Going South: Jewish Women in the Civil Rights Movement PDF
Preview Going South: Jewish Women in the Civil Rights Movement
GOING SOUTH DEBRA L. SCHULTZ GOING SOUTH Jewish Women in the Civil Rights Movement Foreword by Blanche Wiesen Cook a New York University Press • New York and London NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS New York and London © 2001 by New York University All rights reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Schultz, Debra L. Going South : Jewish women in the civil rights movement / Debra L. Schultz. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8147-9774-1 (acid-free paper) 1. Afro-Americans—Civil rights—Southern States—History— 20th century. 2. Jewish women—United States—Political activity— History—20th century. 3. Jewish women—United States—Biography. 4. Women civil rights workers—Southern States—Biography. 5. Afro-Americans—Relations with Jews. 6. Southern States—Race relations. 7. Civil rights movement—Southern States—History— 20th century. 8. Oral history. I. Title. E185.61 .S364 2001 323.1'196073'0923924—dc21 00-012211 New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper, and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability. Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Contents Foreword by Blanche Wiesen Cook vii Acknowledgments ix Preface xiii Introduction: Making the Decision 1 I Taking the Action 1 Going South, 1960–1963 31 2 Moving In On Mississippi, 1963–1965 57 3 Crossing Boundaries: Jewishness in the South, 1960–1967 91 II Seeking the Legacy 4 Uncovering Family Legacies 129 5 Exploring Many Ways of Being Jewish 162 6 Creating a Living Legacy: Passing It On 193 Bibliography 207 Index 223 About the Author 229 All illustrations appear as a group following p. 106. v Foreword Blanche Wiesen Cook For activists, the history of the twentieth century is the struggle for peace and freedom; the quest for a politics of justice and decency. Born female before or during the 1930s and 1940s, a significant number of Jewish women gravitated toward the civil rights movement during the 1960s. Debra Schultz’s study of Jewish women who went south ex- plores the important and often surprising ways in which the past is pro- logue, in which traditions of learning and resistance matter. Antiracists who fought against violence and segregation in the United States un- derstood that European fascism, built on dehumanization and brutality, connected the continents and linked the centuries by bloodshed and terror. Asense of responsibility and an active dedication to justice and dignity forged pathways to a better life. Who were these activists? How did they come to be? Where did they find support? Why did they choose to move, when others stood still? Why did they choose to speak, while others remained silent? How did they find allies, join the movement, rebuild the house of courage and commitment, enlarge their own hearts, save their own souls? Debra Schultz gives us their stories in their own voices. More than that, she provides context and legacy: Activism, Power, Hope. For the twenty-first century to be less treacherous and wicked than the past, we need to revisit these proud moments of action, of protest, of community. The legacy of these brave and steadfast women working beside their many partners, white and Black, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, male and female, tells us much about where we might go today, and tomorrow, as we confront the residue of a century of dishonor, broken promises, un- fulfilled dreams. For women, for Jews, for dignity, the fight is ongoing; the struggle evermore intense, evermore global. In this mean moment of greed and selfishness, when millions of homeless, hungry, and devastated people vii viii FOREWORD are ignored by politicians of both major parties, this high-spirited work is timely and essential. With this lyrical, passionately written book, Debra Schultz has given us a galvanizing, encouraging gift for history and reflection, for action and the future. Acknowledgments I had many allies along the journey that resulted in the publication of this book. Lloyd Wilder’s love, support, and faith in my work sustained me. Similarly, my parents, Mae and Harold Schultz, were always there with the perfect blend of humor, sympathy, and willingness to help. I thank the many extraordinary teachers who have expanded my ways of thinking and being over the years, yet Elizabeth Kamarck Min- nich stands out as the most generous and generative intellectual ally I have ever had. Only by striving to emulate her unique example of en- gaged scholarship and authentic friendship can I ever give back all that she has given me. Mariam K. Chamberlain, the visionary founding president of the National Council for Research on Women, where I spent six formative years, serves as both a mentor and a friend. Blanche Wiesen Cook’s groundbreaking essay, “Female Support Networks and Political Ac- tivism,” helped catalyze my commitment to writing activist women’s history. I remain inspired by her skill and tenacity in writing works of significant historical scholarship. Without the generous, committed, self-reflective, warm, and funny women you will soon meet, this book would not exist. I thank the fol- lowing women for their trust in me, for sharing their stories and for un- derstanding my aims: Elaine DeLott Baker, June Finer, Roberta Galler, Miriam Cohen Glickman, Jan Goodman, Barbara Jacobs Haber, Eliza- beth Slade Hirschfeld, Faith Holsaert, Florence Howe, Jacqueline Levine, Trudy Weissman Orris, Vivian Leburg Rothstein, Carol Ruth Silver, Harriet Tanzman, and Dottie Miller Zellner. Several scholar/friends deserve special thanks for their holistic ap- proach to supporting me and this project: Leslie Hill, Riv-Ellen Prell, Dorothy Helly, Mayra Bloom, and Timothy Diamond. I thank Anastasia Posadskaya-Vanderbeck for being such a con- stant and dear friend and for inviting me to share the challenges of start- ing the Network Women’s Program of the Open Society Institute. My gratitude and respect go to my colleagues in the Network Women’s ix
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