Benjamin Elton Cox facts for kids
Benjamin Elton Cox (born June 19, 1931 – died June 12, 2011) was an American minister and a very important activist in the Civil Rights Movement. He took part in the brave Freedom Riders protests in 1961. He was even interviewed for a film about the Freedom Riders in 2010.
Early Life and Education
Benjamin Cox was born in Whiteville, Tennessee. People called him "Beltin' Elton" because he was a powerful speaker. He was one of sixteen children in his family. When he was five, his family moved to Kankakee, Illinois.
He left high school for a while to help his family. He shined shoes for 18 months to earn money. Later, in 1950, he earned his high school diploma at age twenty. He then went to Livingstone College in Salisbury, North Carolina. He studied sociology and history, finishing in 1954. After that, he studied to become a minister at Howard University. He also spent a year studying at a seminary in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Fighting for Civil Rights
After becoming a minister in 1958, he led the Pilgrim Congregational Church in High Point, North Carolina. Cox quickly became known as a strong supporter of the Civil Rights Movement. This movement worked to end unfair treatment and segregation against Black Americans.
He helped start efforts to desegregate schools in his area. He advised a youth group for the NAACP. He also observed for the American Friends Service Committee.
In February 1960, students started peaceful protests called Greensboro sit-ins. Cox encouraged local students to do their own sit-ins. He always told them to remain non-violent.
Cox strongly believed in non-violence. His work caught the attention of national NAACP leaders, like James Farmer. Farmer hired Cox to travel around the South.
Soon, James Farmer became the leader of the CORE. Farmer called Cox and asked him to join the Freedom Riders. Cox agreed because he was an ordained minister. He showed up in Washington wearing formal clothes. He wanted to show that the Ride had a serious, spiritual purpose.
Cox was one of two ministers on the Freedom Ride. The other minister, J. Metz Rollins, had to leave. This left Cox as the only preacher. John Lewis was also a key leader on the rides.
In 1960, Cox traveled across the South. He taught students about non-violence. Many students accepted his message. Even though white supremacists often tried to cause violence, the sit-ins continued peacefully. Many people had feared a violent race war, but it did not happen.
In the summer of 1961, he joined a CORE Freedom Ride. This ride went from Missouri to Louisiana. In the film Freedom Riders, he explained his actions. He said that if leaders like Governor Patterson of Alabama and Governor Barnett of Mississippi did their jobs fairly, people could travel freely. Then, people around the world would not see that America was not living up to its promise of "liberty and justice for all".
In December 1961, Cox was arrested in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He was accused of disturbing the peace. His case went all the way to the Supreme Court. In a case called Cox v. Louisiana, the Supreme Court decided in his favor. They ruled that state governments cannot use "breach of the peace" laws against people who protest peacefully.
Benjamin Cox was arrested seventeen times over several decades for his activism.
Later Life and Legacy
Before he retired, Benjamin Cox served as a minister at Pilgrim Congregational Church in High Point, North Carolina. Later, he worked as a chaplain at the VA Hospital in Urbana, Illinois. Finally, he was a middle school counselor in Jackson, Tennessee.
