Civil Rights leader provides perspective on King

By Tom Gresham

Segregation ended in the United States because the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. “convinced his adherents that it was unacceptable,” a pioneer of the civil rights movement told a standing-room only crowd at Virginia Commonwealth University.

The Rev. Wyatt Tee Walker was a close friend and adviser to King, standing in his shadow through many of the seminal moments of the civil rights struggle. He was appointed in 1960 as the first full-time executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, helping turn the largely unknown organization into a driving force in the push to end racial segregation.

Clarence Thomas, an associate professor of journalism at VCU, arranged Walker’s appearance last week in connection with his course, “Minorities in the Mass Media.” Walker’s address was also part of VCU’s celebration of Black History Month.

Thomas said Walker’s appearance provided the VCU community with the rare chance to hear firsthand accounts of the civil rights era from someone who was involved in the critical decision-making process of the day. Walker’s insight and anecdotes revived the movement, which occurred some four decades ago, for the enthusiastic crowd of more than 300 people.

“This gave us an opportunity to learn from a living piece of history during a time when we’re increasingly losing them – as the recent deaths of Rosa Parks and Coretta Scott King show,” Thomas said. “And I think having such a large crowd was important because it showed Dr. Walker that he is appreciated and respected. It was a tribute to him.”

Walker delivered his lecture resolutely from a chair on stage. He then responded to questions from the audience with often forceful and blunt replies.

Among Walker’s statements:

Walker doubted King’s assassination in 1968 was a simple act carried out by James Earl Ray. Instead, Walker asserted that King’s death was “a hit” assigned by leaders of the military-industrial complex concerned with King’s influential opposition to the war in Vietnam.

Walker said the Holocaust that took an estimated 6 million Jewish lives during World War II should be known as the “Jewish Holocaust” to differentiate it from other holocausts. In particular, Walker claimed more than 60 million Africans died during the Middle Passage, the journey of slave-trading ships from the west coast of Africa across the Atlantic Ocean.

Walker said press reports of King’s alleged marital infidelities were based on claims planted by the FBI to hurt King’s stature. Walker, who traveled frequently with King, said he would know if they were true.

In response to a question about unfair depictions of African-Americans in the media, Walker said the portrayals were often an accurate reflection of society, saying too many young black people had been “seduced by the things of America rather than its ideas.” He reminded his audience that “Dr. King died a poor man.”
Walker also recalled tales from the civil rights movement, including his role in nearly preventing King from delivering the famous “I Have a Dream” speech that served as the climax of the March on Washington in 1963.

Walker said he and Andrew Young attempted to persuade King the night before the event to compose a new ending to his speech, noting he had already delivered the “I Have a Dream” lines some two dozen times. Walker admitted to thinking the phrasing was “hackneyed and trite.” However, King prevailed, said Walker, and “we were wrong and Dr. King was right.”

Walker said he had worries about the turnout for the March on Washington up until the morning of the event. He recalled walking out into the early morning to see if signs of a strong crowd were developing.

“I can’t tell you the thrill I felt to see those buses streaming in from the north and the south,” Walker said. The March on Washington attracted an estimated crowd of 250,000.

Walker urged today’s young generation to study the deeds of the people who came before them. He said an understanding of history illuminates why fighting for civil rights remains important today.

“You must resist prejudice when you see it and resist it strongly,” Walker said. “Otherwise you will make the purveyors of prejudice stronger.