The Road Ahead For Civil Rights - Brief Article

A Symposium

1982 issue of Perspectives, as this journal was known at the time, celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and the creation of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. The issue focused on the history and consequences of the civil rights movement, and included two articles, musings on the meaning of civil rights by nine writers, a selection of famous and infamous editorial cartoons of the movement era, and several departments, one identifying seminal books about civil rights. That issue of the journal published by this independent, bipartisan Federal agency was well received.

In planning this special issue of the newly titled Civil Rights Journal commemorating the 40th anniversary of the same Commission, the editors walked a tightrope Certainly we wanted to avoid covering the same ground highlighted in those pages 15 years ago. Moreover, while noting some of the contributions that the Commission has made during the past 40 years we had to avoid being congratulatory and self serving. Planning also had to take into account budget constraints affecting all Commission programs and activities Finally, to meet the agency's statutory and clearinghouse responsibilities, even a commemorative issue of the journal had to be about civil rights matters of undeniable importance to the American people; it had to be worth reading.

The symposium in this issue of the Civil Rights Journal reflects the increasing complexity and controversy over civil rights matters such as affirmative action. It offers a wide range of perspectives on civil rights realities and what they might bode for the future

Three context-setting articles introduce the symposium, one by Vanderbilt University professor of history Hugh Davis Graham on the history of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, another by Duke University professor emeritus of religion and culture C. Eric Lincoln linking key aspects of the civil rights movement to current developments, and the third by Rabbi Marc Gellman of Temple Beth Torah in Melville, NY, focusing on the moral dimension of civil rights then, now, and in years to come

The symposium continues on page 15 with 28 leaders of civil rights organizations and research centers sharing their views about what are the most pressing civil rights problems confronting the Nation today. These statements are followed by 30 short essays by scholars, journalists, and literary figures on how current civil rights conflicts are shaping directions that intergroup relations in the United States are likely to take in the foreseeable future

What the issue lacks in illustrations we hope is more than compensated for by the depth and breadth of views presented in the symposium. We also hope, of course, that you enjoy our "Yesterday" department piece on Selma by longtime civil rights journalist Wayne Greenhaw on page 3 and our Books department beginning on page 55.

This issue of the Commission journal was conceived before President Clinton's call for a national dialogue on racial problems and his appointment of a race relations advisory board headed by historian John Hope Franklin. Even so, we trust that our symposium contributes to that dialogue and to the important work of the President's advisory board.

COPYRIGHT 1997 U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group