THE NEW YORK TIMES,
JULY
24 ,
1 966
THE BIG FIVE IN CIVIL RIGHTS
The controversy over "Black Power" has toctl.8ed attention on the various civil
rigMs groups. The f ollowing are brief sketches of t he major organizations:
B y l\1. S. HANDLER
THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCE .
MENT OF COLOR ED PEOPLE (N A.A.C.P.): The oldest,
most important and only mass membersh~o civil righ ts organization the biracial N.A.A.C.P.'s goal is to nneg ratc the American N ~gro into all areas _o f Am-: r <a_n !if'!. It il;;s been larg_t!iy
responsii.J ie for such major lr.g•.sbtl~• e a.dvr..nces as th ~ CJ_vJI
Ri gh ts Act of 1964 and it has been tn the front r_an~ ft~htlng
constitutional issues. But t he N.A.A.C.P. has not ltmttea 1tself.
as rivals and critics sometimes claim, on ly to legislative and
judicial action. It was the first org<~mzation to use the picket
line and has been involved in many demonstrations. Today it
has a paid membership of nearly 450,000. Its income in 1965
was nearly 1.9-million. Its executive director, Roy Wilkins,
is considered the most astute figure, politically, in civil r ights.
To Mr. Wil kins, Black Power means black racism and "black
death."
.THE NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE: A biracial service
organization with five regional offices and 76 local affiliates,
it is not a membership group. Operating with a paid st aff of
800 and with 8,000 volunteers manning local boards and committees, its policy is to lead the Negro into the American
mainstream through a variety of job training programs and
housing, w elfare and education projects. The Ur ban League is
heavily backed by foundations, industry, labor, social groups,
Negro fraternal organizations, the U.S. Departments of Labor,
the Office of Economic Opportunity and local United Funds
and Community Chests. Its general budget income in fiscal
1966, ending June 30, was 1.4-million. The executive director,
Whitney M. Young Jr., is rated a superb organizer and planner
who can speak the language of big business and government
and win their support. He believes Black Power is self-defe ati ng and dangerous.
THE CONGRESS OF RACIAL EQUALITY (CORE) : A
biracial community action organization, it believes in creating
social tensions through demonstrations and marches as an
indispensable ing r edi ent in winning actual as w ell <\S l egal
equality. O fficia ls claim membership of 80,000-a figure others
treat with scepticism-in 200 chapters, and admit there has
been a drop of 20,000 in membership re ccr.tiy, possibly as a
result of growing Black Power philosophy. Last year, CORE
raised about $860,000 from membership fees and don<ltions,
but in the first quarter of the current fi<>cal year its income
dropped to an annual rate of about $400.00(1 and its indebtedn ess r ose to $200,000 to $300,000. Floyd McKissi ck, national
d irector, tends to indulge in sweeping attacks. He is today
one of the principal advocates of Black Power.
SOUTHERN CH RISTIAN LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE (S.C.L.C.): Dr. Martin Luther King· Jr.'s loosely-organized group based in Atlanta was originally created for action
in the South but it has now entered the North with a campaign
in Chicago. An S.C.L.C. convention is really a meeting of
Southern Negro Baptist min.isters, and the organizatit)n i:;
largely a one-man group. Its policy is integ ration P.n<i full
equality, and Dr. K10g uses mJss demons t rations. march es and
the li ke. An ex ponent of nonviolence, he condemns Black
Power but does not go as far as some who brand it black
racism. Dr. King is generally rec. ogni.~ .::d as the greatest orator
of the civil ri ghts movement. Un ti l lact y~ar, S.C.L.C. was
hard-pressed for money. But fund s now seem to oe rolling in
fr om admirers at home and abroad.
THE STUDENT NONVIOLENT COORDINATING
COMMITTEE (S. N.C.C.): Based in Atlanta, with a nebulous
staff estimated between ISO and 200, it is not a membership
organ ization. S.N.C.C. has a revolving door with kids going
in and out depending upon the prevailing mvod and state of
tension. It is a Southern action group. S.N.C.C. operates with
very li ttle money and its workers live in the shacks of Nf'gro
communities. S.N.C.C. organizes and sparks demonstrations and
marches that sometimes develop into major e;rents when police
attacks compel other civil rights groups to join in. Supposedly
biracial, S.N.C.C., since Stokely Carmichael replaccJ John
Lewis at the top, has been trying to shake out the wh ite kids.
I t is now practically an all-black organizat ion and Mr. Carmichael has become the high priest of Black Power.
©by The New York Times Company.
Re printed by permission.
NAT IONAL ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF COLORED PEOPLE
20 West 40th Street
~:~.. 448
New York, New York 10018