Cambridge movement (civil rights)

The movement

Initial protests

On Christmas Eve of 1961, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee Field Secretaries, Reggie Robinson and Bill Hansen, arrived and began organizing student protests. The Cambridge Movement, much like Freedom Summer, placed significant emphasis on voter education drives, but there were some differences. In Cambridge, local white residents did not react as violently to increased Black voter registration as they did in Mississippi. In fact, some white moderates even advocated for voter registration, viewing it as a better alternative to direct action protests in the streets and public facilities. Moreover, Black voter registration did not threaten the white majority as it did in the Black Belt in the American South.

In 1962, the Cambridge Nonviolent Action Committee (CNAC) was organized to run these protests. Gloria Richardson and Inez Grubb both became the co-chairs of CNAC, which was the only SNCC affiliate not led by students. The CNAC began picketing businesses that refused to hire Black people and conducted sit-ins at lunch-counters that would not serve Black individuals. White mobs often disrupted these protests. Protests on Race Street, which separated the Black and white communities, often turned violent. Cleveland Sellers, a SNCC Field Secretary, later reflected, "By the time we got to town, Cambridge's Black people had stopped extolling the virtues of passive resistance. Guns were carried as a matter of course and it was understood that they would be used." Richardson defended such actions by the Black community, stating, "Self-defense may actually be a deterrent to further violence. Hitherto, the government has moved into conflict situations only when matters approach the level of insurrection."

In the spring of 1963, tensions rose steadily over a period of seven weeks. During this time, Richardson and 80 other protesters were arrested. By June, Black residents were rioting in the streets. Maryland Governor J. Millard Tawes met with the protesters at a local school, offering to accelerate school desegregation, build public housing, and establish a biracial commission if the protests ceased. The CNAC rejected the deal. In response, Governor Tawes declared martial law and sent the National Guard to Cambridge.

Treaty of Cambridge

Potential violence near Washington, D.C., brought Cambridge to the attention of the Kennedy Administration. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy initiated discussions with the CNAC. Together with the local city government, they arrived at an agreement aimed at averting possible violence. The agreement, named the 'Treaty of Cambridge,' proposed to desegregate public facilities, establish provisions for public housing, and create a human rights committee. However, it eventually fell through when the local government demanded that it should be passed by a local referendum.

George Wallace

In May 1964, George Wallace, the segregationist Governor of Alabama, was invited by the DBCA, the city's primary business association, to give a campaign speech in Cambridge. Shortly after his arrival, black protesters appeared to protest his appearance, which incited a riot.

Aftermath

Once the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed by Congress, the movement lost all momentum. The federal government had effectively mandated all that the CNAC had been fighting for. As the protests subsided, the National Guard withdrew. Subsequently, Gloria Richardson resigned from the CNAC and relocated to New York City.