SCENE ONE
(The conversation continues).
DAD: Dwight Eisenhower was President from 1952 to 1960. One of his most significant achievements was the signing into law of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956. The law would enable the construction of a 41,000-mile network of Interstate highways that would span the nation. A federal fuel tax funds the Highway Trust Fund, which funds the construction of the Interstate Highway system. This opened the entire country like never before, and it helped to make the automobile ‘king of the road.’ In addition, he tried to pay great attention to the emerging Civil Rights movement. In 1957, the Governor of Arkansas, Governor Orval Faubus, defied the court on the ruling of Brown versus Board of Education of Topeka and sent the National Guard to prevent nine Black pupils from entering an all-White elementary school. The President would have none of that nonsense. He sent federal troops to the school in Arkansas to enforce the ruling that desegregated schools. That was considerable development in the emancipation of Black people in America. The students were escorted to school and studied under armed guard.
(Enactment). LITTLE ROCK 9: Singing—we shall overcome as students are prevented from entering a school by Governor Faubus of Arkansas.
JUNIOR: I can no longer handle this!!!
DAD: There were many people just like you now. They could not handle it. The oppression was institutional. There was not much we could do about it. However, the brilliant lawyer, Thurgood Marshall, had concluded that the best way to fight injustice was to use the Constitution itself. The pillar of his argument in Brown versus Board of Education of Topeka was the 14th Amendment—Equal protection of all citizens under the law. When asked during the court proceedings by Associate Justice Frankfurter what “equal” meant—without batting an eye—Thurgood Marshall replied— “Equal means getting the same thing, at the same time, and in the same place.” Now, tell me, son—how do you counter that kind of answer? Again, look at this—in nominating Thurgood Marshall to the Supreme Court, President Lyndon B. Johnson said, “I believe it is the right thing to do, the right time to do it, the right man and the right place.” No more excellent tribute could one person pay to another. He died in 1993. So, as you can see, we must stand tall.
JUNIOR: Indeed, Thurgood Marshall was a giant.
MOM: That is precisely what we are trying to teach you!! I am glad you are getting it! The fifties decade created significant momentum for the Civil Rights movement as it saw the coming together of several indomitable forces. We had Thurgood Marshall fighting in the Courts. Martin Luther King was organizing in the streets. Rosa Parks refused to go to the back of the bus. The nation was mourning Emmett Till. The young man, Cassius Clay, was fighting in the ring and talking and exciting a country that would soon have no choice but succumb to and embrace his charm. (Dad smiles). Only God in His infinite wisdom could have put all these superstars together in the same era.
CURTAIN
SCENE TWO
Enactment: (Cassius Clay in action: Cassius Clay is shown in several fights. He wins one hundred battles as an amateur. He becomes a local champion—)
DAD: They called Cassius Clay the ‘Louisville lip’ as he would not stop talking. He just talked and talked. He talked, and he boxed, leaving a string of boxers with broken dreams and aspirations. He accumulated a record of 100-5, going on to win the Kentucky Golden Gloves a record six times but, he did not stop there. His talents took him to win 2 National Golden Gloves and 2 National AAU Tournaments.
JUNIOR: Clearly, Ali was a phenomenon!!
DAD: Yes, Ali was a marvel. At his core, he was a natural entertainer and a poet. He had these leg movements he called the ‘Shuffle.’ He was a quintessential boxer in a class all by himself.
JUNIOR: The way you talk about Ali is so vivid.
DAD: Ali was ethereal, a rare kind of personality. The fifties were exciting times around the world. In Africa, colonies were fighting to gain Independence from their colonizers, Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, and Portugal. Back in 1885, European countries had sat down with a knife at the Berlin conference and carved out the whole of the African continent as their possessions. The Europeans conquered empires and sent Kings into exile, and while they neutralized some, others just disappeared. Then, finally, the continent was coming of age. Ghana gained Independence in 1957, led by Kwame Nkrumah. Nigeria was soon to follow in 1960.
In South America, fires were raging to snatch the countries out of the hands of dictators. Anastasio Somoza of Nicaragua was assassinated in 1956. In 1959, the handsome and charismatic Dr. Ernesto Che Guevara, fighting alongside the legendary Fidel Castro, overthrew the Military government of Fulgencio Batista and set up a Communist regime at the doorsteps of the United States. Do you know what is interesting? —All the propaganda about Communism and the evil of dictatorship in Cuba tends to mask the fact that they have one of the most advanced medical systems and best trained medical doctors in the world. They work for the cause, for love of country—the kind of sacrifice that is difficult to imagine in a capitalist economy.
