Protests matter. This Tri-Citian forged a path worth following | Editorial

“The difference between a militant and extremist is the militant wants a share in developing a neighborhood while extremists are trying to burn them up. ... The longer nothing is done, the more extremists are able to convince persons to their points of view...” — Art Fletcher, in an interview with the Tri-City Herald, fall 1967.

This summer of 2020, with its combination of civil unrest, a looming presidential election and the recent death of political giant Slade Gorton, brings to mind another significant summer in the Tri-Cities.

It was in 1968 when Republican Art Fletcher, one of Pasco’s most brilliant stars, began his rise to national prominence, battling discrimination all the way.

A champion of civil rights who considered himself a militant — and known as a Black man with a plan — has fingerprints all over the country’s equal opportunity laws.

He is considered the “Father of Affirmative Action,” and is among the most influential men in American history.

Sadly, though, we bet most Tri-Citians have never heard of him.

His accomplishments are not as well known as they should be.

It seems fitting then, in this time of renewed protests against systemic racism, that we acknowledge Fletcher’s contribution to the fight — and perhaps glean something from his example.

Fletcher was a high school football star in Junction City, Kansas, and went on to become the first Black to play football for a short time with the Baltimore Colts before injuries suffered in World War II forced him to leave the sport.

When he returned to his home state, he helped finance the Brown v. Topeka Board of Education case, which led to the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision against desegregated schools.

Nat Jackson, a good friend, said it was Fletcher’s mother who instilled in him a fierce determination for social justice. His mother would say, ‘We’ve got to fight ‘till hell freezes over, and then wrestle on the ice, ” Jackson said.

Jackson, who now lives in Lacey, Wash., met Fletcher when he moved to Pasco in 1968. By then, Fletcher already was a political force, the first Black man elected to the Pasco City Council.

Fletcher created the East Pasco Self-Help Cooperative, a neighborhood development corporation helping Blacks start their own businesses. The program caught the attention of state Republicans, and with Fletcher’s natural oratorical skills, he was recruited to run for state lieutenant governor.

Dallas Barnes of Pasco knew Fletcher well, calling him a “pathfinder.” He said the state Republican Convention was a turning point for Fletcher, with Gov. Dan Evans’ banner over the platform, flanked by Fletcher signs.

Fletcher ended up running on the “Action Team”, which included the ticket of Gov. Evans, Secretary of State Lud Kramer and Slade Gorton, who was running for state Attorney General.

Fletcher’s oratorical skills were reportedly mesmerizing. Jackson said no politician wanted to talk before or after him.

While Fletcher lost the election to Democrat incumbent John Cherberg, it was an amazingly close race and noticed by President Richard Nixon.

After a short stint working for Gov. Evans, Fletcher left for Washington, D.C., where he was Nixon’s assistant secretary for the Department of Labor, which put him in charge of stopping employment discrimination.

Later, Nixon appointed him chairman of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission. Fletcher went on to serve in the administrations of presidents Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, where he played an important role in framing anti-discrimination employment and business laws.

Fletcher died July 12, 2005, but his legacy lives on.

Barnes said it was the “winds of protest that blew Fletcher into politics,” and that present-day protesters are “riding on the fumes” of Fletcher’s work — and they probably don’t even realize it.

Today’s peaceful protesters have renewed their call for social justice, and that’s important because it forces issues to the surface that should not stay buried.

In order for real change to happen, though, there must be a next step.

Jackson said protests must continue, and they must lead to debate, then dialogue, then decisions, and finally, real change. Fortunately for all of us, Fletcher had this figured out long ago.

This story was originally published August 28, 2020 at 12:57 PM.