The 1987 Forsyth County protests were a series of
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...
demonstrations held in
Forsyth County, Georgia
Forsyth County ( or ) is a county in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. Suburban and exurban in character, Forsyth County lies within the Atlanta Metropolitan Area. The county's only incorporated city and county seat is ...
, in the United States. The protests consisted of two marches, held one week apart from each other on January 17 and January 24, 1987. The marches and accompanying counterdemonstrations by
white supremacists
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
drew national attention to the county. The second march was attended by many prominent civil rights activists and politicians, including both of
Georgia's U.S. senators, and attracted about 20,000 marchers, making it one of the largest civil rights demonstrations in United States history.
At the time, Forsyth County was a rural county about northeast of
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
that had a history of violence and discrimination against African Americans, being a
sundown county that was almost entirely populated by
white Americans
White Americans are Americans who identify as and are perceived to be white people. This group constitutes the majority of the people in the United States. As of the 2020 Census, 61.6%, or 204,277,273 people, were white alone. This represented ...
. In light of this, in 1987, a local resident announced plans for a march to occur on the weekend of
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day (officially Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., and sometimes referred to as MLK Day) is a federal holiday in the United States marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Mond ...
to draw attention to the county's history and continuing problems with race.
Hosea Williams
Hosea Lorenzo Williams (January 5, 1926 – November 16, 2000) was an American civil rights leader, activist, ordained minister, businessman, philanthropist, scientist, and politician. He is best known as a trusted member of fellow famed civil r ...
, a civil rights activist and politician in Atlanta, joined the project and helped lead a group of about 75 marchers through the county on January 17. The march was disrupted by a group of about 400 white supremacists, including members of the
Ku Klux Klan, who injured several marchers, including Williams. The march was eventually called off and several Klansmen were arrested.
The violence attracted national and international attention to the county. Williams and other activists organized another march for January 24 that was attended by about 20,000 people, including several famous politicians and civil rights activists, such as both of Georgia's senators and Representative
John Lewis
John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...
. Between 1,000 and 1,500 white supremacist counter-protestors were present, though with roughly 3,000 law enforcement officials present (including over 1,000 members of the
Georgia National Guard
The Georgia National Guard is the National Guard of the U.S. state of Georgia, and consists of the Georgia Army National Guard and the Georgia Air National Guard. (The Georgia State Defense Force is the third military unit of the Georgia Depa ...
), there were few incidents of violence. About 64 people were arrested during the march, including white supremacists
Don Black and
David Duke
David Ernest Duke (born July 1, 1950) is an American white supremacist, antisemitic conspiracy theorist, far-right politician, convicted felon, and former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. From 1989 to 1992, he was a membe ...
. About two weeks after the second march,
Oprah Winfrey traveled to Cumming to broadcast an episode of her talk show, interviewing several white residents. Some activists protested the show due to the producers' decisions to not have any African Americans on the show, and Williams and several others were arrested for
unlawful assembly Unlawful assembly is a legal term to describe a group of people with the mutual intent of deliberate disturbance of the peace. If the group is about to start an act of disturbance, it is termed a rout; if the disturbance is commenced, it is then ter ...
.
Following the marches, the county created a bi-racial human relations committee intended to address some of the issues raised by activists. Additionally, the
Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white s ...
sued several white supremacist organizations and individuals for damages from the protests and won nearly $1 million in a federal case that resulted in the dissolution of one of the groups involved. Over the next several decades, the non-white population of Forsyth County increased, and by 2022, black people represented about 4 percent of the population, while about a quarter of the county was made up of
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
or
Hispanic Americans
Hispanic and Latino Americans ( es, Estadounidenses hispanos y latinos; pt, Estadunidenses hispânicos e latinos) are Americans of Spanish and/or Latin American ancestry. More broadly, these demographics include all Americans who identify a ...
.
Background
1912 racial conflict
Forsyth County is a
county
A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
located in
north Georgia
North Georgia is the northern hilly/mountainous region in the U.S. state of Georgia. At the time of the arrival of settlers from Europe, it was inhabited largely by the Cherokee. The counties of north Georgia were often scenes of important eve ...
