John Edward Bruce: “Organized Resistance Is Our Best Remedy” (1889)
“Organized Resistance Is Our Best Remedy” may not be one of John Edward Bruce’s most recognized works, but it is considered his most militant. The speech, which was delivered to an all-black audience on October 5, 1889, in Washington, D.C., directly addresses the violence against African Americans that was rampant in the southern United States in the late nineteenth century. Bruce, a longtime journalist and black rights activist, took it upon himself to directly confront the issues of racial inequality and violence facing African Americans.
Bruce’s “Organized Resistance” speech identifies aggression and force against African Americans as the white solution to the so-called Negro problem. He argues that the only way African Americans can combat southern white aggression is with organized resistance. The address was given in the fall of 1889 in the nation’s capital, but little else is known about its origins. Bruce’s speech stands alone as a work of confrontational oratory,...