MOM: Interestingly, many people do not know that one of the most beautiful songs ever written to praise the beauty of the most beautiful of all creation—Woman—was written by a Cuban Poet, Jose Marti. Long before Guantanamo became famous for the infamy of Al Qaeda detainees, Guantanamo was notable for the love song—Guantanamera—(Guantanamo girl).
(Enactment: A man does the tango with a girl on stage while the Orchestra plays Guantanamera as the audience sings along).
DAD: In Argentina, the people were fascinated by their First Lady, Evita Peron. Unfortunately, she succumbed to illness, but not before capturing the essence of Argentina with her romance, loyalty to her husband, and personal magnetism.
MOM: “Don’t cry for me, Argentina,” she said, as a nation went into mourning. (Enactment: Don’t cry for me, Argentina).
JUNIOR: Wow, just wow!
DAD: Evita was a phenomenon for that era. She captured the imagination of the world. In Egypt, Colonel Abdel Nasser had overthrown King Farouk and set up a Military Junta. The victors of the Second World War put the losers on trial. The Nuremberg trials were on, full speed, to bring the culprits to justice. The nation of Israel, which came into being in 1948, was fighting for its very existence, threatened by an overwhelmingly Arab population determined to push them into the Sea. What their detractors did not reckon with was the spirit of the new nation. After the extermination of over 6 million Jews by Hitler’s henchmen, the Jewish nation had come up with a resolve: “Never again.” The Jews have transformed themselves into a paradox. Israel is a small country. Land area: 8,700 Square miles. Population: 9 million. Standing Army: 2 million. Reserve Army: Everybody. I guess that makes them the most powerful military on earth. If that is not a paradox, tell me what it is!!!! Every Israeli joins the Army at 17. If they do not join, they are conscripted at 18, every man and woman. Exemptions may, however, be granted on the grounds of marriage, pregnancy, or parenthood.
JUNIOR: 6 million Jews?
MOM: Yes, that was the Holocaust. From that point on, Jews, wherever they were, began to make a beeline for Palestine. So, you can see why they are the way they are: Resolved: Never again.
CURTAIN
SCENE THREE
(The conversation continues on the couch).
JUNIOR: Where were the White preachers when segregation was going on?
DAD: For me to answer this question, we must put the growth of Christianity or, should I say, Pentecostalism in context. While post-slavery, every Church looked like Jim Crow on Sundays; things had begun to change with the Azusa Street Revival, when on April 9, 1906, the Holy Spirit fell upon a congregation led by an African American preacher, William J. Seymour. Immediately word spread, people gathered, Black and White. The color of the skin seemed to melt away as everyone began to speak in tongues. That significant event of the first decade of the 20th Century would play a crucial role in Church growth. Therefore, expectations grew in how preachers were perceived and what parts they should play concerning social and political events. It was no surprise that the NAACP chose Dr. King as a chief advocate, so the expectation was that White preachers should do the same. A handful made feeble attempts at speaking to the evils of society. You must understand, however, that your fight is your fight. Billy Graham was considered an ally by Dr. King, for example. The Reverend Graham invited Dr. King to speak at one of his crusades in 1957. His crusades were also fully integrated. However, Billy Graham was single-minded and very focused. His mission was—Souls—and his destination for everyone was—Heaven. Could he have done more? Probably. Was he a Southerner? Yes, also. Let us leave it there.
JUNIOR: It seems to me everyone just works for the stomach.
DAD: What is puzzling about that era of segregation was the role that “Sinners” played in desegregation. Sacrifices came from unexpected places. That is how God made the world. Think of Frank Sinatra refusing to play in a Nevada hotel that would not allow a man greater than himself—Nat King Cole—to eat in the main dining room. Instead, he stood up for Nat King Cole, a Black man. Frank Sinatra was standing up for a Black man; it is stories like this that Jesus was trying to illustrate to his audience in the story of the Good Samaritan. Frank Sinatra epitomized the Good Samaritan in the struggle. He played several benefits for the battle. Dr. King was said to have cried when Sinatra sang—Ol’ Man River—at one of such benefits.
The 50s were difficult yet, the most significant decade in the struggle for Civil Rights. (Frank Sinatra: Ol’ Man River).
CURTAIN
If you’re reading our serialization of the book: 100 Years & 5 Chronicles for the first time, scroll back to read Acts 1-5 to give you context. Please be kind to share. Scroll down to subscribe. Act 7 will be transporting us into the decade of the 60s. Many positive things happened. Many tragic things happened. Please journey with us. Thank you.