, about northeast of the state capital of
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
, with its
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
being the city of
Cumming. For much of the 20th century, the primarily
rural
In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descri ...
county had a long history of poor
race relations
Race relations is a sociological concept that emerged in Chicago in connection with the work of sociologist Robert E. Park and the Chicago race riot of 1919. Race relations designates a paradigm or field in sociology and a legal concept in the ...
and a reputation as a hostile place for
African Americans. In 1912, an African American man was
lynched
Lynching is an extrajudicial killing by a group. It is most often used to characterize informal public executions by a mob in order to punish an alleged transgressor, punish a convicted transgressor, or intimidate people. It can also be an ex ...
by
white Americans
White Americans are Americans who identify as and are perceived to be white people. This group constitutes the majority of the people in the United States. As of the 2020 Census, 61.6%, or 204,277,273 people, were white alone. This represented ...
in the county due to allegations regarding the murder and rape of a
white woman
''White Woman'' is a 1933 American pre-Code drama film directed by Stuart Walker and starring Carole Lombard, Charles Laughton, and Charles Bickford.''The American Film Institute Catalog Feature Films: 1931-40'' published by The American Film ...
there. In the aftermath of this event, some white people known as "night riders" waged a months-long
terror campaign of
whitecapping
Whitecapping was a movement among farmers that occurred specifically in the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was originally a ritualized form of extralegal actions to enforce community standards, appropriate behavior ...
that resulted in the expulsion of almost all African Americans from the county. Prior to this, approximately 1,000 African Americans had been living there, with the county's total population being around 11,000.
Sundown county
Following the expulsion, Forsyth developed a reputation as a
sundown county, where African Americans were not allowed to be in the county after nightfall. In the 1960s, signs were posted around the county reading, "
Nigger
In the English language, the word ''nigger'' is an ethnic slur used against black people, especially African Americans. Starting in the late 1990s, references to ''nigger'' have been progressively replaced by the euphemism , notably in cases ...
–Don't Let the Sun Set on You in Forsyth County", including one on the lawn of the
county courthouse
A courthouse or court house is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English-spe ...
. Also during this time, as
Lake Lanier
Lake Lanier (officially Lake Sidney Lanier) is a reservoir in the northern portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created by the completion of Buford Dam on the Chattahoochee River in 1956, and is also fed by the waters of the Chestatee Ri ...
(which constituted the eastern border of the county) developed into a popular recreational destination, African American vacationers faced discrimination and threats from locals. In 1968, ten African American boys and their camp counselors were told by local residents to leave the county or they would be forcibly removed, and in 1976 there was a
cross burning
In modern times, cross burning or cross lighting is a practice which is associated with the Ku Klux Klan. However, it was practiced long before the Klan's inception. Since the early 20th century, the Klan burned crosses on hillsides as a way to ...
after an African American man rented a
slipway
A slipway, also known as boat ramp or launch or boat deployer, is a ramp on the shore by which ships or boats can be moved to and from the water. They are used for building and repairing ships and boats, and for launching and retrieving small ...
at a nearby
marina for his boat. Black truck drivers who traveled to the
Tyson Foods
Tyson Foods, Inc. is an American multinational corporation, based in Springdale, Arkansas, that operates in the food industry. The company is the world's second-largest processor and marketer of chicken, beef, and pork after JBS S.A. It annually ...
chicken processing plant were often escorted by members of the
Georgia Bureau of Investigation
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) is the state bureau of investigation of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is an independent, statewide agency that provides assistance to Georgia's criminal justice system in the areas of criminal investig ...
(GBI), while the early 1980s saw many black people shot in encounters with white people at the lake. Despite a steady growth in population through the 1970s and 1980s, the county was home to almost no African Americans, with the
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...
reporting that, of the county's 1980 population of 27,958 people, only one was
black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...
. By comparison,
censuses taken in 1920 and 1960 had shown a black population of 30 and four, respectively. 1980 also saw the expansion of
U.S. Route 19
U.S. Route 19 (US 19) is a north–south U.S. Highway in the Eastern United States. Despite encroaching Interstate Highways, the route has remained a long-haul road, connecting the Gulf of Mexico with Lake Erie.
The highway's southern ...
in the county into a four-lane
toll road
A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically ...
, significantly decreasing the travel time between Cumming and Atlanta and causing the county to begin to develop into an
exurban bedroom community
A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
for
upper middle class
In sociology, the upper middle class is the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class. This is in contrast to the term ''lower middle class'', which is used for the group at the opposite end of the middle-class strat ...
white people who worked in Atlanta.
