Emil Lou

Ballots or Bullets Emil Lou

Half a century has passed since the Civil Rights Movement brought civic leaders and luminaries such as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. to prominence in the public eye. Much has changed during that time, culturally, technologically, and in terms of the extent of interpersonal and intercultural progress. Despite progress, we still find ourselves faced with many of the same questions and issues that these and other leaders of the Civil Rights Movement faced in the 1960s. They both sought a common goal: freedom and independence for their people; yet, strategies and tactics differed, at the very least in public view. However, passage of time has lent a perspective in which we can look back on their ministries and seek lessons from their history, because their history is our history. What is remarkable is that, towards the end of their lives, one can consider that their speeches sowed the seeds of considering the other's perspectives, and perhaps even a willingness to evolve and adopt strategies that they had not considered previously. While not often examined, there appeared to be a convergence of ideas that possibly would have met in parallel as they marched toward their common goal, if the lives of these two historic leaders had not been cut short by the bullets of assassins. The purpose of this essay is to examine the lives of these two luminaries of history, and to provide context - half a century after their deaths - for their common strengths and philosophies, despite their many known differences and roles in U. S. history.