MONROE’S WILLIAMS SOSPEIIKII
NAACP Repudiates Majn's Violence
||WTRUTHliWBRi5EQ^
VOLUME 35—NUMBER 19 DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA, SATURDAY, MAY », 19S9
PRICE: IS
clSfs
Refuses Morehead School
Negro Group Asi(i
Again For Integration
WHEN THESE THREE WERE
TOGETHER—This picture shows
principals irt the recent episode
which led to the suspenion of
Monroe NAACP president Robert
Williams (Extreme left) when
they were to0«thr et Ml WAACP
meeting. William* was »iuv«n^d
by NAACP Secretary H«y Wil
kins (center) for r*fusinf t» re
tract his statement wrfint
Negroes to resort to vMcnc*. At
right in picture is Kelly M. Alex
ander, president of the N.C. NA
ACP, who the TIMES he would
IHt the Monroe chapter charter
if Williams were suspended.
ft
Charge Attempt Made to Split
Race on Old School Use Issue
FALKENiR
Meher Winr
Seat on Council
In Greensboro
Tuesday, May 5, citizens of
Greensboro elected almost a new
CouiMiil with ^ new owittlwrs.-
and three incumbcnts.
Waldo Falkener, local bonds
man, placed seventh and is the
sccond Negro in five years to be
elected to a Greensboro City Coun
cil. The vote of Precinct No. 5,
Windsor Community Center, cast
the die to place Falkener on \ the
Council.
By L. E. AUSTIN
The Durham City Board of Kdu
ration wqs acain informed here
Wednesday evening by a group of
Negro citiitrns tliat the use of the
old Morehead School buil'ling to
relieve the crowded conditions in
Negro schools would not bo ac-
ceptalile. Instead, tiic board wus
tuld, tkat solution to the crowded
conditions can best be lud by in
tegration.
The Weflnesday evening meet
ing followed another held here on
April 13 at which time a larger
committee composed of repre
sentatives of V‘ic Durham Commit-
of N'egro 'flairs, thc^Duri;am
tion for the Advancement of
Colored P/Cople, tt>e Negro Parent
Tuaehers Associations, the Durham
Business and Professional Chain,
the Durham Ministerial Alliance,
various other groups and indivi
duals told the Board that use of
the old Morehead building would
not be acceptable to Negroes.
individuals appearing before the
Board by invitation at the Wednes
day evening meeting were Dr. A.
Elder, president of North Carolina
College; Dr. Rose Butler Brown,
head of the Department of Educa
tion, >Iorth Carolina College, Dr.
olina Mutuiil Life Insurance Com
|)any. Other Negro representatives
ippi-uring before tlic Board were
Ki'V. K. h. Speaks, pastor of St.
Mark A. M. K. Zion Church
The meeting was presided over
by I'Yunk Fuller, chairman of the
ISoarif who stated that the group
h;i'l been cailcd for the purposq of j
coiincellins with Negro leaders 881
lo what to do about liie proposed I
Ilian lo renovate the old More-1
licad School building to relieve
the crowded conditions now ex
isting in the Negro schools of the
southern .soctioi^ oT the cit;.'
Fuller slated that he Morehead
School builiiing had been aband
nqf. inAiteaiiitfW,.
' but, bccausfe of a shift in the vhlte
population. “The new Morehead
School building was mand ncss-
(See INTEGRATION, Page!)
Headllfges
More Voters
“There is a vast reservoir of
goodwill in North Carolina favor-
Albert Turner, dean of the law ing the equal protection of all clti-
school, and W. J. Kennedy, Jr. under the law,” according to Me-
chairman of the Board, North Car-
Earn Cash
FOR YOUR CHURCH
SHOP THESE MERCHANTS WHO ADVERTISE IN
Neill Smith of Greensooro, chair
man of the North Carolina Advis
ory Committee of the U. S. Civil
Rights Commission.
MRS, MORGAN
The Carolina Times
Is an NAACP
Mother of Year
RALEIGH — More than 1500
members and friends of the N. C,
NAACP Conference from over Tar-
hcclia gathered here Sunday ^-
ternoon and placed thousands of
dollars on the tables for freedom
in a steady march for IS minutes
as they waited anxiously to h6ar
Mrs. Margurite Belafonte deliver
the main address.
James S. Stewart, Durham coun
cilman and business leader, di
rected the lifting of the offering
for the “Fighting Fund for Free-
dom” which included donations
and fifty-dollars and more install-
Smith made tHfe remark during j payments on $300 life NAA-
a Law Day celebration Friday at] cp memberships.