Proposed march
![Hosea Williams (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/Hosea_Williams_%28cropped%29.jpg)
By 1987, the county had a population of around 38,000, of which about 99 percent was white, leading several media publications to refer to the county during this time as "all-white". That year, Charles A. Blackburn, a white resident of Cumming announced plans for a civil rights march to draw attention to the county's racial problems. Blackburn backed out of the idea after receiving numerous death threats. Dean and Tammy Carter, two residents of
Gainesville, Georgia, revived the idea and invited
Hosea Williams
Hosea Lorenzo Williams (January 5, 1926 – November 16, 2000) was an American civil rights leader, activist, ordained minister, businessman, philanthropist, scientist, and politician. He is best known as a trusted member of fellow famed civil r ...
, a
civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life o ...
activist and member of the
Atlanta City Council
The Atlanta City Council is the main municipal legislative body for the city of Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It consists of 16 members primarily elected from 12 districts within the city. The Atlanta City Government is divided into three bo ...
, proposing a "March against Fear and Intimidation" in the county on January 17. The purpose of the march was to draw attention to the history and lasting legacy of the racial events in the county, including highlighting the fact that the county was still all-white. It was scheduled to take place the weekend before
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day (officially Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., and sometimes referred to as MLK Day) is a federal holiday in the United States marking the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Mond ...
, which had been established as a
federal holiday
Federal holidays in the United States are the eleven calendar dates that are designated by the U.S. government as holidays. On U.S. federal holidays, non-essential federal government offices are closed and federal government employees are paid ...
only four years earlier, in 1983, and had quickly become, according to human rights activist and academic
Leonard Zeskind, "a flashpoint for
white supremacist
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
s".
In the weeks leading up to the march,
Ku Klux Klan (KKK) groups and white supremacists in north Georgia began to coordinate plans to disrupt the event, which they said was being organized by "
outside agitators
Outside agitator is a term that has been used to discount political unrest as being driven by outsiders, rather than by internal discontent. The term was popularized during the early stages of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States, when So ...
and
communist racemixers". The planned march was to occur against the backdrop of several high-profile racial incidents across the country, including an attack on three black people in
Howard Beach, Queens
Howard Beach is a neighborhood in the southwestern portion of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered to the north by the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue in Ozone Park, to the south by Jamaica Bay in Broad Channel, to the east by ...
, and a
hazing incident at a
military college
A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...
in
South Carolina
)'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
wherein a black student was harassed by white students who had dressed as Klansmen. Regarding the racial climate at the time, activist and pastor
Cecil Williams of the
Glide Memorial United Methodist Church in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
said, "Just when we thought we had swept the whirlwind of racism into the corners of society, now we see it is blowing back into the center of the floor". On January 17, the same day that the march in Forsyth County was scheduled, white supremacist groups had held a parade in
Pulaski, Tennessee
Pulaski is a city in and the county seat of Giles County, which is located on the central-southern border of Tennessee, United States. The population was 8,397 at the 2020 census. It was named after Casimir Pulaski, a noted Polish-born soldier ...
, the birthplace of the KKK, led by white supremacists
Robert E. Miles
Robert E. "Pastor Bob" Miles (January 28, 1925 – August 16, 1992) was a white supremacist theologist and religious leader from Michigan.
Biography
A major " dualist" religious leader, Miles allied himself with various groups that constitut ...
and
Thomas Robb.
First march
The march occurred in Cumming on Saturday, January 17, with a group of about 75 demonstrators, mostly from Atlanta. The group consisted of about two dozen local white people and several African American activists who traveled there by bus. Among those who participated were future author
Patrick Phillips
Patrick Phillips is an American poet, writer, and professor. He teaches writing and literature at Stanford University, and is a Carnegie Foundation Fellow and a fellow of the Cullman Center for Writers at the New York Public Library. He has be ...
and his family, who were locals of the area, and
state representative Billy McKinney. The march was planned to begin at Bethel View Road near an offramp of
Georgia State Route 400
Georgia State Route 400 (SR 400; commonly known as Georgia 400) is a freeway and state highway in the U.S. state of Georgia serving parts of Metro Atlanta. It is concurrent with U.S. Route 19 (US 19) from exit 4 ( Int ...
and go for several miles through the county until ending in Cumming. The demonstrators arrived late, and in the meantime, a group of about 400 counterdemonstrators, composed of Klansmen and individuals sympathetic to white supremacist ideology, had gathered to oppose the civil rights demonstration. Noted white supremacists
J. B. Stoner,
Daniel Carver Daniel Carver is an American white supremacist and former Grand Dragon of the "Invisible Empire, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan" based in Georgia. Carver was suspended from wearing Klan robes and from attending Klan rallies after a 1986 conviction fo ...
, and
Dave Holland
David “Dave” Holland (born 1 October 1946) is an English jazz double bassist, composer and bandleader who has been performing and recording for five decades. He has lived in the United States for over 40 years.
