Quaker and African Methodist Episcopal Faith Influenced Bayard Rustin’s Civil Rights Work

When Walter Naegle reflects on the spirituality of his late partner, civil rights leader Bayard Rustin, two things stick out in his mind. “When he had to really consider a question or a problem, he would go into a long period of silence and just kind of sit quietly and mull over the issue before he would speak about it,” Naegle told Sojourners recently. “And I think that was pretty much true throughout his life.”

This interior silence was a contrast to Rustin’s public life as an organizer, which often involved speaking to groups across the country about issues of peace and social justice. Those talks were “deeply founded in scripture,” peppered with references to Jesus and the Bible, Naegle said. When he finished speaking, Rustin often closed by singing a spiritual — songs written by Black Americans that incorporated themes from Hebrew Bible stories of moving from bondage to freedom.

Rustin, who died in 1987, is best known for helping Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. implement Gandhian tactics of nonviolence and for the key role he played organizing the 1963 March on Washington and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference — two key components of the civil rights movement.

Less well-known are the particularities of Rustin’s faith, including his deep roots in the Quaker and African Methodist Episcopal churches which drove his activism. Those two faith traditions, marked by silence and singing, respectively, echoed throughout Rustin’s life and work.

“My activism did not spring from being black,” Rustin wrote towards the end of his life. “Rather, it is rooted fundamentally in my Quaker upbringing and the values instilled in me by the grandparents who reared me. Those values were based on the concept of a single human family and the belief that all members of that family are equal.”

Rustin was born on March 17, 1912, in West Chester, Pennsylvania, which had a large Quaker population. The town, which had played a significant role in the Underground Railroad, was also home to many Black families that moved from the South during the Great Migration. The local Quakers, members of the Religious Society of Friends, were abolitionists — but they still segregated their worship meetings.

Rustin was raised by his grandparents, Julia Davis and Janifer Rustin; his grandmother was educated by the Quakers, while his grandfather was a member of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. The Quaker tradition of silence and introspection, combined with the African Methodist Episcopal Church’s emphasis on communal worship and spiritual expression, shaped Rustin’s approach to activism and leadership.

The Quakers, known for their commitment to peace and social justice, emphasized the inner light of each person and the importance of personal responsibility. This belief in the inherent worth of every individual aligned with Rustin’s later work in advocating for civil rights and nonviolent resistance. His Quaker upbringing instilled in him a deep sense of moral conviction and a commitment to justice, which became central to his activism.

Rustin’s life and work reflect the intersection of faith and action, demonstrating how the teachings and practices of the Quaker and African Methodist Episcopal traditions can inspire a lifelong commitment to peace and social change. His legacy continues to remind us of the power of faith to shape the moral compass of a generation.

Source: Read the original report