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SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS —Nov. 4, 1954—PAGE II Mississippi JACKSON, Miss. •MISSISSIPPI'S qualified electors ■I** w ill determine on Dec. 21 wheth er to “gamble” 120 million dollars of the taxpayers’ money on ability of state leaders to continue public school segregation for 10 to 20 years in the face of the United States Supreme Court’s integration decision. State officials, headed by Gov. Hugh White, are confident if the long- delayed facility equalization program of the dual system is immediately launched, Negroes will not seek inte gration but will be content to remain segregated on an overall equality ba sis. The state department of education has estimated officially it will take $117,477,978, based on construction at $7.50 a square foot, to equalize facil ities in the dual system. They admit most of that applies to bringing Ne gro school buildings up to equality with those of the whites. As a starter on the building pro gram, the 25-member Legal Educa tional Advisory Committee headed by Gov. White has gone on record favor ing immediate issuance of 60 million dollars of the needed new money in bonds for inauguration of the facility upgrading work. The LEAC will sup port that size bond issue in a con templated special session of the leg islature early next year. AMENDMENT A PREREQUISITE The session, however, is contingent on voter ratification of a constitution al amendment authorizing the legis lature to abolish public schools to prevent their integration as such. Gov. White, sole authority for calling a special session before he steps from office in January of 1956, has said he will not issue the call “without the protective features” of the constitu tional amendment. The Legal Educational Advisory Committee was created at the 1954 regular session of the legislature prior to the May 17 decision of the Supreme Court. It was authorized to “devise” means of continuing segre gation in anticipation of an adverse court ruling. The proposed constitutional amendment was drafted by the ad visory group and submitted to a re cent special session of the legislature where it was approved for submission to the voters in a special election on Dec. 21. Sponsors of the amend ment insist it will be used only as a “last resort” to prevent integration, and point to an estimated six other delaying steps” that will take from 10 to 20 years to exhaust through the courts before being called on to use the abolition-amendment. Before making a decision on the amendment, the voters face a stump speaking campaign reminiscent of quadrennial contests for election of governing officials on all levels— from constables in the 410 beats in the 82 counties to the governorship. The only issue on the special elec tion ballot will be the amendment. Ratification will require a majority v °te of those participating. An alternate school program has n °t been spelled out by those spon soring the amendment. In general, owever, it calls for a private school system financed by direct appropria- ions to the children, rather than to e school districts as presently voted. INEQUALITIES corrected The state has already corrected 0 er inequalities in the dual segre- ge ed system. The 1954 regular ses- j^° n °f the legislature removed them t equalization program covering achem’ salaries, transportation and mistration. The program adds nullion dollars to the previous 25 t ioa dollars annual appropriation Public schools. sch V Same T954 session approved a holding equalization formula, the not vote any funds pending or-;Supreme Court’s decision. As era^, na ^ y drafted, the building pro- whe Ca ^ e d f° r 10 million dollars able° anC * ^ th e money is made avail - With opposition developing to the constitutional amendment, the advis ory group has upped the building program to 60 million dollars and agreed to recommend its passage at next year’s contemplated special leg islative session. The advisory group is also on rec ord favoring increased funds for the teacher salary-transportation-admin istration phases of the equalization program. They now require 34 mil lion dollars annually, but this sum is still short about $3,400,000 of fully carrying out the program. Anticipating a bitter fight on the constitutional amendment, the advis ory committee has drafted a brochure of “questions and answers” for dis tribution statewide. The brochure anticipates some of the opposition questions, and attempts to answer them. The committee has already placed Rep. Ney Gore of Quitman county, its secretary, on full-time duty to handle a speaker’s bureau as well as distribute interim reports of the group. It rejected an offer of financial assistance from the newly formed “Citizens Councils” tendered through Speaker Walter Sillers of the House of Representatives. (The councils are made up of white males dedicated to upholding segregation.) The outside financial assistance was offered after the recent special legis lative session refused to vote cam paign funds for the advisory commit tee. In turning down the outside funds, the advisory group suggested that those interested in promoting the amendment handle their own campaigns. Members of the advisory committee have agreed to make speeches with out cost to the inviting clubs or groups. They will also arrange “on their own” meetings in the more than 1,700 precincts in the 82 counties to “sell” the amendment to the voters. OPPOSITION FORMED However, an opposition group which feels that the amendment should be delayed until all other steps to preserve segregation have been exhausted, is also preparing a statewide campaign. Several larger newspapers—at Greenville, Tupelo, McComb and Pascagoula—have come out editorially against the public school abolition amendment. The opposition group met at Jack- son on Oct. 21 and set up a tentative organization. Miss Alma Hickman of Hattiesburg, former president of the Mississippi Education Association, was named chairman. Two key members of the group are State Sen. George Owens of Ponto toc, and State Rep. Joel Blass of Stone County, both of whom opposed the amendment in the recent special legislative session. A tentative name, “The Committee of Friends of a Segregated Public School System,” has been adopted. A state headquarters will be maintained and speakers and literature sent statewide. Spokesmen for the Hickman group emphasize that they are for segre gated public schools, but feel that the abolition amendment should not be