His extensive discography r ...
, who was the
grand dragon
Ku Klux Klan (KKK) nomenclature has evolved over the order's nearly 160 years of existence. The titles and designations were first laid out in the original Klan's prescripts of 1867 and 1868, then revamped with William J. Simmons's '' Kloran'' of ...
of a KKK organization, were present and gave speeches that energized the group of counterdemonstrators. During one speech, Stoner stated that allowing African Americans into Forsyth County would bring "crime and
AIDS" to the area. Seeking to disrupt the march, these white supremacists gathered at the intersection of two
county road
A county highway (also county road or county route; usually abbreviated CH or CR) is a road in the United States and in the Canadian province of Ontario that is designated and/or maintained by the county highway department. Route numbering can ...
s along the march's route, and some of the people carried
Confederate battle flag
The flags of the Confederate States of America have a history of three successive designs during the American Civil War. The flags were known as the "Stars and Bars", used from 1861 to 1863; the "Stainless Banner", used from 1863 to 1865; and ...
s and
nooses
A noose is a loop at the end of a rope in which the knot tightens under load and can be loosened without untying the knot.
The knot can be used to secure a rope to a post, pole, or animal but only where the end is in a position that the loop can ...
. Klansmen constituted about ten percent of the total number of the counterdemonstrators there and were primarily members of one of two Klan organizations: The Southern White Knights and the Invisible Empire Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.
![Old Forsyth County Courthouse - panoramio](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Old_Forsyth_County_Courthouse_-_panoramio.jpg)
In preparation for the march, about 75 local police officers and members of the
Georgia State Patrol
The Georgia State Patrol (GSP) was established in March 1937 in the U.S. state of Georgia and is a division of the Georgia Department of Public Safety. It is the primary state patrol agency for the U.S. state of Georgia. Troopers operate prima ...
(GSP) were on duty, though both the law enforcement and the demonstrators were greatly outnumbered by the counterdemonstrators, as local officials had not expected their large turnout. As the march began, the large number of counterdemonstrators overwhelmed the police cordons that they had set up along the march's path, and many began to shout
racial slurs
The following is a list of ethnic slurs or ethnophaulisms or ethnic epithets that are, or have been, used as insinuations or allegations about members of a given ethnicity or racial group or to refer to them in a derogatory, pejorative, or ot ...
and other obscenities at the marchers. At one point, Williams led marchers in singing "
We Shall Overcome
"We Shall Overcome" is a gospel song which became a protest song and a key anthem of the American civil rights movement. The song is most commonly attributed as being lyrically descended from "I'll Overcome Some Day", a hymn by Charles Albert ...
" as the counterdemonstrators chanted racial expletives. The event eventually turned violent as some counterdemonstrators began throwing rocks and bottles at the marchers, resulting in several people becoming injured. Williams was one of the injured, having been hit in the head by a brick. The violence ultimately prompted the march organizers to call off the event prematurely after law enforcement officials told them that they could not guarantee their safety. Law enforcement officials arrested 8 Klansmen, and all but one were residents of Forsyth County. After the march was called off, counterdemonstrators met at the Forsyth County Courthouse and listened to more speeches given by Stoner and other Klansmen. Former pro-segregation
governor of Georgia Lester Maddox
Lester Garfield Maddox Sr. (September 30, 1915 – June 25, 2003) was an American politician who served as the 75th governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1967 to 1971. A populist Democrat, Maddox came to prominence as a staunch segregatio ...
was also in attendance.
Speaking of the event later, Williams stated, "In thirty years in the
civil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...
, I haven't seen racism any more sick than here today". Talking to ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', Williams compared the county to
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
under
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
and said that children as young as ten or 12 had yelled death threats and racial slurs at the marchers. The march and accompanying violence attracted national attention, and local leaders attempted to mitigate some of the bad publicity, with the
chamber of commerce putting full-page advertisements on newspapers stating that the racists' actions did not represent the people of Forsyth County. Many local residents expressed frustration over the attention the march had drawn to their county, with one Forsyth County local telling ''
The Atlanta Constitution
''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the only major daily newspaper in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger between ...
'', "we should have busted every camera down there and kicked every reporter's ass". In the aftermath of the march, the
Mead Corporation
Mead () is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%. The defining charact ...
cancelled plans they had for constructing a 5,000-worker plant in the county.
