Society builders pave the way, to a better world,
to a better day. A united approach to building a new society.
Join the conversation. For Social Transformation. Society Builders
Society Builders.
With your host, Duane Varan.
Welcome to our second season of Society Builders.
And thanks again for joining the conversation for social transformation.
Today's episode is the third episode in a special trilogy exploring
the contributions of Abdul-Baha, and the generation He inspired
on the race discourse in America.
As I mentioned in our previous episodes, this is probably the best example
of Baha'i contributions to society building in the Western world to date.
In part one of this trilogy, we discussed the historical context
to the American race discourse PRIOR to the arrival of Abdul-Baha in 1912.
As we discussed, the discourse of the day was dominated by a
pseudo-scientific strain of racism that, like a cancer, cultivated racist
attitudes to African-Americans.
Attitudes that resulted in the worst kinds of violence and transgressions against
Black America, including over 3,500 lynchings - lynchings, which often included
the horrific torture of its victims. And the religious communities of the day,
communities who had previously championed the abolition of slavery,
these communities were now entirely silent and looked the other way.
And the African-American response to all of this, for the most
part, was 'accommodationist', seeking to avoid rocking the boat and
looking for just modest gains.
So racism was rife both across the South, but also in the North in America.
And little was being done about it.
It was an American disease, and it was a disease that was spreading rapidly.
In part two, we explored the hunger and appetite that there
was for Abdul-Baha's Message by the time of His arrival in America.
Fascination with all things Persian was at a peak.
His message introduced new ideas in the race discourse - ideas that
got traction. And Abdul-Baha's talks represented almost the only religious
engagement on the race issue,
something that attracted considerable media attention in the Black Press
of the day, exposing the silence of America's churches on the issue.
And we explored what Abdul-Baha's Message for America really was on the race
issue, particularly in introducing a new strand to the Civil Rights discourse.
One positively focused on race unity rather than just social justice.
So episode two of our trilogy here explored what happened DURING
Abdul-Baha's travels in America.
Today we're gonna explore what impact this all had, both on the American Baha'i
community and on wider society in general.
In other words, today we explore the AFTER. And we're going to explore how
Abdul-Baha, and the generation He inspired, helped shape the evolution of the nascent
Civil Rights discourse in America.
Again, it's probably the best example we have to date of Baha'i Society
building in the Western world.
And I'm thrilled to say that today's episode will feature interviews with
leading Baha'i scholars, including in order of their appearances,
Dr. Robert Stockman,
Gail Morrison,
Dr. Chris Buck, and
Dr. Guy Emerson Mount.
So fasten your seatbelts.
You are in for an amazing ride.
As I mentioned in our previous episode, Abdul-Baha spoke at major events.
Events that would have reached a good portion of the Black intelligentsia
in America, particularly his standing room only address at
Howard University, America's most prestigious Black university
and his speeches at the fourth annual convention of the NAACP. And these talks
got extensive media coverage in America, particularly by the Black American press.
So between the audiences that would've heard Abdul-Baha's talks directly, and
those who would've read the coverage, it's clear that Black America had
strong familiarity with Abdul-Baha and His Message of race unity.
But Abdul-Baha's talks also had a dramatic impact on the Baha'i community in America,
and it resulted in numerous Baha'is engaging directly in the race discourse.
It reflected the transformation of a great many believers who went on to
become champions promoting race unity.
Eminent Baha'i historian
Dr. Robert Stockman, who's written a number of books about the early American
Baha'i community, talks about a number of ways that Abdul-Baha's message interacted
with the race discourse in America.
Stockman: Yeah, I think there are at least four ways that the Baha'is were of assistance
to African-Americans in this period of time from say, uh, 1900 to 1950 or so.
First of all, the Baha'i Faith was covered with a certain amount of prominence in
the leading African-American publications of the time, specifically the Chicago
Defender, which had Robert Abbott as its editor, and he later became a Baha'i.
He mentioned the Faith in the pages of the Defender
fairly often.
Second of all, there was the Crisis, which was the monthly publication
of the NAACP, the editor being W.E.B. Du Bois, and of course, he
covered Abdul-Baha's visit in 1912.
Named Abdul-Baha Man of the Month.
I think that was June of 1912.
And also covered Abdul-Baha's passing in 1921.
So, there were at least those references and possibly other references
to the Faith in the, the monthly pages, of the Crisis, which was a very,
very influential publication in the African American community nationwide.
Of course some of those kinds of coverage of the Faith probably also
helped people like Alain Locke to accept the Faith because it was more
current, it was more recognizable, and its position on integration was clear.
And so I think that also helped attract some people
to consider the Faith or to at least become friends of the Faith.
Then of course we have Louis Gregory's frequent trips to the South where
he spoke, especially, to historically Black colleges and universities,
hBCUs. I should add that he also spoke to Black business associations.
And other organizations of African-Americans in the South.
So again, these are not rural farmers.
These are urban people who have a certain amount of interest in coming
together and talking about the situation of the African-American community,
ways to improve it, ways to continue to develop African-American prosperity.
And so Louis Gregory was frequently being invited by groups like that to speak.
And so certainly they would've heard of the Faith
through Louis Gregory and his, his efforts, that's I think probably a
bigger, may even have been a bigger influence than the Chicago Defender and
the Crisis because he would've reached tens of thousands of people, not just by
a quick skim of an article, but listening to him speak for half an hour or so.
And so I think that likely is, is a, a major
a source of, of Baha'i influence on the development of the
African-American community in the country.
There was of course also a, a good example of the kind of influence that
Louis Gregory had in the South was this, this man named
mr. Henderson.
He opened a business college in Memphis, Tennessee, and this business
college continued to operate, I think until the 50s or 60s.
And it was even referred to, I think, by Abdul-Baha.
Cause it was, we're talking about the teens when, when Mr.
Henderson became a Baha'i. Abdul-Baha even referred to it as a Baha'i college.
So there was clear involvement of Baha'i principles in African-American
educational efforts right there in the,very early in the 20th century.
Then there is the whole issue of the fact that the Baha'is were allies.
And even though the Baha'i community at that time was say, one 10,000th the
population of the country, perhaps 1% of the allies were Baha'is because the Baha'is
were, while not a large fraction of the allies of the African-American community,
they were their nevertheless outsized, considering their own
small size because of their position about the equality of all people.
So that clearly is another way that the Baha'i community was influential.
And it may very well be that the hope the Baha'is had and the optimism,
the conviction that the Baha'is had that race Unity could and indeed
would eventually be achieved in the United States, may have given
people an additional reason for hope.
Varan: So Dr. Stockman
highlights a number of different ways in which the early American
Baha'is engaged with Black America.
There was the extensive coverage, which the Faith and its position
on race Unity attracted, particularly with the Black press.
There was the travels of Louis Gregory who reached tens of
thousands of African Americans, particularly in the American South.
There was the initiative of George Henderson, a Baha'i, who went on
to found the Henderson Business College that went on to educate and
train thousands of Black Americans.
And there was the interaction of the early American believers with the
Civil Rghts communities of the day.
We'll explore some of these themes further in today's episode.
I'd like to dive a little deeper on the contributions
of the amazing Louis Gregory.
As Dr. Stockman
shared, this interaction with Black America was probably even more
impactful than all the press coverage, which the Faith attracted at the time.
Now most Baha'is know a thing or two about Louis Gregory.
Perhaps you recall the story of the luncheon where Washington DC High
Society came out to honor Abdul-Baha.
When Abdul-Baha asked where
mr. Gregory, who was Black, was the host who didn't want to have to
explain that African-Americans shouldn't dine with white folk well,
the host said there simply wasn't enough seats at the table. To
which Abdul-Baha replied that Mr.
Gregory could have His seat.
And this ensured that Mr. Gregory
was seated in the position of honor right next to Abdul-Baha.
Or we've heard the story about how Abdul-Baha encouraged the union of
Mr. Gregory
to Mrs. Louise Mathews
who was white.
Now, this kind of interracial marriage might seem normal these days, but
at the time it was pretty shocking.
I mean, it was outright illegal and the majority of US states, so Abdul-Baha's
position on integration made waves, but it also set the standard.
Mr. Gregory
is such an amazing and magnetic soul who devoted most of
his life to traveling and spreading the Cause, particularly in the
American South, to share the Faith and its message on race unity.
As Dr. Stockman
noted earlier, in this way, he reached tens of thousands
at a deep and intimate level.
Now THE authority on Lewis Gregory is
Gail Morrison, author of that great biography on his life: 'To Move the World'.
Let's listen to Dr. Morrison
share some highlights for
Mr. Gregory's travels.
Morrison: He was a rising young lawyer in essentially a small pond of highly
educated Black Americans who were filling some of the first judgeships
and other positions of prominence.
That was the future, the trajectory that he was, by training and by inclination,
placed upon before he became a Baha'i. And especially before Abdel Baha's visit.
Instead, when Abdul-Baha in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, called
for teachers to arise and take the Baha'i Faith all over North America and
eventually around the world, but in those beginning tablets emphasizing the
importance of the different regions, Louis Gregory responded immediately
by going on a trip to the South.
