Fusion Politics from the Poor People’s Campaign to the Rainbow Coalition to the New Poor People’s Campaign

Abstract

Abstract This article examines a model of fusion politics that connects activism to end poverty, and addresses a constellation of social injustices across more than a half century in the United States. We consider an articulation of fusion politics that highlights the actions of disparate groups and individuals, including youth, racial and ethnic minorities, women, LGBT activists, teachers, and union members who have joined in a cooperative effort to address independent but linked concerns such as quality public schools, livable wages, affordable healthcare, environmental justice, immigrant rights, women’s reproductive rights, fair elections, and criminal justice. Our analysis points out the historical links between the 1968 Poor People’s Campaign, the Rainbow Coalition of the 1980s, and the new Poor People’s Campaign launched in 2018. It draws heavily on the words and writings of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Reverend William Barber, II in understanding the organizing, objectives, and transformative potential of these movements.