Politics of Respectability

                Politics of respectability refers to a set of rules of conduct in which members of a minority should adhere by. By behaving within societal norms, they hope to become accepted by the majority. Activists in the Civil Rights Movement were aware that to be seen as equals African Americans would have to demonstrate that they were the same as white Americans. During the 1950’s the ideal American was a white person married into a heterosexual family and held a respectable job. The NAACP and other black organizations kept this in mind when choosing their leaders and representatives. Rosa Parks was selected as the poster child of the Civil Rights Movement because she fit the criteria of a respectable American citizen.

                Several African Americans challenged the segregation of public transportation, but they were not chosen to represent the cause because they did not abide by the politics of respectability. One example is Claudette Colvin who also lived in Montgomery Alabama. She was a 15 year old member of the NAACP’s Youth Council who was arrested after refusing to give up her seat. Because she was pregnant outside of marriage she was bypassed as a potential poster child for the movement. An unwed pregnancy would not help improve the image of African Americans. Rosa Parks, however, was a married woman with a job and family. As an activist in the NAACP she was chosen to represent the movement toward desegregating the buses.

                That day marked a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement as Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat because she was too tired. In her biography she explains:

People always say that I didn't give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn't true. I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in. I knew someone had to take the first step and I made up my mind not to move. Our mistreatment was just not right, and I was tired of it.

Rosa Parks stood her ground because sitting anywhere on the bus was her constitutional rights. Because she qualified as a respectable woman the NAACP took the case to court. Because she was a married woman whose lifestyle fit into society’s norms, white society could not question her morality. Therefore, the NAACP had a greater chance of success with the case.

                The politics of respectability played a major role in the Civil Rights Movement. But should it still be practiced today? A blog described it as “conforming to mainstream life and goals” in order to “disprove stereotypes” and “to be thought of as ‘model minorities’”.  Today’s society values individualism. Conforming to what is considered mainstream seems belittling to me. Fifty years ago it was necessary to show that you were equally human, but today I believe it is wrong to change in order to impress someone who looks down on you.

                Do you think the politics of respectability was necessary for the Civil Rights Movement to prevail? If so, do you think African Americans should continue to practice it to diminish racial stereotypes?