How did early groups lay the groundwork for the civil rights movement?

Answer 1

First: The Black churches provided the place for meetings and educated leadership. The hymns sang about freedom. Many of the pastors had excellent educations. Martin Luther King had a PhD from a northern University.

Second: The Pullman Railroad Porters were Millionaires. Before airplanes became popular, rich people rode in railroad cars with beds. They were called Pullman Cars. The rich people would give tips to the Porters. Then the Porters would clean up after the travelers. They would save their Wall Street Journals and other financial magazines. They would invest their tips. They would overhear the rich people talk about pending deals. The Porters invested on inside information. They made millions. When the civil rights movement would need bail to get people out of jail, they would have it.

Third: Mahatma Gandhi showed the way of non violence. Years previously in India, he had developed the techniques they would use.

Fourth: While the main movement was led by Martin Luther King, other movements sprang up. Eldridge Cleaver led one such movement. He got tired of being a wall street lawyer and became a rabble rouser. With all the little movements trying to register voters and integrate restaurants, it became obvious that simply stopping one leader would not do.

You will notice that I did not answer your question. Martin Luther King was of the South but was not educated in the South. The Pullman Porters were from the South but learned of a different part of the nation. Eldridge Cleaver brought Wall Street smarts back to the South. The traditional organizations such as the NAACP had done nothing over the years.