Dr. Michael Long, of the religious studies and peace and conflict studies departments, has accomplished a great deal as of late. He recently spoke at Yale University regarding Bayard Rustin’s life and contributions to the civil rights movement, has published a number of articles for the Huffington Post and has also published a book, “Martin Luther King, Jr., Homosexuality, and the Early Gay Rights Movement.” His next book, Beyond the Plate, is set to be released in April.
“I constantly try to pick projects that I believe will help people see the value of nonviolent social movements, and their ability to transform America for the better,” Long said.
In his most recent book, he investigates how a modern Martin Luther King Jr. may feel about the LGBT movement. Long explored the relationship that King had with Rustin, who was a homosexual man that worked closely with King during the civil rights movement.
Long also discusses the role that Rustin had in the nonviolent approach that King took to gain equal rights for African Americans.
Rustin acted as a mentor to King and taught him much about nonviolent protest. Long highlighted the fact that after a congressman threatened to wrongly accuse King of having an affair with Rustin, King immediately fired him.Rustin’s life was a large topic in Long’s most recently published book.
“Martin Luther King, Jr., Homosexuality, and the Early Gay Rights Movement” analyzes the way that King’s family acted toward the LGBT movement. King’s daughter was openly against the movement, but his late wife was an extreme advocate for gay rights. Long’s first novel discusses the role King would have had in the LGBT movement in present day politics.
Long’s most popular article in the Huffington Post discusses similar issues. He wrote this article about the similarities between the LGBT movement and the civil rights movement, focusing on a man named Julian Bond who was active in both. Bond is a key leader in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and has made unbelievable advancements in both very prominent social movements. “Nobody alive today has done more to bring the movements together,” Long said.
Some influential people that Long has written articles about are Thurgood Marshall, Martin Luther King Jr., Bayard Rustin and Jackie Robinson. Long said he likes to select topics that can really highlight the value of nonviolent social movements and the people that contributed to them. “I pick projects that will help all of us understand the call of human rights,” Long said when discussing his work for the Huffington Post.
Robinson is the subject of Long’s book, “Beyond Home Plate,” which will be released this April. In this book he discusses the role that Robinson played in the Civil Rights Movement. Many know him as the revolutionary African American baseball player, but Long provides insight for readers into Robinson’s “life beyond home plate.” The book covers Robinson’s personal life and values as well as the ways he strengthened the political presence of the African American people.
He was a dedicated family man, active member in his community, large influence in the Civil Rights Movement and an African American baseball player who changed history.
The manuscript that Long is currently working on is about a political activist for the gay rights movement named Frank Kameny. This man was fired by the government for being homosexual and went on to peacefully advocate for equality among the LGBT community. “It tells the story of his being a victim of the law to the voice of the law,” Long said. Kameny was able to create so much progress with the issue that the government actually ended up formally apologizing to him for having fired him because of their prejudice.
Long believes that he will keep discovering more topics to research and write about concerning nonviolent social movements. He feels that each topic he studies just keeps expanding into another. “I always try to pick projects that I think will help my sons figure out what justice is in a world often marked by violence, and that will help them see the beauty of nonviolence in a world where war is often celebrated,” Long said.