Carlos Figueroa, Associate Professor of Politics, has published two chapters [22 and 39] on labor, civil, and human rights leader Bayard T. Rustin in The Quaker World (Routledge Press).
"The Quaker World is an outstanding, comprehensive, and lively introduction to this complex Christian denomination. Exploring the global reach of the Quaker community, the book begins with a discussion of the living community as it is now, in all its diversity and complexity.
The book covers well-known areas of Quaker development, such as the formation of Liberal Quakerism in North America, alongside topics which have received much less scholarly attention in the past, such as the history of Quakers in Bolivia and the spread of Quakerism in Western Kenya. It includes over sixty chapters by a distinguished international and interdisciplinary team of contributors and is organised into three clear parts:
- Global Quakerism
- Spirituality
- Embodiment
Within these sections, key themes are examined, including global Quaker activity, significant Quaker movements, biographies of key religious figures, important organizations, pacifism, politics, the abolition of slavery, education, industry, human rights, racism, refugees, gender, disability, sexuality, and environmentalism. The Quaker World provides an authoritative and accessible source of information on all topics important to Quaker Studies. As such, it is essential reading for students studying world religions, Christianity, and comparative religion, and it will also be of interest to those in related fields such as sociology, political science, anthropology, and ethics."
CHAPTER 22 Bayard T. Rustin: The Faith of a Conscientious Objector in the 1940s, (pp. 164-177)
Abstract: This chapter shows the ways Bayard T. Rustin balanced personal dilemmas and social upheavals while providing more explicit faith-based justifications for his critical anti-war and anti-violence actions in the 1940s. Rustin's pragmatic Quaker faith served him as a conscientious objector (CO) against war, social violence, and racial segregation. His efforts were criticized by adversaries yet recognized, praised, and encouraged by Quakers, fellow pacifists, and family along the way. All this led to Rustin eventually committing more deeply to his religious faith, becoming an official member of the Religious Society of Friends in 1943. Rustin's commitments to his pragmatic Quakerism guided his pacifist nonviolent message more effectively, with opportunities for broader discussions about the importance of resisting the evils of injustice and violence worldwide on moral-religious grounds.
CHAPTER 39 The Political Activist Life of Pragmatic Quaker Bayard T. Rustin, (pp. 307-318)
Abstract: This chapter explores Bayard T. Rustin's life and faith, drawing primarily on his own words and deeds. The chapter shows how Rustin's pragmatic Quaker theology premised on the "oneness" and "unity" principles - often expressed in tacit ways throughout his activist life - was constitutive of traditional Quaker testimonies and other religious traditions. His theology was rooted in his "oneness of the human family" notion that, in subtle ways, provided Rustin with the internal strength to commit to alleviating the harsh and oppressive conditions faced by working and poor people, including blacks, whites, and others in cities and rural areas in the United States and abroad. His pragmatic Quaker faith helped Rustin organize and reach out to disparate segments of society, notwithstanding ideological and partisan differences.