Doors opened for him that would not have been opened for others because
having gone to one of the leading secondary institutions of learning
in Charleston, South Carolina, Avery Institute, he knew many people in South
Carolina. And even beyond, then having gone to Fiske University, one of the
leading Black colleges in Tennessee,
he, again, knew many people that he had been mentored by, that
had been classmates and so on.
And then studying law at Howard University, again in essentially
elite circles of capable, committed Black Americans who were doing all
kinds of things throughout the South.
So he was able to go into a, a town that he'd never visited before, even if
he hadn't made connections beforehand,
and he was able to, first of all, find a place to stay because that was not
always even possible to do beforehand because there were no hotels or motels
or even boarding houses that would take African-American travelers.
So he would arrive in a town oftentimes make connections, get seeking engagements
in churches and schools and colleges.
Sometimes they were arranged beforehand and sometimes they
were just arranged on the spot.
And his first teaching trip was remarkable.
So remarkable that he and his wife Louise, consulted and decided to sell their
home in order to finance his continued teaching trips throughout the South.
No one else at that time had his ability, had his connections, had his
speaking ability, because he was a remarkable speaker by all accounts.
So he, he had a, a vision, he had a mandate from Abdul-Baha, and he had a
personal commitment that the Tablets of the Divine Plan instilled in him.
And that continued essentially for the rest of his life.
His travels were not always as intense, but he went to virtually every state
in the continental United States and special on the Southern states.
I think it was Roy Williams, one of his fellow teachers, and somewhat later years
who described it as being like a spiderweb that he knit throughout
the South where he touched on so many different communities. And that net
even now, even today, we're still feeling the effects of it from the
children to the grandchildren, to the great-grandchildren of people
who recall having met Louis Gregory and been changed and touched by him.
In this way, Louis Gregory and his teaching companions familiarized
Black America with the Baha'i Faith.
Varan: In fact, he, more than anyone, cultivated the first Baha'i communities
in most of the Southern states.
But he also had a profound impact on sharing the Baha'i message on race
unity, an influence that went well beyond those embracing the Faith,
an influence that helped shape Black discourse throughout America.
Dr. Stockman
also referred to the high level of interaction between the early
American Baha'is and the Civil Rights communities of the day, how even though
Baha'is were small in number, they had a significant presence in these communities.
In fact, there was a deep and incredibly meaningful interaction between Baha'is
and in particular, the new Civil Rights organizations, groups like the NAACP,
the Urban League, Hull House, and the Lincoln Center, and it was truly an
interaction, an alliance. Baha'is were supporting their initiatives, and they
were supporting Baha'i initiatives.
It was a deep and symbiotic relationship with extensive
intermingling between the groups.
Where this was most clearly evident was in the series of Race Amity Conventions
that Baha'is hosted, which featured many of the most influential thinkers in the race
discourse coming together to share ideas about how to best facilitate race unity.
Now these conventions were a response to the race situation,
growing increasingly out of control.
You know, the term 'race riots' at that time didn't refer to
Black uprisings at that time.
Race riots were white people going into Black neighborhoods and setting
them on fire, killing people, destroying these communities.
The situation was at its worse in the summer of 1919, what's called the 'Red
Summer', when these kind of race riots broke out in some 38 cities across the
country, resulting in literally, hundreds of Black deaths, some as lynchings, some
being shot, some being burnt alive.
Many of those killed were first tortured.
I mean, it was truly horrific and there was no prosecution of the
white hooligans for these actions.
So you can imagine that the race issue was one filled with tension, probably
at a level, never seen before or after.
The Race Amity conventions
starting in 1921, provided a contrast, a focus
on bringing the races together.
It was a healing forum with a positive focus, and it brought people and
organizations together, bringing religious communities back to the race issue for the
first time since the abolition of slavery.
And in this way, it marks the beginning of religious communities reengaging
with the Civil Rights movement.
Its impact was truly profound.
It brought a positive focus to the race issue and it reacquainted religious
communities with the race discourse.
Now these conventions were held at the direct instruction of Abdul-Baha.
Let's listen to
gail Morrison
pick up the story here and tell us about the deliberations that were
happening among Baha'i communities as they grappled with how to best respond
to the crisis of the Red Summer.
Morrison: The Baha'is initially felt they should do something and were consulting about it.
But probably nothing much would've happened, or it would've been
talk more than anything else
if Abdul-Bahaa had not intervened directly. And the way He did it was surprising
in that he didn't turn to somebody who was already knowledgeable about
the racial situation in the United States, or committed in some way.
Instead, when Agnes Parsons, the Washington Socialite, wealthy women,
who had probably never given much thought at all to the race question
beyond what she had learned in the 10 years or so that she had been in Baha'i.
He said to her in a gathering of people at the dinner table that she should arrange a
conference in Washington, DC for white and colored people, bringing them together.
