One of the reasons why segregation lasted so long was because people who otherwise objected to it did not want to associate with Communist front groups like the ACLU and the Highlander Folk School.
My father was involved in the civil rights movement in Biloxi in the late 1950s and he was frequently accosted by Communist recruiters at various meetings. It was an open secret that certain leaders in the civil rights movement like Paul Robeson, Harry Belafonte and Bayard Rustin were ardent Stalinists.
I meant to communicate that not all people who were involved with , or worked toward Civil Rights were Communists. I am sure that there were communists who saw a weakness in our society that they could exploit (being unequal laws and such), but not all of the leaders of civil rights groups were Communists.