presented the voters until all other asserted “delaying steps” have been exhausted. Members of the opposition organ ization contend they have consider able support in all sections of the state, and feel confident they may be able to gain voter rejection of the amendment in the Dec. 21 special election. AMENDMENT ENDORSED Another development was endorse ment of the amendment “as a last resort” to prevent integration by the Mississippi Association of School Ad ministrators in the annual meeting at Jackson, Oct. 21. The action was by voice vote, with some members voting “no.” It was evident that the 750 members of the association are not in full agreement on its stand. A counter resolution by Dr. L. O. Todd, superintendent of the Meridian city school system, proposed that the association “reaffirm its historic po sition that a free public school system is the best guarantee of personal and national well-being and is thus in dispensable.” However, it was tabled by a closer vote than was the other proposal adopted. Speaking against the Todd propo sal, and for the one endorsing the amendment submitted by the conven tion’s resolution committee, A. W. James, superintendent of schools at Drew in the delta county of Sunflow er, said: We must have faith in our officials that they will not abolish schools until the people decide that is the best thing to do. Adoption of the Todd motion would be interpreted by the public that we don’t believe the amendment should be rati fied. James Ewing, president of the Copiah-Lincoln Junior College at Wesson, onetime head of the Missis sippi Education Association and a member of the Legal Educational Advisory Committee, spoke for the endorsement resolution. “We either want to maintain segre gation and pay the price for it (vot ing of a 60 million dollar bond issue to launch a building program to equalize Negro schools), or if, when and as accosted by a sociological and psychological integration decision, be willing to integrate,” Mr. Ewing told the administrators. I don’t believe the issue is solely seg regation versus integration, but it may be an issue as to how much we want segregation. We’ve got to be willing to abolish schools if necessary as a last re sort to prevent their integration. There is no danger of that until the time comes, but if it does, we will all be ready. WHITE BACKS PROPOSAL Gov. White admitted at a meeting of the advisory committee on Oct. 12 that “a lot of work must be done” if the amendment is to be ratified by the voters in the Dec. 21 special elec tion. He said strongest opposition in northeast Mississippi, the so-called Hill Sector, stems from reports “be ing spread that the Delta wants to abolish schools.” The state’s heaviest Negro population is in the Delta area along the Mississippi River. “We must get over to the people that abolition is not the objective in the amendment,” Gov. White told the advisory committee. “No one wants to abolish our public school system.” James Ewing, president of the Co piah-Lincoln Junior College at Wes son, and onetime head of the Missis sippi Education Association, a mem ber of the advisory committee, said committee approval of a school build ing program “will do more than any thing else to offset the feeling in the opposition area.” Following his statement, he pre sented a building program calling for immediate issuance of 60 million dol lars in bonds to begin equalizing the estimated $117,477,978 disparity be tween Negro and white schools. Un der a 1954 statute, Negro schools must be equalized before the now ex isting gap is widened. Under the proposed building fund, the state in addition to alloting $12 per child in average daily attendance per year for buildings, will allot, as an emergency measure for 10 years, an additional $3 for each child of the Negro race. That is expected to speed equalization in the heavily Negro- populated counties. Legislative opposition to the addi tional $3 is expected, however, from the big white areas on grounds the “black counties” failed to use pre vious allotments for Negroes and of their own making maintained a wide gap between the systems. Sen. Earl Evans of Canton, chair man of the senate finance commit tee, said the poorer Hill counties should be willing to help the other areas since the richer section, mostly the heavily Negro populated area, has been assisting them through the equalizing fund. Of Mississippi’s 82 counties, 61 are in the equalizing group and receive added state aid to bolster inadequate local funds for maintenance of their schools. OTHER FEATURES Other features of the school build ing equalizing proposal approved by the educational advisory group in clude: No allotment of state funds (for buildings) could be used to retire an existing indebtedness of a local school district for the first five years of the construction program. (Counties which have already built schools “frown” on that feature, contending they will be penalized for their equalization efforts). The “question and answer” bro chure of the advisory committee lists six measures for the maintenance of segregation that “will probably be used before a legislative vote on abo lition” and then estimates it will take “from 10 to 20 years, or probably longer, to exhaust them.” “It is hoped that by that time a permanent solution will have been found,” the committee states. The six delaying steps are listed as follows: (1) Continuance of segrega tion under section 207 of the state constitution which calls for equal but separate opportunities for the races and which has not been subject to direct court attack and is still the law in Mississippi. (2) The assignment of pupils (as provided in a 1954 statute). (3) Gerrymandering of school dis tricts. (4) Application of military or police power. (5) Use of other appli cable statutes. (6) New statutes. Answering the opposition question, “Why not wait 10 or 20 years or un til all other methods of preserving segregation have failed before con ferring upon the legislature the pow er to abolish the public schools,” the committee has these answers: 1. Adoption of the amendment on Dec. 21 will serve notice that the people of Mississippi mean to maintain segregation at all cost. Negro leaders participated in the formation (through the 1952 Missis sippi Citizens Council on Education) of the present school program often de scribed as the finest in the history of Mississippi (the 1954 teacher salary- transportation - administrative equaliza tion program). While a large number of Negro leaders have since repudiated the separate but equal philosophy of school operation, it is believed that, by and large, Negroes want equal advantages for their children under a segregated tax- supported plan. 2. It will be a warning to alien or ganizations that we intend to preserve our way of life. 3. Conceivably, it will crystallize public opinion in some states to a point where it would probably result in a more liberal high court interpretation of its May 17 decision. 