She was floored.
That was the last thing in the world that she had any inclination to do.
That was the last thing in the world that she had any talent for.
She'd never organized any kind of.
She felt organizing something about race was, she felt, beyond her ability.
But because she was a lover of Abdul- Baha and obedient to Abdul-Baha,
she took it on slowly, gradually.
She went back to Washington DC and nothing much was happening.
And then she consulted through the instigation of another Baha'i with
a former senator from the state of Minnesota, Moses Clap, and he
gave her some very good ideas.
She thought about not making it a protest, but lifting things
to a level of changing hearts.
And she got a group of people to help her out, mostly society women, people of some
wealth and prominence in the community.
Some of them became involved in organizing, some became patrons and there
was involvement from Howard University in providing support from their choir, a
number of other facets of the conference.
So that when it was held in May of 1921, it represented, because it was
in the nation's capital, a segregated city, not by law, but in fact, it
represented a, an amazing departure from anything that had happened before.
Because it brought together many hundreds, usually at most sessions, almost 2000
or so, people of both races to hear talks by mostly people who are not Baha'i.
Sessions were shared by Baha'is, and it was remarkably successful.
The publicity was handled by Martha Root, and it achieved extremely good press
coverage. So that between the thousands of people who attended, and the many
thousands more who read articles about it, it was a remarkable achievement at a
time of great peril when racial violence was spreading throughout the country.
Varan: Baha'i's continued hosting these Race Amity conventions for well over a
decade, bringing together many of the nation's most prominent scholars and
Civil Rights leaders to share their views on how to best promote race unity.
And Baha'is did this in partnership with like-minded organizations and
advocates, including organizations like the NAACP and various church groups.
In this way, Baha'i communities acted as the levin cultivating and stimulating
wider engagement with this new focus on race unity, and this focus on unity,
as opposed to say, justice.
Well, this was an entirely unique Baha'i contribution to
the race discourse in America.
I mean, unity is a higher state.
It's inherently inclusive of social justice.
So this positive focus on unity introduces an entirely new strand
to the Civil Rights movement.
So its impact was monumental.
I think it's also important here to discuss how incredible the story of
this interaction really is, because in this story is nested a story of
the fundamental transformation of so many of the early American Baha'is.
You see, Baha'i engagement with the race issue took different forms.
Now, to be fair, I'm sure there were many Baha'is who didn't engage
with the race issue at all.
Not withstanding the urgency of this issue within the community and with the
guidance they would've been receiving from Abdul-Baha, some of these believers
simply discounted the race unity principle as something intended for the future,
something beyond their immediate concern.
But these believers would simply have not engaged with the issue, or
from time to time, perhaps challenged its priority within the community.
Obviously, these weren't the believers interacting with the Civil Rights
communities we're talking about here. And conversely, I'm sure there were Baha'is
who embraced the Faith in part because they already believed in principles
like race unity, and found in the Faith a belief system that better
aligned with their existing convictions.
So for believers like this, advocating for race unity would've come naturally.
So of course THESE would've been believers interacting with these communities.
I mean, this is something I'm sure they would've found incredibly fulfilling.
But what's most interesting, I think, are those believers who came into the
Faith for reasons other than race unity.
Like for example, because of our teachings on progressive revelation.
And in many, if not most of these cases, these believers would've been raised
in households that interacted with
friends and in social circles who would've held beliefs consistent with the racist
norms that were so prevalent in the day.
Now, this group of believers, I think is the most interesting
to our story. For these people,
their transition from being contaminated by the stain of racism
to becoming champions for race unity -
well, this can only be understood as their fundamental transformation.
It's a reflection of their spiritual transformation.
We have the example of course, which
Morrison referred to of Agnes Parsons.
I mean, it's remarkable that Abdul-Baha chose someone to organize the first
of these conventions who had never engaged with the race issue in any way.
The race issue was largely irrelevant for her, but in
obedience to Abdul-Baha's instructions and overcoming an enormous sense
of feeling incapable to the task,
she rose and was truly transformed in the process. And this focus on race
unity would be her main focus for the rest of her years.
Dr. Stockman
provides another example in a white Boston socialite,
Howard McNutt, who prior to Abdul-Baha's arrival, interacted in the kinds of
social circles where racism prevailed. And you can see its influence in his
own interactions and his correspondence,
for example. Yet once Abdul-Baha arrived in America, Howard McNutt is
transformed by this message of race unity, and it becomes his focus
for his remaining years.
Let's listen to
Dr. Stockman again.
