Herbers, John. "6 Rights Leaders Clash on Tactics in Equality Drive."
New York Times, August 22, 1966. P. 1, 37.
Stokely Carmichael of SNCC, James Meredith, Martin Luther King of SCLC, Whitney Young of the
National Urban League, Roy Wilkins of the NAACP, and Floyd McKissick of CORE spoke on various
issues confronting the civil rights movement in late 1966 America. The gathering was part of a
taping of "Meet the Press." Among issues of the value and future of non-violence was
the issue of Vietnam. Citing African-American troops as "black mercenaries,"
Stokely Carmichael said, "I would not fight in Vietnam, absolutely not. I would advise
every black man not to fight in Vietnam." However James Meredith stated, "I fully
support the war effort, not the conduct of the war effort. I am a soldier. I personally think
one of the best things happening to the Negro is the war in Vietnam."
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