|
Benjamin Sylvester Ruffin, Jr. (December 11, 1941 – December 7, 2006), also known as Ben Ruffin, was an African American civil rights activist, educator, and businessman in Durham, North Carolina. Growing up during the Civil Rights era, Ruffin’s life experience in Durham has provided him with a black consciousness that helped him analyze and empathize with the difficulty of growing up poor and black in America. This thus motivated, shaped and developed Ruffin’s role as an activist, propelling him to assume leadership positions within organizations that ensured social justice and access to opportunities for blacks in the Jim Crow South. Through cultural cohesion, Ruffin created a bridge between his world of black Durham and that of white Durham, integrating minorities to a bigger presence within the Durham community. He achieved success against difficult odds of bridging racial gaps through tackling the role of poverty, effectively bringing better housing, employment opportunities, and educational access to black citizens. == Historical context == The African-American Civil Rights Movement (1954-1968) was a time period that encompasses mass social protest in the United States that aimed to end racial segregation and discrimination against black Americans.〔Carson, Clayborne. 2014. ‘American Civil Rights Movement’. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/119368/American-civil-rights-movement.〕 This period saw a wide expanse of nonviolent protest and civil disobedience, with activities such as boycotts, marches, and sit-ins, including the Royal Ice Cream Sit-In in Durham that resulted in a court case challenging the legality of segregated facilities.〔‘The Sit-In Movement’. 2014. U.S. History. ushistory.org. Accessed December 3. http://www.ushistory.org/us/54d.asp.〕 Leaders of the black community, like Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, began to emerge. Ben Ruffin was a leader of the black community in Durham. Durham was seen as more “liberal” than other Southern cities.〔Pauli Murray, Autobiography of a Black Activist, Feminist, Lawyer, Priest, and Poet (Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1987), 108.〕 Racial tensions and conflicts in Durham were often less severe than those in other towns, yet they still existed. Separation and segregation in public life resulted in employment in inferior facilities as well as prejudicial treatment. Many black citizens were left to find work at tobacco plants or to establish their own businesses within black neighborhoods.〔Grace Walton, “Black Women in Durham Politics, 1950-1996: From Grassroots to Electoral Politics,” New England Journal of Public Policy 15, no. 2 (2000): 64.〕 Barred from skilled employment, many suffered from poverty. In addition, the city was split by a set of railroad tracks, dividing the white community and the black community. One side contained beautifully constructed houses while the other gave sight to boarded-up and dirty houses and streets.〔NCMCC, North Carolina and the Negro (North Carolina Mayors' Co-operating Committee, 1964), 71.〕 Durham segregated the people by their living situations, intentionally disallowing the mingling between whites and blacks. The city thus sustained its discrimination against their black citizens. Durham developed a prominent Civil Rights movement because of its substantial African-American community. The struggle for civil rights experienced by blacks was greatly impacted by racial injustice and poverty. Ruffin’s experience growing up in Durham draws upon both issues, influencing his motivation to become a civil rights activist. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Benjamin S. Ruffin, Jr.」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|