Question

"In some parts of the South we work in the fields from sunup to sundown for $12 a week. In Albany, Georgia, nine of our leaders have been indicted not by Dixiecrats but by the federal government for peaceful protest. But what did the federal government do when Albany's deputy sheriff beat attorney C. B. King and left him half dead? What did the federal government do when local police officials kicked and assaulted the pregnant wife of Slater King, and she lost her baby? It seems to me that the Albany indictment is part of a conspiracy on the part of the federal government and local politicians in the interest of expediency. The revolution is at hand, and we must free ourselves of the chains of political and economic slavery. The nonviolent revolution is saying, "We will not wait for the courts to act, for we have been waiting for hundreds of years. We will not wait for the President, the Justice Department, nor Congress, but we will take matters into our own hands and create a source of power, outside of any national structure, that could and would assure us a victory." —SNCC Chairman John Lewis, speech at March on Washington, August 28, 1963 In this speech, Chairman Lewis is sending the message that

Answer 1

In this speech, Chairman Lewis is sending the message that federal government and local governments were struggling in the area of civil rights, justice, and equality. The Chairman cites instances wherein distinguished and prominent people of African descent were physically assaulted and there were little to no consequences for the assailant. He then asserts that promoters of nonviolence will come together to organize and fight for a true solution to inequality, violence, and economic disparities in communities of color.