such an important time for African American leadership.
“African American leaders of a bygone era struggled over vastly different issues. Their fight, also against
insuperable odds, was to gain civil rights, equality, and dignity for blacks in a racially divided society that was
pervasively separate and unequal. Whatever the tensions between moderates and militants, between those firmly vested
in the capitalist system and those clearly working on the fringes, for the most part those leaders were servants of the
people who had a genuine desire to lift up the black community by eliminating the formidable obstacles to educational,
social, economic, and political equality that existed. They left an undeniably dynamic legacy on which to build. ” (22).
This quote is the unofficial thesis for this book.
“”You get what you can take, and you can keep what you can hold. If you can’t take anything, you won’t get
anything; and if you can’t hold anything, you won’t keep anything. And you can’t take anything without
organization.”” (29). This quote opens the profile of A. Philip Randolph, and is in fact a quote from
Randolph. It gives an excellent picture of how Randolph handled his leadership role.
“”More than confrontation. It can have a number of different dimensions. And if people seeking leadership
will select areas in which they want to excel, they can draw on their special skills to improve the circumstances in which
all members of society live out their lives.””(74-75). Frederick D. Patterson’s definition of leadership.
“”We must not be delayed by people who say “the time is not ripe,” nor should we proceed with caution for
fear of destroying the “status quo”… Many people believe the time is always “ripe” to discriminate against Negroes.
All right then – the time is always “ripe” to bring them to justice.”” (78). A quote opening the profile of
Thurgood Marshall, the third person profiled.
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“… It will demand of us a discipline and a willingness to rise above differences of a doctrine and personality
for the greater good of all black people” (99) A quote from Whitney Young Jr. demonstrating his powerful
leadership in the 60’s.
“For the time in which he came to prominence, he was a political maverick and iconoclastic leader who left a
complex, ambivalent legacy of leadership with some interesting lessons.” (195) Describing the leadership of
Adam Clayton Powell Jr., the fifth leader profiled.
“”You don’t run away from your problems – you just face them”” (158) A quote from Fannie Lou
Hamer, when asked why she didn’t abandon the state that had treated her to badly, this basically
describes her struggle with equality in the 60’s.
COMPLEMENTARY SELECTIONS
Greenleaf, Robert; Beazley, Hamilton; Beggs, Julie; Spears, Larry. The Servant-Leader Within: A
Transformative Path. (New York: Paulist Press).
Greenleaf, Robert. Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness. (Paulist
Press, 1991).
Miller, Calvin. The Empowered Leader: 10 Keys to Servant Leadership (Broadman and Holman Publishers,
1995)