Question - What role did violence and nonviolence play in the struggle for civil rights? How did each help and hurt the movement?

What role did violence and nonviolence play in the struggle for civil rights? How did each help and hurt the movement?

Answer: 

White racist violence against nonviolent protesters and demonstrators outraged many Americans and hastened the political process of change. Some African Americans came to see nonviolent protest as an ineffective tool once a certain level of rights had been achieved. On the other hand, violence by African Americans in the form of urban riots hurt the movement by polarizing society.