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Summary

In Cambridge, Maryland, African American activists and students led a campaign from 1962 to 1963 to end public segregation and create public housing. The campaign, organized by groups like the Cambridge Nonviolent Action Committee (CNAC) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), used marches, sit-ins, and a downtown boycott. Despite violent opposition and the declaration of martial law, the campaign achieved a de jure end to segregation through the Treaty of Cambridge in July 1963.

Tactics used

Tactics used

Background

Cambridge, Maryland, was racially divided in 1960, with African Americans facing quadruple the unemployment rate of whites and pervasive segregation in public and private spaces. The campaign aimed to end public segregation and create public housing, targeting local businesses and government institutions.

What happened

In January 1962, CIG and SNCC affiliates led a march in Cambridge protesting segregation; police arrested and townspeople beat demonstrators, leading to the formation of the Cambridge Nonviolent Action Committee (CNAC) [source: nv-database]. A week later, a larger march included CORE members and black and white students from various colleges [source: nv-database]. State senator Frederick Malkus led opposition, with police allowing white crowds to beat demonstrators [source: nv-database]. Later in 1962, Governor Tawes passed an anti-discrimination bill, but an amendment allowed counties to ignore it [source: nv-database]. On March 29, 1963, fifty protesters marched against discriminatory policies at the Dorsett Theater and Rescue and Fire Company; police arrested seventeen, including Gloria Richardson [source: nv-database]. The next day, protesters held a sit-in at Collins Drugstore and demonstrations at multiple locations; CNAC called for a full-scale boycott, leading to eighty arrests within seven weeks [source: nv-database]. On June 13, 1963, five hundred protesters marched; the next night, violence erupted on both sides with fires, bricks, and gunfire [source: nv-database]. Governor Tawes offered to speed up desegregation and build public housing, but CNAC rejected the offer; Tawes declared martial law and sent troops on June 14 [source: nv-database]. CNAC met with Tawes and Assistant Attorney General Burke Marshall to pressure school desegregation by fall 1963 [source: nv-database]. The National Guard left on July 8, but violence continued, including an assault by proprietor Robert Fehsenfeld at Dizzyland Restaurant [source: nv-database]. On July 10, 300 whites surrounded 250 black protesters; violence at Dizzyland on July 11 led to the National Guard’s return [source: nv-database]. On July 23, with Robert Kennedy presiding, the Treaty of Cambridge was signed, calling for immediate desegregation of schools and hospitals, public housing, hiring of black workers, and a human relations commission [source: nv-database].

Key people & organizations

  • Civic Interest Group of Baltimore (CIG)
  • Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC)
  • Reggie Robinson
  • Bill Hansen
  • Cambridge Nonviolent Action Committee (CNAC)
  • Gloria Richardson
  • Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)
  • Robert Kennedy
  • Frederick Malkus
  • Brice Kinnamon
  • Osvrey Pritchett
  • Rescue and Fire Company (RFC)
  • J. Millard Tawes

Outcome

Verdict: won.

The campaign achieved 5 out of 6 demands, including a de jure end to segregation in Maryland through the Treaty of Cambridge, though the campaign was not entirely nonviolent due to violence on both sides [source: nv-database].

Lessons

  • Coalition-building with diverse student groups and national organizations can strengthen local campaigns.
  • Economic boycotts can effectively pressure local businesses and government to negotiate.
  • Sustained nonviolent direct action, even in the face of violent repression, can force political concessions.

Sources

Disclaimer: Included as a teaching example of campaign craft, not as endorsement.

Sources & verification

  • nv-database — grounding: primary — license: link-only
  • Rewritten: 2026-06-25 via worker_casestudies_v2.py

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