Second march
On January 19, Williams and Dean Carter announced their intention to hold another march in Forsyth County on the following Saturday, January 24. Williams called it a "March for Brotherhood" and said it would be the largest civil rights demonstration since the civil rights movement of the 1960s. This march drew both national and international attention, with ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'' reporting on it with a front-page story, and saw the participation of about 20,000 demonstrators. The number of demonstrators was four to five times the number of participants that the organizers had expected, and they said that there had been an additional 4,000 people in Atlanta who would have participated but were unable to come to Cumming due to a lack of transportation. In total, about 175 buses provided by the
Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority
The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA, ) is the principal public transport operator in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Formed in 1971 as strictly a bus system, MARTA operates a network of bus routes linked to a rapid transit ...
were used in getting demonstrators from the
King Center for Nonviolent Social Change
The Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change, commonly known as The King Center, is a nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization in Atlanta, United States.
History
The center was founded in 1968 by Coretta Scott King, who st ...
Atlanta to Cumming, and when this proved insufficient, an additional ten buses were brought in. A significant portion of the participants were white, over half appeared to be under the age of 30, and some traveled from distant places such as
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
,
New York, and
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
to participate.
![John lewis official biopic](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/60/John_lewis_official_biopic.jpg)
The march was scheduled to begin at 11 a.m., but due to the size of the crowd, the start was delayed by over three hours, commencing at about 2:20 p.m. The protestors met at a
shopping center on the outskirts of Cumming and began the roughly march, beginning at an offramp of Georgia 400 at
Georgia State Route 20
State Route 20 (SR 20) is a state highway roughly in the shape of a capital J rotated ninety degrees to the left, which travels through portions of Floyd, Bartow, Cherokee, Forsyth, Gwinnett, Walton, Rockdale, Newton, and H ...
, traveling mostly along
Georgia State Route 9
State Route 9 (SR 9), (known locally as Highway 9) is an north–south state highway in the northern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. It travels from Atlanta to Turners Corner, north-northeast of Dahlonega. It is concurrent with ...
, and terminating at the Forsyth County Courthouse in downtown Cumming. Once there, several speeches would be given at the courthouse square. Due again to the large number of people participating, the march took about 2 hours to complete, with some areas having people walk eight-to-12 people abreast. Many notable individuals participated in the march, including numerous politicians and civil rights leaders. Both of the
U.S. senators from Georgia,
Sam Nunn
Samuel Augustus Nunn Jr. (born September 8, 1938) is an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Georgia (1972–1997) as a member of the Democratic Party.
After leaving Congress, Nunn co-founded the Nuclear Threat Initia ...
and
Wyche Fowler, marched, along with
U.S. Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
John Lewis
John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...
, a civil rights activist who had participated in the
Selma to Montgomery marches
The Selma to Montgomery marches were three protest marches, held in 1965, along the 54-mile (87 km) highway from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital of Montgomery. The marches were organized by nonviolent activists to demonstrate the ...
. Other politicians included former senator and
presidential candidate
A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example:
* to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs.
* t ...
Gary Hart and
Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young
Andrew Jackson Young Jr. (born March 12, 1932) is an American politician, diplomat, and activist. Beginning his career as a pastor, Young was an early leader in the civil rights movement, serving as executive director of the Southern Christian L ...
, who said of the march, "This march had to take place, for we once again had to say: 'We ain't gonna let nobody turn us round'". Other noted civil rights activists included
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) is an African-American civil rights organization based in Atlanta, Georgia. SCLC is closely associated with its first president, Martin Luther King Jr., who had a large role in the American civ ...
president
Joseph Lowery
Joseph Echols Lowery (October 6, 1921 – March 27, 2020) was an American minister in the United Methodist Church and leader in the civil rights movement. He founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with Martin Luther King Jr. and ot ...
,
NAACP executive director
Benjamin Hooks,
A. James Rudin of the
American Jewish Committee,
Ralph Abernathy
Ralph David Abernathy Sr. (March 11, 1926 – April 17, 1990) was an American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was ordained in the Baptist tradition in 1948. As a leader of the civil rights movement, he was a close friend and ...
,
Dick Gregory
Richard Claxton Gregory (October 12, 1932 – August 19, 2017) was an American comedian, civil rights leader, business owner and entrepreneur, and vegetarian activist. His writings were best sellers. Gregory became popular among the Afric ...
,
Jesse Jackson, and
Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King ( Scott; April 27, 1927 – January 30, 2006) was an American author, activist, and civil rights leader who was married to Martin Luther King Jr. from 1953 until his death. As an advocate for African-American equality, she ...
, the widow of
Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister and activist, one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968 ...
As with last time, there was a large number of white supremacists who had gathered in Forsyth County, numbering over 1,000. Many of these individuals, which included
neo-Nazis from organizations in the surrounding states, participated in a countermarch led by
white nationalist
White nationalism is a type of racial nationalism or pan-nationalism which espouses the belief that white people are a raceHeidi Beirich and Kevin Hicks. "Chapter 7: White nationalism in America". In Perry, Barbara. ''Hate Crimes''. Greenwoo ...
lawyer
Richard Barrett of
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
. Among these individuals was
David Duke
David Ernest Duke (born July 1, 1950) is an American white supremacist, antisemitic conspiracy theorist, far-right politician, convicted felon, and former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. From 1989 to 1992, he was a membe ...
, a former member of the KKK and the president of the
National Association for the Advancement of White People
The National Association for the Advancement of White People (NAAWP) is a white supremacist organization established in 1979 by former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke, deriving its name from the National Association for the Advancement of ...
, a white supremacist group. Duke had come to the march at the invitation of Atlanta racial extremist Ed Fields and a local group called the Committee to Keep Forsyth White, and he was joined by fellow former Klansman
Don Black and Maddox. According to Duke, he was protesting because, "If blacks moved into Forsyth County, it would mean the death of whites. They would become the victims of murders, assaults, robberies and
drug pusher
The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs through ...
s. That’s the reality of
integration". Despite the large turnout, leaders from two large Klan organizations, including Holland, ordered their members not to attend, as they thought the march was a plot by the
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
(FBI) to arrest Klansmen.
In addition to the increased number of counterdemonstrators, there was also a significant increase in the number of law enforcement officials present. Approximately 3,000 officers, including around 2,000 members of the
Georgia National Guard
The Georgia National Guard is the National Guard of the U.S. state of Georgia, and consists of the Georgia Army National Guard and the Georgia Air National Guard. (The Georgia State Defense Force is the third military unit of the Georgia Depa ...
who were dressed in
riot gear
Riot control measures are used by law enforcement, military, paramilitary or security forces to control, disperse, and arrest people who are involved in a riot, unlawful demonstration or unlawful protest.
If a riot is spontaneous and irration ...
, 600 police officers from jurisdictions around the state, 350 GSP troopers, 185 GBI agents, and 40 armed rangers from the
Georgia Department of Natural Resources
The Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is an administrative agency of the U.S. state of Georgia. The agency has statewide responsibilities for managing and conserving Georgia’s natural, cultural, and historical resources, and has fiv ...
, were present at the demonstration. The FBI coordinated law enforcement efforts with local authorities, and
federal law enforcement agents were also present and marched with
William Bradford Reynolds
William Bradford Reynolds (June 21, 1942 – September 14, 2019) was an American attorney who served as the United States Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division from 1981 to 1988.
Reynolds was Senior Counsel in BakerBotts Anti ...
, the
United States Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, who stated that "what started last week will be repeated without violence". This was also in line with a pledge made by Forsyth County Sheriff Wesley Walraven, who had told Williams after the first march was called off that he would guarantee the protestors safety if they returned next weekend. Regarding the number of law enforcement officials present, a spokesperson for
Georgia Governor
The governor of Georgia is the head of government of Georgia and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor also has a duty to enforce state laws, the power to either veto or approve bills passed by the Georgia Legisl ...
Joe Frank Harris
Joe Frank Harris (born February 16, 1936) is an American businessman and Democratic politician who served as the 78th Governor of the U.S. state of Georgia from 1983 to 1991.
Early life and career
Harris was born in the Atco Mill Village o ...
stated that it was "the greatest show of force on the part of the state of Georgia in history".
14 counterdemonstrators were arrested before the march began, with 4 of those individuals being identified as Klansmen. In total, about 64 people were arrested either before or during the march. Duke and Black were among those arrested during the march for attempting to block a highway. The counterdemonstrators yelled slurs and expletives at the marchers and, as in the previous march, threw some projectiles that resulted in a few injuries. One man was hit by a cement block and a woman was struck by a steel pipe, but, according to a report by the ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...
'', "the march was not marred by major clashes or injuries". Out of safety concerns, GBI officials at the courthouse square did not allow Fowler, Lewis, or Nunn to cross the street to speak to reporters or allow reporters access to the courthouse square. A spokesperson for the governor stated, "When you consider the size of the crowd, this was a pretty peaceful march". By 6:30 p.m., buses began to transport demonstrators back to Atlanta.
