The Orlando, Florida, Civil Rights Movement: A Case Study in Cooperation and Communication, 1951-1971

Heading into the 1950s, manifestations of racism were present in Orlando and Orange County that posed serious threats to the impending Civil Rights Movement. Confronting racism, as manifested by segregation, discrimination, and violence toward African-Americans, was at the heart of the Orlando Civil Rights Movement. However, despite this deeply embedded racism, a spirit of cooperation and communication between black and white community leaders existed. This spirit of cooperation and communication facilitated the first step in the Orlando Civil Rights Movement, the 1951 integration of the Orlando Police Department, and later proved instrumental in the success of biracial committees. These biracial committees, strongly supported by the Orlando city government and police department, helped bring about relatively peaceful integration in Orlando. The Orlando spirit of cooperation and communication between African-American and white communities (supported and fostered by city officials in th