Religion
In reply to the discussion: The question has arisen as to the importance of religion and religious people in the civil rights [View all]skepticscott
(13,029 posts)try to conflate the contribution of "religion" and "religious people". Obviously (and trivially) most of the people involved in the civil rights movement were "religious people", since at the time most people in general (and most blacks) were religious people (and still are), so the demographic could hardly be otherwise. The NFL could not exist without religious people too, but so what? And of course, you continue to avoid the issue that most of the people opposing the civil rights movement were also "religious people". Touting a few of the leaders of the movement as mentioning "god" and "faith" in their speeches says nothing about the motivation of the rank and file of the marchers.
And the biggest whopper of all is this:
"Religion or ir-religion was not an issue. Getting rid of segregation was!"; coupled with
"Religion, its people, its institutions and its money were necessary causes" of the civil rights movement.
If religion was not an issue, and if there was no litmus test, then it can only have been incidental, and not necessary, by a common logical formula.
You're just bound and determined that religion is going to get a lion's share of the credit for everything good that's ever been accomplished. Well, sorry...but it just ain't so.