Glenn E. Smiley facts for kids

Glenn Smiley (born April 19, 1910 – died September 14, 1993) was an important white leader and advisor during the Civil Rights Movement. He deeply studied the ideas of Mahatma Gandhi. Smiley believed that racism and unfair separation (segregation) could be overcome without violence. He started teaching and using peaceful methods.

As an employee of the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR), he met Martin Luther King Jr. in Montgomery, Alabama in 1956. This was during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Smiley advised King and his team on how to use nonviolent tactics. He helped convince King that nonviolence was a strong way to deal with racial problems. Along with Bayard Rustin, Smiley helped King and others understand that complete nonviolence and peaceful direct action were the best tools for protests. After the Civil Rights Movement, Smiley continued to promote peace. He worked for several groups that supported peace in South American countries. Just three years before he died in 1993, Smiley opened the King Center in Los Angeles.

Early Life of Glenn Smiley

Glenn Smiley was born in Loraine, Texas, on April 19, 1910. He went to several universities, including McMurry College, Southwestern University, and the University of Arizona. He later graduated from the University of Redlands.

Smiley's Career and Activism

Smiley worked as a preacher for Methodist churches in Arizona and California for 14 years. After his time as a minister, Smiley joined several organizations. In 1942, he worked for the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). Later, he became the national field secretary for the Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR).

When World War II began, Smiley refused to join the armed forces. He also chose not to use the clergy exception, which would have allowed him to avoid military service as a minister. Because of his beliefs, he was called a conscientious objector. This means he refused to fight in a war because of his moral or religious beliefs. He went to prison in 1945 for not following the rules. Smiley believed that prison was almost as bad as war in how it treated people.

In his sixties, Smiley had many small strokes. These strokes affected his memory and speech for 15 years. But one day, he woke up and seemed completely normal again. He even went on to give 103 major talks.

Belief in Nonviolence

During his ministry work in the 1940s, Smiley became very interested in the methods of Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi taught about self-control and nonviolence. From these studies, Smiley developed his idea that nonviolence was the best way to fight against unfair treatment.

Smiley first used his nonviolence ideas in the late 1940s. He tried to help integrate tearooms in department stores in the Los Angeles area. This meant helping people of all races be allowed to eat there together.

Working with Martin Luther King Jr.

Smiley later worked closely with Martin Luther King Jr.. He advised King on nonviolence tactics. He stressed how important nonviolence was for the success of the Civil Rights Movement. Smiley was impressed with Dr. King's leadership. However, he was critical of King for having a bodyguard.

Smiley wrote to his friends, saying, "If King can really be won to a faith of nonviolence there is no end to what he can do." He also convinced King that white and Black ministers in the South needed to talk to each other. King sent Smiley around the South to teach about nonviolence to church groups and civil rights groups. Soon, nonviolence became a main idea for King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

The Montgomery Bus Boycott

During the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Smiley helped by sharing news of the boycott with his church members. He was also tasked with reaching out to white people in the South. He attended meetings of groups like the Ku Klux Klan and the White Citizens' Councils (WCC). He said his job was "to make every contact possible in the white community."

After the Supreme Court ruled in Browder v. Gayle on December 17, 1956, bus segregation was declared illegal. The Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) created new rules to help Black residents ride the newly integrated buses. Smiley, along with Martin Luther King Jr. and other MIA leaders, helped write these important guidelines.

On the first day that bus segregation ended in Montgomery, Smiley rode the bus with Martin Luther King Jr. and Reverend Ralph D. Abernathy. Smiley later said he took the bus ride to see how people would react. His work had been focused on urging nonviolence.

Student Sit-in Movement

Later, during the student sit-in movement in the 1960s, Smiley was a strong supporter. He encouraged students to attend a conference at Shaw University. This conference became the starting point for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC).

International Peace Work

In the 1960s, Smiley started a Methodist-inspired group called Justice-Action-Peace Latin America. This group organized workshops on nonviolence in Latin American countries from 1967 to the early 1970s. Smiley traveled to South American countries. He taught nonviolence while working for the National Council of Churches and the National Council of Catholic Bishops.

Shortly before his death, Smiley founded the Martin Luther King Center for Nonviolence in Los Angeles in 1990. He wanted to continue his lifelong belief in nonviolence. Speaking about the King Center, Smiley said, "nonviolence is the most effective way of achieving change because in the process it does not rip countries apart; it builds, it does not destroy."

Death

Glenn Smiley died on September 14, 1993, in Glendale, California. He was 83 years old. Dean Hunsell, a board member of the Los Angeles Martin Luther King Center for Nonviolence, announced that Smiley died of natural causes. These were likely related to problems from a previous stroke. Smiley was survived by his wife, Helen, three children, eight grandchildren, and 22 great-grandchildren.