Black Power and the American Myth

Black Power and the American Myth is a 1970 book by C. T. Vivian that analyzes the civil rights movement. Before writing the book, Vivian had been an activist, and a member of the Executive Staff of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), along with Martin Luther King Jr., Andrew Young, James Bevel and others. Vivian's access gave readers a first-hand account of the thoughts and motivations of the movement's leaders.

Vivian credits King with successfully shifting white Americans' perceptions of the need for equal rights for African-Americans:

It was Martin Luther King who removed the Black struggle from the economic realm and placed it in a moral and spiritual context. It was on this plane that The Movement first confronted the conscience of the nation.[1]

Vivian also describes the process through which the movement's leaders identified important goals and strategies:

In the initial planning stages of The Movement, the leaders identified five goals:

1. The creation of a new condition within the Black community.

2. Inclusion of the Black middle class in the struggle.

3. Bring about significant change in the values of the entire nation.

4. Initiate a new method of social action – that of non-violence.

5. It had to go all the way — there would be no turning back midway.[2]

After its 1970 publication, Black Power and the American Myth became an Ebony Book Club selection and a bestseller.[3]