God with Us by Quiros Ansley L.;

Author:Quiros, Ansley L.;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: University of North Carolina Press

An integrated group conducts a kneel-in at First Methodist Church in Americus, Georgia, 1965. (AP Photo)

“A Picture to the World”: Responses to the Kneel-In

Accompanying both Associated Press and United Press articles, the photograph of the Americus kneel-in found its way to the front page of morning newspapers in Portland, Spokane, and Seattle, in Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia, and, even more remarkably, in Vancouver, Christchurch, Edinburgh, and La Paz.89 The kneel-in in Americus was also reported on the NBC Nightly News in a compelling scene akin to the fire hoses of Birmingham and the charred buses of Anniston.90 The bent knees and bowed heads, the set jaws and folded arms were now on display not only for the people of Americus but for all of America. Over 300 letters of response poured into the First Methodist Church. Some praised the Americus church, others chastised it, some offered sympathy, and some commented with emotional or comical asides. Some sent scathing political cartoons that appeared in various newspapers, while one man sent one he had drawn by hand. Postmarked from cities around the nation, including East Longmeadow, Massachusetts; Port Angeles, Washington; St. Paul, Minnesota; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Elizabethtown, Tennessee, the letters provide riveting insight into national beliefs regarding religion and civil rights.91 Retired veterans, hopeful college students, concerned housewives, and members of the clergy all made their voices heard, mailing their opinions and questions down to Americus. First Methodist preserved them all.

The majority of the letters chastised the church. The incident amounted to “a shame,” “a travesty,” a “disgrace”; it was “regrettable,” “upsetting,” and “deeply disturbing.”92 Many berated the congregants in Americus for not being Christians at all. Of the letters received, around two-thirds condemned the church’s actions.

Many of these writers were concerned Methodists who criticized the church either for its outright denominational rebellion or for forsaking the mission of the church universal. “I respectfully call your attention to Paragraph 1820 of the 1964 Discipline of the Methodist Church which you, as a minister, took a vow to uphold and enforce,” thundered Mr. Elmer Hill of Sherman Oaks, California, “your action and those of members of your church is in violation of the church discipline and is a disgrace.” He then noted that he would be contacting the bishop regarding the matter to “take whatever action may be necessary.”93 Another concerned Methodist also confronted the congregation about its position with respect to national denominational edicts. From Christchurch, New Zealand, Mr. Armstrong wrote, “I understand that every official pronouncement of the American Methodist Church is against segregation” and “that the Negro ‘central jurisdiction,’ or segregated organization of Negro Methodist churches, has been abolished.” He claimed, “There is no vestige of support for segregation in any ecumenical body.”94 One Methodist minister, outraged that the church was flaunting the national guidelines, wrote that First Methodist of Americus should “please, please, please do Methodism a favor and lead your people out of the Methodist Church!” “Since there is obviously no intention of following the

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