Stockman: When Howard McNutt retired, he and his wife retired to Miami, Florida and they
retired to a place where they were very close to the Black neighborhood so they
could walk over to the Black neighborhood and arrange Baha'i meetings. And he died
crossing the street, got hit by a car, if I remember right, on his way to a Baha'i
meeting in the Black part of Miami.
So he and his wife devoted their life to teaching the Faith to African-American
people in Florida in the 20s.
So that's what Abdul-Baha did.
You see, those are the changes Abdul- Baha made in people and in the Baha'i
culture, the American Baha'i culture.
Varan: My favorite story though is the story of Pauline Hannon.
Now Pauline and her husband Joseph would play an incredibly important
role in sharing the faith with many Black Americans, including key icons
like Louis Gregory and Alain Locke.
But this focus did not come naturally for her.
She had been raised in South Carolina in a society which cultivated racist attitudes.
But the Faith literally transformed her.
In fact, as she tells the story, her attitude towards race changed
once she read a passage from the Writings of Baha'u'llah where
He wrote: "Oh, children of men.
Know ye not
why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself
over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how you were created.
Since we have created you all from the same substance, it is incumbent
on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same
mouth, and dwell in the same land.
That from your innermost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs
of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest."
Now, this passage deeply moved Pauline and it resulted in her
fundamental transformation.
Let's listen to Dr. Chris Buck
who has written extensively on the engagement of the
early American Baha'is on the race discourse, as he tells us her story.
Buck: This passage from the Hidden Words struck Pauline in a lightning flash
of sudden insight after realizing the profound implications of Baha'u'llah's words
regarding the oneness and equality of the human race. This is what happened next.
One snowy day.
During the Thanksgiving season, Pauline came across a Black
woman trudging through the snow.
Pauline noticed that the woman's shoelaces were untied. Arms full
from the bundle she was carrying,
the woman was unable to do anything about it.
Inspired by this passage from the Hidden Words, Pauline knelt down in the snow
to tie this woman's shoes for her.
'She was astonished',
Pauline recalled.
'And those who saw it appeared to think I was crazy.'
That event marked a turning point for Pauline.
She resolved to bring the Baha'i message of unity to Black people.
Varan: From that moment forward, Pauline and her husband Joseph, began hosting integrated
firesides at their house, firesides, where both Black and white could come together
to discover the teachings of the Faith.
And many notable African-American Baha'is embraced the Faith as
a result of these firesides.
This engagement with Black America didn't go unnoticed.
It wasn't just that Baha'is had noble ideals to share.
It wasn't just that they were interacting with Civil Rights groups.
It wasn't just that they lit a path for America's churches to
reengage with the discourse.
It wasn't just that they hosted events
that were instrumental in challenging the pseudo-scientific racism of the day.
It was something more than all of this.
It was the example that people saw in the lives of these early Baha'is.
You see, Baha'is lived the principle of the equality of the races.
They walked the talk, and this was clearly evident.
It was evident in the fact that white socialites invited African-Americans into
their homes despite the consequences this might have in their own social circles.
It was evident in their integration as a community, even promoting interracial
marriage. And it was evident in the truly heroic action they took from time to time.
I think the best example of this kind of heroism is the example we have of Dr.
Dr. Zia Baghdadi.
Now, Dr. Baghdadi
was a Persian believer who had migrated to Chicago.
Now remember when we discussed those riots in the summer of 1919, the the Red Summer?
Well, the worst of these riots were the Chicago riots. White hooligans created
absolute terror there, driving through the streets, shooting,
killing, even burning people alive.
It was horrific.
African-Americans couldn't leave their homes, so they had no access to food
or medical help, and the police and ambulances and fire departments refused
to enter these neighborhoods out of fear.
So the situation was truly dire, and these riots ran for over a week.
In this environment when no one dared assist these Black communities, Dr.
Baghdadi spent his days providing food and medical assistance to those in need.
I mean, this was truly heroic stuff.
He literally risked his life to be of service to the Black community there.
And the Black community never forgot this.
These were acts they attributed to his Faith.
And so the Faith also benefited from this kind of heroism.
So you can imagine the profound impact that this example of
heroism had on this community.
And so Baha'is developed the kind of rapport with Black America that made them trusted
allies in their crusade for Civil Rights.
It's a remarkable example.
Now, as I alluded to earlier, it's important to appreciate
the results of all of this.
And to be fair, I don't think the Baha'is of the day ever really understood the
long-term impact they were having.
In fact, after a little more than a decade of hosting these conventions, Baha'is
eventually gave up, and I think a big reason for this was because they didn't
think they were achieving their successes.
Large masses didn't embrace the Faith.
Racism continued largely unabated.
They were just too close to the action to appreciate the longer
term impact their work was having.
One of these longer term effects was the remarkable impact their
contributions had in shaping the race discourse in America today.
