In drawing from and reinforcing traditional Christian values; perpetuating the myth of meritocracy (we should all be judged by the content of our character); and evoking moral teleology (the arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice), the civil rights movement undermined power relations, not reinforce them.
--- On Mon, 3/23/09, SA <s11131978 at gmail.com> wrote:
> From: SA <s11131978 at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [lbo-talk] Is Obama Running Interference to ProtectBankers' Pay?
> To: lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org
> Date: Monday, March 23, 2009, 11:11 PM
> Miles Jackson wrote:
>
> >> Well, in another post, you bring up the civil
> rights movement. Okay, then - answer your own question: How
> did the civil rights movement's moral discourse reinforce
> power relations?
> >
> > Interesting question. Quick take: it drew from
> and reinforced traditional Christian values; it perpetuated
> the myth of meritocracy (we should all be judged by the
> content of our character); it evoked moral teleology (the
> arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice).
>
> Okay, good. Now, if the moral discourse of the civil rights
> movement could reinforce traditional values and perpetuate
> the idea of meritocracy, surely it could also discredit
> racism and impel whites through force of conscience to
> reject Jim Crow. Yes?
>
> SA
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