North Carolina College. Eugene
For the second month in suc
cession the Mt. Vernon Baptist
Church is the winner in thie Caro
lina Times $80 monthly Bonus
Contest. Mt. Vernon reported a
total of $14,711.53 in purchase
slips.
Running second to the winning
church was Mt. Zion Baptist
Church that reported a total of $8,-
554.10 worth of purchase slips.
All churches wfere given credit for
slips sent through the mails and
brought to the office by individ
uals even though it is- the prefer
ence of the contest manager that
all slips be reported through the
person or persons appointed for
that purpose in their resistive
churches.
Other churches reporting were
Oak Grove Freewill Baptist
Church with a total of $4,102.25;
Asbury Methodist, $3,212.12, Kyles
Temple A.M.E. Zion, $3,102.58; am
St. Mark A. M. E. Zion, $2,4t2.12.
Reports from other churches too
small to list totalled $6,422.92.
The bonus is available to any
church or church group in Durham
Interested groups should save all
purchase sli|^^r _ cj»h
be turned in to the TIMES office
each Saturday by six p.m. ,
To be counted, slips or tapes
must bear the date of the current
week. They must also come from
merchants who tare advertising In
the TIMES during that week.
The group turning in slips or
cash register tapes totalling tlie
largest sum will win the bonus.
This week’s purchase slips or
C9sh register tapes from Ihe follow
ing merchants are eligible: .
Winn Dixie Super Market
Kroger Stores
Alexander Motor Co.
Montgomery «nd Aldridge
Keiian Oil Co.
Mechanics and Farmers Bank
New Method Laundry
Speight's Auto Service
Hudson Well Co.)
Rigsbee Tire Sales
Sanitary Laundry
Amey Funeral Home
Cut Rate Super Market
Hunt Linoleum and Tile
Mutual Savings and Loan
Keeler's Super Market
Burthey Funeral Home
. Southern Fidelity Ins. Co. j
_ . _Pw.ham BuHders Sugiply
tapes from firms*’wHS;h a7^ cur-T ~wT f.' Lyon. Hardware
rently advertising in the TIMES. Service Printing Co, >i
The slips or register tapes must I Broadway Taxie Go.
Williams introduced the speaker in
Duke Auditorium.
In reply to a questicAi regaMing
his opinion about the progress of
desegregation in the South's
schools. Smith said, "I think there
will be no real, legal barriers, but
but I guess you can expect all sorts
of economic and social bariMers."
Speaking of the desegrega
tion status of North Carolina’s
sciiools. Smith said the program is
moving smoother in the Piedmont
than in the east. “At that, however,
it will likely take several years of
showing in the Piedmont before
gctierai acceptance (of the desegre
gation practice) can be expected.
(See URGES, Page •)
A&T Student
Dies Suddenly
GREENSBORO, - A student at
A&T College died early Tuesday
Morining (May 5)
William Knight, 24, a sopho
more from Tarboro, collapsed in
his room he prepared to attend
class, was rushed to a local hospital
and was pronounced dead upon ar
rival. Reasons for his death were
yet undeterihTned by late Tues
day afternoon pending reports on
a post mortem examination per
formed by the', Guilford County
medical examination.
The son of Mr. and Mrs. Johnnie
Knight of Tarboro, he is also sur-
viysfil b^^is w^, Mrs. Ecnest^
l^ight a tea3ier~fn tlie 'Conetoe
>(N. C.)' Public ' Schools an^ one
child.
The response was “encourag
ing” to NAACP officials, including
state treasurer N. L. Gregg of
Greensboro: president Kelly M.
Alexander, Charlotte; and field
secretary Charles A. McLean, Wins
ton-Salem.
The njain floor of the Memorial
Audtiorium was practically filled
for the program which also featur
ed Mrs. Annie Rose Jordan, spirit
ual singer of St. Paul Baptist
Church, Charlotte, who stirred the
audience almost to the point of
weeping with several selections as
she was accompanied by a blind
(See MOTHER, Pag 8)
TOP STUDENT— Marjorie Len-
non, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. i.
D. Lennon of South Alston ave
nue, is Hillside high's school
.class of 1959.ya|tdictprj(n. She
wion“slx aWa^s~lur(hgf*'iioh
day at the school this week, see
page five for details.
BUT BITTERNESS OVKR POPLARVI^E
"Organization Has Opposed
Violence from Its Start"
XI'.W \'()RK—Natiimal .\.\.\CP Secretary Roy Wilkins
rcptiili.itcil llu‘ ‘‘vidlcnce’’ imsition of Robert F. W’illiaiiis of
Monroe, .\, C. licrc l:ilc Wednesday.
“The NAACP docs not and has never in its history i|dvo>
cated the use of violence . . . We repudiate any lynching slate-
ment from any of our officers.”