Many of the most central tenants of the Civil Rights Movement actually find
their roots in this interaction between the movement and the Baha'i Faith.
To help shape this discussion, let's once again listen to
dr. Chris Buck here.
He's quoting from
Dr. Martin Luther King in a speech he gave on March 19th, 1968, less than
a month before his assassination.
'We're going to let our children know that the only philosophers that lived were not
Plato and Aristotle, but W.E.B. Du Bois and Alain Locke came through the universe.'
Now remember, these are Martin Luther King's words.
He focuses on the critical contributions of two Black philosophers,
W.E.B. Du Bois and Alain Locke, and these two are probably the most
influential Black Americans.
In the early part of the 20th century in terms of shaping the evolution
of the modern Civil Rights movement. They introduce some of the central
principles upon which the movement is ultimately based and which
still largely define the movement.
And for the purpose of today's discussion, what's important to realize is that both
Dubois and Locke are deeply interacting with the Faith as they pursue this task.
Now let's explore this all a little bit deeper.
First, let's discuss DuBois.
He was the co-founder of the NAACP and the editor of the Crisis magazine,
but he was also an amazing scholar.
In fact, he single-handedly destroyed the credibility of the
whole Dunning school that we talked about in a previous episode, that
intellectual strand of racism.
And he did this by going into great detail to refute the assertion
that Black Americans were to blame for poor governance in the
South following the Civil War.
And he probably did more than anyone to challenge that Accommodationist
response to Black oppression that we talked about in our previous episode.
He's probably the single most important Civil Rights figure in the early
20th century, and Du Bois was deeply interacting with the Baha'i community.
His wife, Nina, joined the Faith.
He often spoke at Baha'i events including summer schools, and it's clear that many
of his contemporaries believed that he was being heavily influenced by the Faith.
This is a subject that
Dr. Guy Emerson Mount has been studying.
Let's hear him address this topic.
Mount: It, it certainly is the case that other radicals within Du Bois's
orbit certainly thought that the religion was having a anti, if not de
revolutionizing effect on him, right.
That it was mollifying his otherwise commitment to global revolution.
There's a particular document that I uncovered that had one of this fellow
kind of communists saying that when Du Bois was advocating for not taking up armed
revolutionary self-defense kind of approach to take a more kind of passivist
nonviolent approach, that one of his communist, you know, collaborators
says, 'Hey, what are you doing?
What are you talking about?
You sound like a follower of Abdul-Baha.'
Varan: So here we see in the account of DuBois's own contemporaries, this idea
that there is this Baha'i influence, potentially pacifying DuBois.
Now, this is a really big deal.
The Civil Rights movement at this time is grappling with whether
it should reflect some kind of
armed resistance or this path to non-violence.
And one of the hallmarks of the modern Civil Rights movement is that it
largely went down the nonviolent path.
And DuBois is critical to that juncture.
He's critical to that decision.
So it's fascinating to see this potential Baha'i influence here.
And it's not an influence that Baha'is are asserting.
It's an influence that his contemporaries are actually complaining about.
And another one of DuBois's most profound contributions to the Civil Rights movement
in America was the ideas he put forward about what we now call 'Affirmative Action'.
This is a principle that not only shapes Civil Rights policies in
the United States, but that went on to shape such policies worldwide.
And this is the principle that,
other things being equal, favor, if there is to be one, should
be shown to the disadvantaged.
I mean, this is another one of those hallmarks of the
modern Civil Rights movement.
But how were these ideas formed?
Let's listen again to Dr. Emerson Mount
addressing this influence.
Mount: Like in the 1930s, he's writing a, a friend who's familiar with the Faith, who sends
him a copy of 'Advent of Divine Justice'.
And DuBois is talking in, in very, really, in the margins.
He's like on page, I mean, it's like page numbers, right?
And he he's, he's going back and forth with his, his friend.
And the reference of pge reference was to this idea of, of Affirmative Action.
And the idea that in Baha elections, you know that if one person's a minority,
there's not that kind of a tie goes to the the person who's from an oppressed
kind of historical positionality.
So here we have direct evidence of the Faith's influence in helping shape
DuBois's views on Affirmative Action.
Now, to be sure there are other influences in DuBois's work. But it's
clear that the Baha'i Faith is one of those, heavily influencing his work.
All right, now let's discuss that second pivotal figure that
Martin Luther King referred to
Dr. Alain Locke.
Alain Locke is considered the Dean of what became known
as the Harlem Renaissance.
He's the father of the Harlem Renaissance.
This was an explosion of Black artistic expression in the 1920s that
celebrated and redefined Black culture.
It rejected white society's right to define Black art and gave rise to new
celebrations of cultural pluralism.
