1951 – UN Petition “We Charge Genocide” Presented to World

On June 14, 1951, William L. Patterson, representing the Civil Rights Congress, delivered the petition “We Charge Genocide” to the United Nations, asserting that the U.S. government was guilty of genocide against African Americans. The 237-page document, co-authored by figures like Paul Robeson and W.E.B. Du Bois, cited systematic killings, social deprivation, and economic exploitation. It drew from the UN\’s Genocide Convention, arguing that centuries of racism and structural violence qualified as genocidal acts. The petition was a bold move at the height of McCarthyism and Cold War tensions and led to intense backlash in the U.S., including surveillance of contributors. Though not formally acted upon by the UN, the petition had global impact—highlighting the civil rights struggle on an international stage and framing Black oppression as a human rights issue. It remains a landmark document in the global civil rights movement.