4. It will have some weight in the preparation, adoption and promotion of the platforms of political parties. 5. Passage of the amendment will pro vide the best possible assurance of a continued and improved segregated pub lic school system to the citizens who are being called upon to pay for a 120 million dollar school building program. As to whether the legislature has sufficient authority under existing conditions to deal with public school segregation, the advisory group says: No, not as the constitution is presently written. Adoption of the amendment on Dec. 21 is necessary to give the legisla ture flexibility to meet whatever situa tion may arise. DETAILS NOT WORKED OUT The committee admits that “a workable plan for private schools” has not been offered or blue-printed. “A good ‘quarterback’ cannot name the play he will use in a game ten years hence,” it answers. “Many ed ucational, political and legal leaders think the details of the ‘private school’ program must be worked out, if and when needed, in the light of conditions at that time—including in tervening Supreme Court decisions.” The committee insists there is a satisfactory plan for separate schools under existing conditions. “The answer to the racial problem is a continuance of segregated tax- supported schools through increased support for the minimum foundation program (the 1954 equalization stat utes) and the immediate inaugura tion of a building program,” it states. The committee answers question No. 1 in its brochure: “Will the amendment, if adopted, abolish pub lic schools in Mississippi,” this way: “No. The voters are not asked to vote on Dec. 21 on the abolition of public schools. So far as is known, no one presently favors such a course.” PURPOSES STATED It then states as the purposes of the amendment the following: 1. To enable the legislature to con tinue authorizing the establishment, support, maintenance and operation of the public schools of this state. In view of the conflict between the pro visions of the constitution of Missis sippi relative to segregated schools and the recent decision of the United States Supreme Court, it is doubtful that the legislature can make any ap propriation for public schools or en act other legislation without violat ing the provisions of the constitution of this state or the May 17 decision of the United States Supreme Court. This conflict will continue until the United States Supreme Court rules on the constitutionality of Section 207 of the Mississippi constitution which is the section that specifically pro vides that separate schools for the races shall be maintained. 2. To confer upon the legislature the power to abolish the public schools by a two-thirds vote of those present and voting. By a majority vote of the legislature, counties and school districts may be authorized to abolish their public schools. Legisla tors have pointed out that such a course may become necessary at some future date in order to provide finan cial assistance for all educable chil dren. The public schools would be abolished only as a last resort, to pre vent integration. Question: “What constitutional provisions guarantee a continuation of the present system of public schools?” Answer: As a practical matter, by failing to provide revenue, two-fifths plus one of the senators or house members present and voting could nullify the present school program. By refusal to vote for school appro priations, 25 senators (of the 49), or 71 house members (of the 140) could sound the death knell to schools. Other questions posed in the bro chure and the answers which indi cate the thinking and position of the proponents of the school abolition amendment, include: Question: “Is the May 17 decision in keeping with the American way of life?” Answer: “No. The United States Supreme Court’s action is an inter ference in states rights. It is legisla tion by decree instead of through Congress. In the May 17, 1954 deci sion, the United States Supreme Court overruled at least five of its own previous decisions, 13 decisions of lower courts, and 59 decisions of state supreme courts. Its decision was not based on a single precedent of previous decisions. The decision struck down the constitutions of 17 states relative to separate schools for the races and further struck down the statutes of 21 states. The decision of the high court was based on seven works in the fields of sociology and psychology.” Question: “Isn’t it asking a great deal of the proponents of a strong school system to vote to authorize the legislature to abolish this system which has been more than 100 years in the making?” Answer: “Yes and no. No one is voting to abolish the public schools. Some term the Dec. 21 vote as a vote of confidence in faith in our ability to solve our problem if and when all other measures have failed. We must have faith.” Question: “Is there any guarantee that the court will uphold a system of private schools?” Answer: “No one can predict a court decision. The establishment of a system of private schools would tend to invalidate the effect of en forced racial integration.” Question: “In the event of abolition, is there danger that the federal gov ernment might set up a federal sys tem of schools?” Answer: “Such is not likely to oc cur. It would require a favorable vote of both houses of the national Con gress. Thus far, Congress has not voted on the segregation issue—not even for the District of Columbia which Congress governs. Our South ern congressmen have had the sup port of many from Northern, Eastern, and Western states in preventing a vote on this matter.” Question: “If the public schools should be abolished, would not the poorer counties and school districts suffer a much greater loss than the richer political subdivisions?” Answer: “No. Better school prac tices throughout the country require that the ‘money follow the child.’ This is the fairest, all-around method of financing schools. It can be used under either a public or a private system. The same legislators will vote the distribution.”