At tbe same time Wilkins pointed out that the recent lynch*
ing in Poplarville, Miss, and “numerous instances of injustices”
have left Negroes throughout the country in a “bitter mood.”
Wilkins slalcmcnl was issued shortly after announcement that
Williams had been suspended as president of the Monroe (Union Coun
ty) NAACP branch.
The NAACP Secretary’s complete stat«!(hent ig^as follows;
“The NAACP does not and has never in its history advocated the
u.sc of‘Violence. Wc have fought against lynching from the first day
of our organization 50 years ago, and we repudiate any lynching stale-
%e ^ogmz^Tlisf tfJe*nTo^ Wegro
citizens from one end of the nation to the other is of bittiness and
anger dver the lynching in Poplarville, Miss,, and over numerous in
stanced of injustice meted out to Negroes by certain sections
of the South,
“They (Negroes) see Negroes lynched or sentenced to de^th for the
same crimes that white defendants are given suspended sentences or
set free. They are no longer willing to accept double standards of
justice,”
‘"NO 14TH AMENDMENT IN MONROE^
TO SPEAK TO DURHAM
YOUTH— Herbert Wright, Na
tional Youth Secretary of the NA
ACP, will address a meeting of
the Durham youth NAACP at St.
Joseph's A. M- E. Church Monday
eveninp. May'll at eiabt p. nv^A
gradvate of th« l^niversHy of
New Mexico, Wright was a mem
ber of the 82nd Airborne and a
glider-pilot during World War
II, He has traveled extensively
for the NAACP since becoming
youth secretary in 1951. His ap
pearance in Durham is being
sponsored by youth NAACP
chapters of Durham, Durham
Business Colltat and North Car-
olina College.
Williams Stands Firm on Statement to DPI Calling
On Negroes to Retaliate with Force on Attackers
Robert F. Williams, president
of the Union County NAACP
chapter, told the TIMES by tele
phone early Wednesday that he
did not mean that Negroes
should exact reprisals . from
whites indiscriminately, but that
Monroe, justice had left Negroes
with no choice but to “repel on
the spot” attaclcs by white per
sons ,
Because the courts consistent
ly fail to prosecute white attack
ers of Negroes, Williams said,
Negroes must defend themselves
on the spot by violence if nec
essary.
"Right then and there, Ne
groes must decide to fight and
die, and, if necessary, kill to
protect themselves."
This has become necessary, he
said, because there is "no 14th
amendment in Monroe."
The militant NAACP lead
er's remarks were made (n the
wake of the acquittal In Mon
roe of two whites acewsad of
attacking Negroes, and the
sentencing of a Negro accused
of attacking a white persan.
He was quoted by United Press-
International dispatch in the
Wednesday morning state dailies
as advocating immediate, violent
retaliation by Negro victims of
white attackers.
Williams confirmed the UPl
quotations in a telephone in
terview with the TIMES late
Manley Wins Chapel Hill Board
Seat; Florida Rape Trial Set
Chapel Hill,— The Rev. J, R,
Manly, minister of First Baptist
Church here, led ail candidates in
an election for the Chapel Hill
Board of Education here Monday.
The young Baptist minister poll
ed 1,109 votes in the election.
Two others candidates. Univer
sity of North Carolina law school
dean Henry Brandis and Grey Cul-
breath, UNC utilities manager, also
won places on the school board.
Brandis garnered 983 votes^ ^y y ’’
while Culbfeth polled 935. ^ ®
FOUR INDICTED FOR RAPE
Tallahassee, Fla.— Four white
men, charged with raping a Flor
ida A & M University co-ed, were
indicted by an all white grand
jury on charges of rape and abduc
tion here Wedi^day. . ...
Cklled' into specUJT"session, IRe
jtiry heard 18 witnesses including
she was seiied, bound and gagged
and raped six times.
The four defendants were ar
rested by a deputy sheriff who
gave chase to the suspects’ car
and found the half-nude girl lying
on the floor of the back seat.
There was no demonstration by
the more than 100 Negroes who
were seated in a segregated third
—floor gallery nor from about 20
whites in the courtroom when the
grand jury foreman presented the
The 18 member grand jury was
in session six and one half hours.
Earlier an the week, Florida A.
and M. students had staged a quiet
demonstration asking for justice
in the case, and Florida A and M
Uriversity officials l)sd messaged
local authorites with a similar re-
Rape is a capital punishment
the rape victim. She described howcrime in Florida
Wednesday and ^nt on to ex
plain them further.
He declared his statements to
UPI were in response to the out
come of the three trials, and
explained that he advocated in
dividual retaliation in situations
where Negroes wer'e attacked by
whites because the courts have
refused to convict whites ac
cused of attacking Negroes.
