Marching on Washington: The Forging of an American Political Tradition

Lucy G. Barber

University of California Press, 2004 - History - 323 pages

When Jacob Coxey's army marched into Washington, D.C., in 1894, observers didn't know what to make of this concerted effort by citizens to use the capital for national public protest. By 1971, however, when thousands marched to protest the war in Vietnam, what had once been outside the political order had become an American political norm. Lucy G. Barber's lively, erudite history explains just how this tactic achieved its transformation from unacceptable to legitimate. Barber shows how such highly visible events contributed to the development of a broader and more inclusive view of citizenship and transformed the capital from the exclusive domain of politicians and officials into a national stage for Americans to participate directly in national politics.

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User Review  - Bruce - Goodreads

The use of Washington DC as a public sphere for protests, rather than ceremonies, got it's start with Coxey's Army in 1894. The group wanted to end the misery of unemployed workers by building roads ...

Contents

• Without Precedent Coxeys Army Invades Washington 1894: 11
• A National Demonstration The Woman Suffrage Procession and Pageant March 3 1913: 44
• A New Type of Lobbying The Veterans Bonus March of 1932: 75
• Pressure More Pressure and Still More Pressure The Negro March on Washington and Its Cancellation 1941: 108
• In Great Tradition The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom August 28 1963: 141
• The Spring Offensive of 1971 Radicals and Marches on Washington: 179
• Epilogue: 219
• Notes: 229
• Bibliographical Essay: 297
• Acknowledgments: 307
• Index: 311

About the author

Lucy G. Barber is Director for Technology Initiatives, National Historical Publications and Records Commission, National Archives. She has taught United States history at the University of California, Davis; Rhode Island School of Design; and Brown University.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Marching on Washington: The Forging of an American Political Tradition
• Author: Lucy G. Barber
• Edition: illustrated, reprint
• Publisher: University of California Press, 2004
• ISBN: 0520242157, 9780520242159
• Length: 323 pages
• Subjects: History / Americas (North, Central, South, West Indies); History / United States / General; History / United States / State & Local / General