It gave rise to Black art as a distinct art form in America.
It laid the foundation for what would come to be termed 'Black Pride.'
Again, Black Pride is another pivotal foundation for the
modern Civil Rights movement.
So here too, we need to explore how this great philosopher,
Alain Locke, interacted with the Faith.
Well, in Alain's case, this is easy, since he actually embraced the Faith in
1918 and went on to serve the community on many levels throughout his life.
Like many, he had his challenges in that journey, but it's clear that he is an
active and dedicated Baha'i having made a pilgrimage, having spent many months
on the road with Louis Gregory traveling throughout the South, promoting both
the Faith and the cause of race unity.
Having served on numerous national Baha'i Race Amity committees, having written a
number of articles, promoting the Faith, speaking at Baha'i meetings and firesides.
I mean, there is no question that the Faith deeply influences Alain
and helped shape his worldview that he truly was a dedicated Baha'i.
Here once again is Dr. Chris Buck,
who has written an outstanding biography on Alain Locke, which
explores his relationship with the Faith.
Here, Dr. Buck
shares part of a speech that Alain gave at the Baha'i National Convention.
I love this speech because it clearly reflects this interaction with the faith.
Let's listen to Dr. Buck
recite part of Locke's speech at that convention.
Buck (quoting Locke): "America's democracy must begin at home with a spiritual fusion of all her
constituent peoples in brotherhood and in an actual mutuality of life.
Until democracy is worked out in the vital small scale of practical
human relations, it can never, except as an empty formula, prevail on the
national or international basis.
Until it establishes itself in human hearts.
It can never institutionally flourish.
Moreover, America's reputation and moral influence in the world depends
on the successful achievement of this vital spiritual democracy within the
lifetime of the present generation.
Material civilization alone does not safeguard the progress of a nation,
Baha'i principles and the leavening of our national life with their power,
is to be regarded as the salvation of democracy.
In this way, only can the fine professions of American ideals
be realized."
I mean, this is so incredibly profound.
Imagine hearing this at a Baha'i National Convention from one of
the leading scholars of the age.
I mean, in our current language here, Alain Locke is linking the release
of the society building power of the Faith, the application of these
Baha'i principles, to the ultimate.
Salvation of American democracy.
Wow!
I mean, it doesn't get any more inspiring than that, right?
And both Abdul-Baha and the beloved Guardian had high praise for
Alain Locke's service to the Faith.
Here again, let's listen to Dr. Chris Buck
as he shares with us some correspondence on this theme
from both Abdul-Baha and Shoghi Effendi.
Buck: In a letter written in 1921, the last year of Abdul-Baha's life, He wrote
"Dr. Locke,
this distinguished personage, deserve every praise.
I implore the kingdom of God to grant him special confirmations."
Shoghi Effendi,
also, as I said, had high praise for Alan Locke.
A letter on behalf of Shoghi Effendi stated the following: "Shoghi
Effendi was very glad indeed to hear from you and learned that
you have been in good health.
He cherishes in his loving heart.
Great hope for your spiritual success. People as you,
Mr. Gregory,
Dr. Esslelmont
and some other dear souls are rare
as diamond. You should first be mindful of your physical health and
then take steps along the channel of the regeneration of mankind.
The world more than ever is in need of spiritual nourishment.
You are the chosen ones to render this service to the lifeless
world in this present age."
Varan: Now it's hard to delineate whether Locke already had formed his pivotal
ideas before discovering the Faith.
In fact, the resonance of those ideas may have been why he was
attracted to the Faith in the first place. Or whether it was the
Faith that helped form these ideas.
But the point is that his Faith is interacting with the
development of these ideas.
And in the process helping to shape the race discourse in America.
Now, these are just examples of how these great thinkers are interacting with the
Faith and the development of these ideas.
To be clear, the Faith attracted many other amazing Black adherenants as well.
Many of the most influential Black Americans of the day, including
people like Robert Abbott, the editor of the Chicago Defender
that I referred to earlier.
Now, the Defender
was a Chicago newspaper, but copies of the Defender were distributed
nationwide through a network of Black railroad workers because Chicago was
the nexus of the National Rail Network.
So the Defender was America's national Black newspaper.
Scholars estimate that over one and a half million Black Americans found the
courage to migrate from South to North
directly because of the efforts of Robert Abbott and his Chicago Defender. This
is what we call the Great Migration.
I mean, this is such an incredibly profound impact, and many scholars
consider this Great Migration to be another pivotal foundation to the rise
of the modern Civil Rights movement.
So here too, the contributions of Robert Abbott
are significant.
Similarly, there's George Henderson, the founder of the Henderson Business College.
