Self-government and the public trust are the pillars of democracy and were at the core of the civil-rights movement, said Taylor Branch, author of the civil-rights trilogy “America in the King Years” as well as “The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the President.” He addressed Fair360, formerly DiversityInc’s audience of chief diversity officers and executives at our two-day diversity event in Washington, D.C.
“Diversity is the very essence of our humanity,” Branch said. “The civil-rights movement showed that as the world shrinks our literacy across the lines that divide us isn’t just nice, it’s the key to our strength.”
Branch, who grew up in segregated Atlanta, wanted to be a surgeon and a football player; politics and race relations did not interest him at first. “The civil-rights movement grew up all around me,” he said. “Because it was so persistent, it changed the course of my life.”
