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

operation. For it to work, Connor had to
fight back. As King put it, Connor had to
be induced to “tip his hand”—thereby
revealing his ugly side to the world. But
there was no guarantee that he would do
that. King and Walker had just come
from running their long campaign in
Albany, Georgia, and they had failed
there because the Albany police chief,
Laurie Pritchett, had refused to take the
bait. He told his police officers not to
use violence or excessive force. He was
friendly and polite. His views on civil
rights may have been unevolved, but he
treated King with respect. The Northern
press came to Albany to cover the
confrontation between white and black,