''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' broadcast from Cumming
![Oprah Winfrey 1997](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Oprah_Winfrey_1997.jpg)
On February 9, about two weeks after the second march, television talk show host
Oprah Winfrey traveled to Cumming to broadcast an episode of her talk show, ''
The Oprah Winfrey Show
''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicago, Illinois. Produced ...
''. At the time, the show had only been on the air for about five months, and the episode marked the first time that the show was recorded somewhere other than its regular studio. For the episode, Winfrey had an all-white audience of about 100 Forsyth County residents that she talked to about the marches and the county's history of racial issues. During the episode, several locals expressed racist sentiments to Oprah and opined in favor of the county remaining all-white, while others were more sympathetic to the marchers and expressed dismay at the racist attitudes of some of the residents. While Williams had asked to appear on the show, Winfrey and the show's producers declined, stating that they only wanted county residents. This prompted a protest led by Williams outside of the restaurant that the episode was being recorded at. In the aftermath, eight individuals, including Williams, were arrested on charges of
unlawful assembly Unlawful assembly is a legal term to describe a group of people with the mutual intent of deliberate disturbance of the peace. If the group is about to start an act of disturbance, it is termed a rout; if the disturbance is commenced, it is then ter ...
, with Williams also being charged with blocking a state highway. Asked after the episode completed filming how she felt about being in the county, Winfrey, a
black woman, stated, "Not very comfortable at all. I’m leaving".
Aftermath
Legacy
Multiple news sources, such as the ''Los Angeles Times'' and ''The New York Times'', and academics have made note of the size of the January 24 march, with many sources referring to it as one of the largest civil rights demonstrations in the
history of the Southern United States. According to journalists David Treadwell and
Barry Bearak, some activists from the civil rights movement of the 1960s viewed the march as the start of a possible resurrection of the movement, with Williams saying, "The civil rights family has not been together like this since we
buried Martin Luther King". Civil rights activist
Ozell Sutton, who was a regional director of the
United States Department of Justice
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...
's office of community relations at that time, also spoke positively about the march, saying, "This outpouring of black and white and all racial groups is an indication of a deep and abiding concern
or civil rights.
Martin Luther King III
Martin Luther King III (born October 23, 1957) is an American human rights activist, philanthropist and advocate. The oldest son and oldest living child of civil rights leaders Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, King served as the 4 ...
, the eldest son of Martin Luther King Jr., stated that his father would have seen the march as "a great demonstration of brotherhood and love". Following the protests, Governor Harris organized an investigation into the protests. According to historian Wendy Hamand Venet, his committee finding that the
state's flag, which prominently featured a Confederate battle flag as part of its design, "was a factor inciting racism and violence and recommended its removal". The protests ultimately led to a revival over the issue of the state flag, with many prominent politicians and activists calling for the removal of the Confederate symbol from the flag. Following the white supremacist
Unite the Right rally
The Unite the Right rally was a white supremacist rally that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, from August 11 to 12, 2017. Marchers included members of the alt-right, neo-Confederates, neo-fascists, white nationalists, neo-Nazis, ...
in
Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017 that resulted in the death of a counter-protestor in
a terrorist attack, several publications made comparisons between the violence there and that witnessed in Forsyth County in 1987.
Changes in Forsyth County
Following the marches, local leaders in Forsyth County publicly deplored the actions of the Klansmen and offered apologies to the marchers. Additionally, on February 9, they announced the creation of a biracial human relations committee to help address racial issues in the county. The committee included six white county leaders and six African-Americans, with three of the latter being appointed by the six white members and another two being appointed by Williams and his colleagues. Forsyth County's population continued to grow over the next several decades, with the
1990 United States census reporting a total population of 49,000. By 2019, this number had increased to approximately 245,000. As the population grew, so too did the number of non-white residents in the county. In 1990, the county had 14 black residents, but by 2019, African Americans constitute 2.6 percent of the population, growing to about four percent by 2022. Additionally, by that year, a quarter of the population was made up of either
Asian Americans or
Hispanic Americans
Hispanic and Latino Americans ( es, Estadounidenses hispanos y latinos; pt, Estadunidenses hispânicos e latinos) are Americans of Spanish and/or Latin American ancestry. More broadly, these demographics include all Americans who identify a ...
. Throughout this time, the county has played host to several other civil rights protests, including a march in August 1992 in recognition the fifth anniversary of the 1987 marches. This march, which included about 40 people led by Williams, involved about 200 police officers and was counter-demonstrated by about 350 white supremacists, including members of the
Nationalist Movement. In June 2020, amidst the
George Floyd protests in Georgia
A series of George Floyd protests took place in Georgia, United States, following the murder of George Floyd in 2020. 11 consecutive days of protests and rallies occurred in Atlanta through June 8, 2020. Through July 2020, protests occurred in ...
