Benjamin Mays

Benjamin Mays
Carrie M. Dumas and Julie Hunter · Public domain · source
Name	Benjamin Mays
Caption	Benjamin Mays, educator and civil rights leader.
Birth date	1 August 1894
Birth place	Epworth, South Carolina, U.S.
Death date	28 March 1984
Death place	Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Alma mater	Bates College, University of Chicago
Occupation	Educator, minister, civil rights activist
Known for	President of Morehouse College, Mentor to Martin Luther King Jr.
Spouse	Sadie Gray Mays

Benjamin Mays. Benjamin Mays was an influential African-American educator, minister, and intellectual who became a towering figure in the American civil rights movement. As the long-serving president of Morehouse College, he mentored a generation of leaders, most notably Martin Luther King Jr., and articulated a powerful philosophy of social justice rooted in Christian ethics and nonviolent resistance.

Early life and education

Benjamin Elijah Mays was born in 1894 in the rural community of Epworth, South Carolina, to parents who were former sharecroppers. Growing up in the Jim Crow South, he experienced racial violence firsthand, including a traumatic childhood memory of a lynching threat against his father. Despite immense obstacles, including segregated and underfunded schools, Mays demonstrated an early thirst for knowledge. He attended the high school program at South Carolina State College before earning a scholarship to Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, where he graduated with honors in 1920. He later earned a master's degree and a Ph.D. in Christian ethics from the University of Chicago in 1935, establishing his academic foundation in religion and philosophy.

Academic career and Morehouse presidency

Mays began his career as a university professor and dean of the School of Religion at Howard University. In 1940, he was appointed as the sixth president of Morehouse College, a historically black college in Atlanta, Georgia. His 27-year tenure transformed the institution, raising its academic standards, financial stability, and national profile. Mays championed the idea of the "Morehouse Man," instilling in his students a sense of dignity, intellectual rigor, and moral obligation to fight for social justice. He expanded the faculty, oversaw significant campus construction, and forged partnerships with philanthropic organizations like the General Education Board and the Ford Foundation.

Mentorship and influence on civil rights leaders

Mays's most profound impact was as a mentor and intellectual father to the leaders of the modern civil rights movement. His weekly Tuesday morning chapel sermons at Morehouse were legendary, shaping the social consciousness of students including Martin Luther King Jr., Julian Bond, and Maynard Jackson. He provided crucial guidance to King, encouraging his theological studies and later serving as a trusted advisor during the Montgomery bus boycott and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Mays's influence extended to other activists like Andrew Young and James Lawson, embedding his principles of disciplined protest and moral courage into the movement's core.

Philosophy of social justice and nonviolent protest

Mays's philosophy was a synthesis of Progressive Christianity, Gandhian principles of nonviolence, and a pragmatic belief in the power of education and political engagement. He argued that segregation was a moral evil and a sin, framing the struggle for civil and political rights in theological terms. In his writings, such as his book Seeking to Be Christian in Race Relations, and his speeches, he advocated for civil disobedience as a Christian duty against unjust laws. He was a close associate of Howard Thurman and was deeply influenced by the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi, helping to translate the concept of Satyagraha into a Christian context for the American South.

Political advocacy and later life

Beyond the campus, Mays was a vocal public advocate for racial equality. He served as an advisor to U.S. Presidents, including John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson, on issues of civil rights. He was a prolific writer, contributing columns to newspapers like the Pittsburgh Courier, and served as the first African American president of the Atlanta Board of Education, where he worked to peacefully desegregate the city's public schools. After retiring from Morehouse in 1967, he remained active, writing his autobiography, Born to Rebel, and serving as a consultant to the Peace Corps.

Legacy and honors

Benjamin Mays's legacy is that of a foundational architect of the civil rights movement. His ideas and mentorship directly shaped the strategy and rhetoric of its most iconic leaders. He received numerous honors, including over 60 honorary degrees from institutions like Columbia University and Dartmouth College. The Benjamin E. Mays High School in Atlanta and the Benjamin E. Mays International Magnet School in Saint Paul, Minnesota are named in his honor. His childhood home in South Carolina is a designated National Historic Landmark. Mays passed away in 1984, but his teachings on dignity, justice, and the power of educated, nonviolent protest continue to resonate.