That's that Black university we referred to earlier.
So here George Henderson and the Baha'i faculty at this university are literally
educating thousands of Black Americans.
Another significant influence.
Or there's Miss Ida Wells
considered one of the greatest journalists in American history and
the recipient of the Pulitzer Prize. Miss Wells's coverage of lynchings,
and particularly the painstaking evidence she would discover to prove
that the victims were innocent of the crimes they were accused of,
this was riveting journalism
at its best.
She was probably the best known African-American.
Woman of her day, the Oprah Winfrey of her times.
Now we don't know a great deal about her interaction with the Faith.
This is something that future historians will have to study. But we do know that
she embraced the Faith and signed on to our membership roles.
Or consider Mr.Dana Dorsey,
the wealthiest Black American in Florida, who hoped to build a model
city in Florida for Black Americans and had dedicated land for future
Temple as part of that initiative.
I mean, even though this project didn't come to fruition, he's an
example of another giant with great influence in the Black community.
Or is the case of the pastor of the First Emmanuel Church in Harlem, pastor
Richard Bolden, who in 1920 got his entire congregation to embrace the faith.
I mean, these were many of America's best known African-Americans.
I mean, they were truly
influential. And you can see the deep and profound interaction
of the Faith in their lives.
So you can see in these examples how the contributions of the Baha'is in these
early years had a profound interaction with Black America and with the evolution
of the modern Civil Rights movement.
Now understanding the contours of just how extensive this influence really was,
remains a task for future historians.
But it is clear that there WAS an influence, and it's clear that this
interaction between Baha'is and the Civil Rights Movement helped shape
its ultimate course and destiny.
A quick postscript for reflection.
As I mentioned, I don't think the early American Baha'is realized just
how profound their contributions to the race discourse really was.
Although they had their moments of victory,
following the Race Amity Conventions, for example, for the most part,
they felt they had fallen short.
As I mentioned earlier, large numbers didn't embrace the Faith.
They didn't immediately turn the tide of racism.
Race riots continued to break out.
To see their contributions, you needed a longer lens to history.
I don't think they understood or fully appreciated, for example, just how
influential their work ultimately was.
But one thing is clear, even if they didn't see that potential.
Abdul-Baha clearly saw this potential.
He not only gave instructions for the first of these Race Amity Conventions,
but He pleaded that they continue.
Similarly, Shoghi Effendi repeatedly encouraged the American Baha'i communities
to revisit and continue hosting them.
Even the Universal House of Justice made a similar appeal, writing the American
Baha'i community in 1987, asking them to revisit and host Race Amity Conventions.
Despite our early victories in this arena, these conventions really came to a
close in the early 1930s and haven't been occurring with any regularity ever since.
Now, if Abdul-Baha and Shoghi Effendi and the Universal House of Justice, all keep
pleading for us to host these conferences...
Hmm.
Don't you think that's something we should consider?
I'll leave that as something for you to ponder
and reflect on.
Well, this brings our special trilogy on the contributions of Abdul-Baha,
and the generation He inspired, on the race discourse in America, to a close.
Naturally, we'll be revisiting the race discourse in future episodes.
It's one of the best examples of how we can engage in society
building, so we have much to look forward to in future episodes.
I wanna give a huge shout out to thank my special guest today in
order of their appearance,
Dr. Robert Stockman,
Gail Morrison,
Dr. Chris Buck, and
Dr. Guy Emerson Mount.
These scholars were incredibly generous with their time, and they're the true
expert on this topic, having written numerous books and articles on it.
So I'd encourage you to read their work to learn more.
In season one, we talked a lot about the future and we talked a lot about the past.
Now in season two, we're gonna focus more on the present, and we're gonna
kick this all off in our next episode by exploring the guidance from the
Universal House of Justice in that amazing December 30th, 2021 message, which lays
out our mandate for society building.
So join me again next time as we explore this amazing guidance from
the Universal House of Justice. And thanks once again for joining the
Conversation for Social Transformation.
I'll see you again next time on Society Builders.
Society Builders pave the way t o a better world to a better day.
A united approach to building a new society.
There's a crisis facing in humanity.
People suffer from a lack of unity.
It's time for a better path to a new society.
Join the conversation, for social transformation. Society Builders.
So engage with your local communities and explore all the exciting possibilities.
We can elevate the atmosphere in which we move. The paradigm is shifting.
It's so very uplifting.
It's a new beat, a new song, a brand new groove.
Join the conversation, for Social transformation.
Society Builders.
The Baha'i Faith has a lot to say,
helping people discover a better way with discourse and social action framed by unity.
Now the time has come to lift our game and apply the teachings of the Greatest Name and rise to meet the glory of our destiny.