According to McAdam
According to McAdam, framing refers to deliberate strategic actions taken by groups of people solely for the purpose of creating common perceptions of themselves and the world, which do inspire and justify collective action. (Snow et al. 341). In this regard, McAdam makes an attempt to convey the message—or rather, to imply—that framing processes are facilitated and carried out by the leaders of an organization in order to enable a movement or group to articulate the necessity of change, describe the desired changes, and persuasively and clearly describe the existing problems. Why Does He Feel the Media Was So Critical to The SCLC’s Fate?
McAdam's belief on social media
McAdam believed that the literature on social media particularly its effectiveness and efficiency is beyond its utility in politicizing and collectivity, of the individual frame effects. In other words, this arena appropriately consigns messaging to its rightful position, that is a chief tool to be leveraged towards larger goals. Whereas frames are not ends in themselves, they serve as catalysts to larger social change. At the center of this is the media, since without it the social movement cannot generate coverage to air its grievances. For the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) media coverage became a crucial source of possibilities of action, encouragement, and information. As a mechanism of coverage, the media effected and conveyed a set of actions, claims, and identities that belonged to the SCLC.
How Did SCLC Frame Their Actions?
The framing process involves the social construction of a social phenomenon by political leaders, social or political movements, mass media sources, or other organizations and actors. In the limelight of its advocacy of nonviolence and affiliation with churches, the SCLC sought and intended to frame the struggle for civilization in moral terms. The primary purpose of the SCLC was to redeem what it termed as the 'soul of America' and framed it with a nonviolent resistance which coordinated the action of local protest groups across the south. Through Martin Luther's leadership, the SCLC drew on the independence and power of the black churches to back its doings or rather activities. They advocated or rather pushed through their agenda under the delve that it was their moral obligation before God to engage deeper into liberation struggle primarily with greater reliance on the non-violence strategies and more so with Christian understanding, sharing, coordination and greater unity (Snow et al. 352). The main catalyst that led to the formation of SCLC was the successful Montgomery bus boycott. The SCLC organization differed with other social movements particularly the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in that they carried out their activities or operations as an umbrella organization of the affiliates.
To advocate for its ideologies
To advocate for its ideologies, SCLC staff conducted pieces of training for the local communities concerning the philosophy of Christian non-violence by piloting the opening of citizenship schools and leadership training programs (Snow et al. 352). The SCLC began by organizing a primary campaign which they referred to as the crusade for citizenship, a strategy that sparked the civil rights bill which was at that time pending in the Congress. It also joined local movements which aided in coordinating voter registration drivers and mass protests campaigns all over the south especially St. Augustine, Florida, Alabama, Birmingham and Selma, Georgia, and Albany. It later on broadened its focus to take into account economic inequality with poverty being seen as the root cause of social inequality.
How Did George C. Wallace "Frame" The Civil Rights Movement, And in Particular, The Federal Government's Role in Its Progression?
George Wallace framed the civil rights movement on segregation. Wallace is said to be one of the most controversial politicians in the history of the United States (American History 1). After his election, Wallace made promises to his white followers that he would effect segregation now, tomorrow, and forever. However, this promise turned out to be in existence for only a period of six months (American History 1). This was because of the federal pressure exerted in him where he was forced to call off the blockade of the University of Alabama as well as allow the enrolment of the African American students (American History 1). At that time, President Lyndon Johnson was under pressure from the civil society leaders which compelled him to command Governor Wallace to mobilize the National Guard units of Alabama to protect the Selma marchers. His refusal to heed to the president's directive, on claims that the state was financially unable to do so, made him the most prominent segregationist's resistance’s national icon to the Civil Rights Movement. In spite of his failures in slackening the accelerating civil rights movements, particularly in the south, Wallace turned out to become a national spokesman for the resistance to the racial change. Wallace, later on, changed his language or rather the ideology of segregation forever made the most African American political appointments than any other figure in the history of Alabama. He went back to seek forgiveness from the civil rights leaders whom he had so forcibly opposed in the past.
Works Cited
American History. "Speech by George C. Wallace The Civil Rights Movement Fraud, Sham and Hoax 1964 < 1951- < Documents < American History from Revolution to Reconstruction and Beyond." Faculty of Arts | About Us | About Us | University of Groningen. N.p., 4 July 1964. Web. 15 Nov. 2017.
Snow, David A, Porta D. Della, Bert Klandermans, and Doug McAdam. The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Social and Political Movements. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2014. Print.