On Monday, a grand jury re
fused to indict a white man
charged with kicking a Negro
maid down a flight of hotel
stairs last January. On Tuesday,
a Superior Court sentenced a
Negro to two years for molest
ing a white woman and freed a
white man charged with assault
on a pregnant Negro woman.
UPI had quoted Williams’ com
ment on the case as follows:
"We cannot take these .peo
ple who do us injustice to the
court, and it becomes neces
sary to punish them ourselves.
"In the future we are going
to have to try and convict
these people on the spot."
Williams, who has often re
ferred to the South and to Mon
roe as a “social jungle.” admit
ted to the l^ES that he made
the statemc]^' attributed to- him
by UPI. But he blamed the Mon
roe courts for forcing such ad
vice.
“These court decisions (in the
acquittals of two white defend
ants and sentencing of a Negro
in Monroe) open the way to vi
olence,” he declared.
“I do not mean that Negroes
should go out and attempt to get
revenge for mistreatments or in
justice,” he went on. “But it is
apparent that there is no 14th
amendment nor court protection
^ Negn^ rights here, and Ne-
defend ~th«ia«tves'
on the spot whenever - they are
attacked by whites.”
Local Official
To Quit Post
NEW YOMl—The NAACP su
spended Union County, W. C-,
NAACP presMent Robert T.
WillUms Ute Wednesday for
his sUtement U^ngiag Negroes to
resort to violence.
The action waa taken by NAA
CP secretary Itoy Wilkins fol
lowing a telephone conversatioii
with the Monroe, N. C. leader.
Wilkins wired Williams as fal
lows;
"In view of Ihe dfsagreamswt
with the policy ml tfie ergaitiTB
tion (NAACP) and yo«r stat»
ment, afid in vtew af tha fact
that in further Interview ymm r»-
peated .yawr statement, we fhera*
fere ask that y«u suspend yewr
activities as a lacal officer pend
ing considaratiaw af y»«r statwa
by th« Baard of Diractors at (h
May T1 meeHwg.**
The full text ofj^ilfcins’ tele
gram to Williams, r^eased late
Werlnesday by NAACP press sec
retary Henry L. Moon, read as
follows:
In our telephone conversation
this morning you stated that
the news dispatch was correct
which qwated you did advocate
the colored people to 'meet vio
lence with violence' and you said
'If if is necessary to stop lynch
ing with lynching and they must
be willing lo resart ta that meth
od'.
"You also stated to me that
you knew it is not the palicy of
the NAACP and that you are
not speaking for the Association.
When it was pointed out that
you were identified in Ihe news
story as president of the Union
County branch and that because
of this you could not separate
the Association from your state-
it clear that you were speak
ing for yourself not for tha NAA
CP.
"In view of this recognition
that the NAACP daesn't adv»
cate the vse af vMence and
lynching and in view af Ute
disagreement with the policy of
the organization and your stata-
ment, and in view af the fact
that III fuiilMi Iniaietew yvu n-
peated yaur original statement,
we therefore ask that yau suspend
your activities as a lacal of car
pending cansidaratiaN af yowr
status by the Baard af Directars
at its meeting af May 11."
rr
"Rule of Terror,
Not Law Rei^
In Mississippi
NEW YORK—NAACP Executive
Secretary Roy Wilkins this week
called upon the American Bar As
sociation, “to explore ways and
means of curbing rule of lynch
terror in the United SUtes as a
beginning of bringing rule of law
to the world.”
The Association's chief execu
tive said, “Mississippi offers fruit
ful laboratory, for in a space of
four years it has been the scene
of four lynchings and one notor
iously wanton racial killing.”
Wilkins wired RaM U Mklone.
president of the ABA. immediate
ly after the meeting af the organ
ization’s Committee on World
Peace Through Law is San Fran
cisco. April 24-23.
"Yau cawld nat anticipate that
in the midst af ya«r canference, a
mab In Paplarvilla, Mtss., would be
kidnaping from his iail and await
ing trial a« charge af rape," Wil
kins telagrighid.
“The stated purpose of your
San Franciscb meeting was to ex
plore how the rule of terror iu
the world can be rtl^laced by the
rule of law,” Mr. Wilkins contin
ued, urging the lawyers to act.
Referring to Mississippi, the
NAACP Executive Secretary said
that in only two case*, durmg the
hut four-year period, were urrekU
made in lynch criM» perpetrated
tgMipst Negroes. Acquittals result
ed both times.
“Negro citixens are barred fn>m
jury service by being barriHl frmii
registenng as Voters. than tcH
thousand being sa registured out
(Saa TtRMM. Page •)