, about 1,000 people protested for civil rights and racial justice. The protests were peaceful, and while there were rumors that counterdemonstrators from the Nationalist Movement would disrupt the event, this did not come occur.
Impact on white supremacist organizations
Southern Poverty Law Center's lawsuit
Following the protests, the
Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white s ...
(SPLC), a civil rights legal advocacy organization, filed a lawsuit against 11 Klansmen and two Klan organizations (the Invisible Empire and the Southern White Knights) for damages related to their attack on January 17. In October 1988, a federal jury ordered the organizations and individuals to pay almost $1 million in damages to the marchers. The Invisible Empire was ordered to pay about $800,000 of this judgement. As a result of the ruling, James Farrands, the leader of the Invisible Empire, agreed to relinquish all of the organization's assets, including its name, and personally paid $37,500 to the affected marchers. By the middle of 1993, due to the settlement, the organization was defunct.
''Forsyth County v. Nationalist Movement''
The total cost of the law enforcement presence for the second march was over $670,000 (). Of this amount, the
government of Georgia paid $579,148, other governmental agencies paid $29,759, and the county covered the remainder. In light of this, on January 27, 1987, the Forsyth County
Board of Commissioners
A county commission (or a board of county commissioners) is a group of elected officials (county commissioners) collectively charged with administering the county government in some states of the United States; such commissions usually comprise ...
passed an ordinance requiring permits for rallies and demonstrations and requiring the groups holding these events to cover some of the costs associated with law enforcement protections, with a later amendment capping the cost of the daily fees at $1,000.
This came up in January 1989, when the Nationalist Movement made plans to hold a demonstration on the steps of the Forsyth County Courthouse in opposition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Following the ordinance, the county charged the group $100 in permit fees. However, rather than pay the fee, the Nationalist Movement sued the county, alleging that the fees violated their
freedom of speech under the provisions of the
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws that regulate an establishment of religion, or that prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the ...
. The case made its way before the
Supreme Court of the United States, with the
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1920 "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States". T ...
writing an ''
amicus brief
An ''amicus curiae'' (; ) is an individual or organization who is not a party to a legal case, but who is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. The decision on ...
'' in favor of the Nationalist Movement. In the end, the Supreme Court decided in favor of the Nationalist Movement, ruling that the county's permit fees system was
unconstitutional
Constitutionality is said to be the condition of acting in accordance with an applicable constitution; "Webster On Line" the status of a law, a procedure, or an act's accordance with the laws or set forth in the applicable constitution. When l ...
.
David Duke
According to reporter
Tyler Bridges, Duke's involvement in the protests marked the beginning of his "political comeback". The counterdemonstration marked his first public appearance in five years, and he used the increased media attention to get interviews with many national media publications, causing his national profile to increase among white supremacist circles. Following the protests, Klan and activity in north Georgia increased. During this time, on February 22, 1987, Duke and Barrett held a white supremacist rally near Cumming that attracted about 125 people, and during a March 7, speech before white nationalist
Populist Party members, Duke stated that the Forsyth counterdemonstrations marked "the genesis of an entirely new movement" for white nationalism. That year, Duke announced
his presidential campaign for the
1988 election, with Bridges stating that, "Forsyth County had reminded leaders of the white supremacist movement that Duke was their best spokesman". Duke held his campaign kickoff event in nearby
Marietta, Georgia
Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth larges ...
, and officially announced his candidacy on the steps of the
Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta, with the locations chosen at least in part due to their proximity to Forsyth County.
Notes
References
Sources
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Further reading
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External links
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* {{YouTube, id=WErjPmFulQ0, title=Oprah Visits a County Where No Black Person Had Lived for 75 Years {{! The Oprah Winfrey Show {{! OWN
1987 crimes in the United States
1987 in Georgia (U.S. state)
1987 protests
African-American history of Georgia (U.S. state)
Civil rights protests in the United States
Events in Georgia (U.S. state)
Forsyth County, Georgia
History of African-American civil rights
January 1987 events in the United States
Ku Klux Klan crimes
Ku Klux Klan in Georgia (U.S. state)
Neo-Nazism in the United States
Oprah Winfrey
Post–civil rights era in African-American history
Protest marches in the United States
Race-related controversies in the United States
Race and crime in the United States
Racially motivated violence against African Americans