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Southern Christian Leadership Conference records [bulk 1968-2003] > Programs Department records > Poor People's Campaign records

Historical Note

The Poor People's Campaign was an anti-poverty campaign initiated by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Conceptualized by King as "the second phase" of the Civil Rights Movement, the Poor People's Campaign sought to place the issues of jobs, income, and housing for poor Americans on the national agenda. One of its principal objectives was to lobby the federal government for an "economic bill of rights" that would ensure economic justice for the nation's poor. After King's assassination, SCLC, now under the direction of Ralph David Abernathy, decided to proceed with the campaign in King's honor. The Poor People's Campaign was inaugurated by Coretta Scott King, who led female demonstrators to the nation's capital on Mother's Day 1968.

An important aspect of the Poor People's Campaign was Resurrection City, a fledgling township of tents and shacks constructed on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. For over a month, protestors stayed in Resurrection City, as a testament of their allegiance to the Poor People's Campaign and as a dramatic demonstration of the plight of the poor in America. During this time, protestors urged the government to pass a housing bill, a jobs bill, and a repeal of the Social Security Act, among other demands and provisions.

Chapter II of the Poor People's Campaign began in the spring of 1969 and its focus was primarily on labor struggles in Charleston, South Carolina. The most significant campaign from Chapter II was SCLC's support of striking Local 1199B of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, better known as the Charleston Hospital Worker's strike, for which president Ralph David Abernathy went to jail. In the late 1980s, SCLC revived the Poor People's Campaign initiative under the name Poor People's Crusade. From 1987-1988, SCLC engaged in a number of activities, such as public hearings, to draw national attention to the continuing struggle of the American poor.

Scope and Content Note

The subseries consists of the records of the Poor People's Campaign from 1964-1988, including the iconic activities of 1968, Chapter II of the Poor People's Campaign in 1969, and the Poor People's Crusade from 1987-1988. In general the subseries consists of files relating to the planning and strategizing of each initiative. Records for the Poor People's Campaign (1968) include correspondence; reports; committee records; materials relating to the regional caravans that traveled to Washington D.C.; guidelines for the Poor People's Campaign staff; and UPI press clippings reporting the campaign. Also present are files relating to partner organizations. Records for Chapter II of the Poor People's Campaign and for the Poor People's Crusade are limited, but also contain correspondence and planning files.

For additional records relating to the planning and execution of the Poor People's Campaign see Subseries 2.2: Ralph David Abernathy files; Subseries 3.2: Andrew J. Young files; and Subseries 4.1: William A. Rutherford files. For additional records relating to Chapter II of the Poor People's Campaign, see Subseries 2.2: President Ralph David Abernathy files. For additional records relating to the Poor People's Crusade, see Subseries 2.3: President Joseph E. Lowery files and Series 7: Department of Direct Action records. For transcripts of speeches from all three campaigns see Series 11: Martin Luther King Speaks. For audio of speeches and events from all three campaigns, see Series 19: Audiovisual.

Arrangement Note

Arranged in alphabetical order.