The St. Paul Betrayal: How a 1902 Capitol Coup Reconfigured the Civil Rights Movement - Part 2

On July 10, 1902, the quiet chambers of the old Minnesota State Capitol became an anomalous laboratory for a high-stakes, sophisticated proxy war that split early Black political leadership. In this episode, we trace the dramatic floor fight of the National Afro-American Council convention in St. Paul. Discover how the corporate precision of the Booker T. Washington machine staged a procedural ambush, installing T. Thomas Fortune as president and shattering the trust of local organizers like Fredrick McGhee.We explore the deep rifts that divided local leadership, including the conservative alignment of J.Q. Adams and The Appeal, and look beyond the false unity of the closing gala at the University of Minnesota Armory. This historical turning point disillusioned a legal vanguard, setting off a multi-year chain reaction that directly catalyzed the 1905 Niagara Movement and paved the way for the founding of the NAACP.