David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants

Birmingham, many of Bull Connor’s
people had no idea what Walker looked
like. King and Shuttlesworth were
equipped with a certain serenity. Walker
was not. “If you get in my way, I’ll run
smack dab over you” is how Walker
described his management style. “I don’t
have time for ‘good morning, good
afternoon; how do you feel.’ We’ve got
a revolution on our hands.”
Once, in Birmingham, when King was
giving a speech, a two-hundred-pound
white man charged the stage and began
pummeling King with his fists. As
King’s aides rushed to defend him,
McWhorter writes: