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PAGE 6— FEBRUARY 1956—SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS
Alabama Legislature ‘Nullifies,’ Studies ‘Free Choice’ Plan
MONTGOMERY, Ala.
he Alabama legislature, called into
special session by Gov. James E.
Folsom Jan. 3 to consider calling a
constitutional convention to rewrite
the state’s organic law, instead turned
its attention largely to the segrega
tion problam.
With virtually no debate, both
houses endorsed an interposition
resolution (see “Legislative Action”)
declaring the Supreme Court’s seg
regation rulings “null, void and of
no effect.” The House vote was 86-4.
The Senate shouted its approval in
an overwhelming voice vote.
Also, the Senate passed (33-0) and
the House seemed well on the way to
passing a constitutional amendment
proposal known as the Boutwell
“freedom of choice” plan. If the
House approves, the voters will be
asked to ratify it in an election ten
tatively set for Aug. 28. The “free
dom of choice” bill, which has been
interpreted as providing three pos
sible school systems—all-white, all-
Negro and mixed—was endorsed by
the Senate last summer only to die
in a House committee.
INTERPOSITION ‘HOGWASH’
Gov. Folsom, whose plans for a
constitutional convention were
soundly beaten by both houses,
called the interposition resolution
“just a bunch of hogwash.” He said
at a Jan. 25 press conference that the
legislature’s action was “like a hound
dog baying at the moon.” However,
the governor said he would applaud
the pro-segregation stand if taken at
a constitutional convention, a pro
posal the legislature had already re
jected. He did not explain what the
difference might be, but he did say
that nullification could not be ac
complished by a resolution: “That’s
simply a piece of paper.”
Folsom has not indicated whether
he will veto the nullification resolu
tion, sign it or permit it to go into law
without his signature. Similarly, he
has not indicated what he would do
with the Boutwell bill, although he
has repeatedly denounced the “pri
vate school” idea, which is one of the
fallback measures contemplated as a
“last resort” under the “freedom of
choice” overall plan.
J>ublic school integration, now one
and one-half years old, will be un
dermined if Congress does not restore
budget funds to hire more teachers
this fall.
This is the opinion of Supt. Hobart
M. Coming who says he must have
180 new instructors to meet rising
enrollment and to start a three-year
program of reducing the grade school
pupil-teacher ratio from 36:1 to 30:1.
Additional teachers are the school
system’s top priority need, Coming
said, because of conditions requiring
more individual attention to children
with varying abilities and
School achievements in regular
System’s classes.
Problems Coming reported to the
board of education last
month: “Integration and the results
of citywide achievement tests present
new problems, the solution of which
requires more special classes, fewer
children in regular classes, more
teachers. This problem is serious at
all levels, elementary, junior and
senior high schools.”
During a press conference, Com
ing said teacher cutbacks would jeop
ardize racial integration. Over
crowded classes now are lowering the
standards of the schools, he said. Next
fall, the situation will be worse based
on a continuing bumper crop of new
first graders, he added.
REASON FOR LAG
Referring to the subject of integra
tion, Coming stressed that the schools
are attempting to make up for a long
time teacher shortage in the former
Negro division. Many Negro pupils
need special instruction in order to
speed their achievement.
Coming added there are both white
and Negro youngsters in this cate
gory, but classes were more over-
Shortly after the House voted (63-
23) Jan. 20 to reject Gov. Folsom’s
constitutional convention proposal,
Speaker Rankin Fite gaveled the
House into adjournment sine die, de
spite a loud chorus of “no” votes.
Faced with an attorney general’s
opinion that the legislature was still
legally in session (the Senate had re
fused to vote itself into adjournment),
Fite relented and two days later
apologized to House members, ad
mitting he had been “wrong—dead
wrong.” He promised a record vote
on all future motions.
OPPOSES ‘PRESSURE’
Reason for the House rebellion
were generally interpreted as these:
1) A rising protest against Folsom’s
leadership. (2) Desire on the part of
many House members to vote on the
Senate-approved “freedom of choice”
bill. (3) A move to counter any plans
the governor might have had to use
the early adjournment as a means of
>ocket-vetoing the interposition reso
lution. (4) A protest against Fite’s
“highhanded” rulings.
Also during January:
1) Two Birmingham Negro women,
victors in their long court fights to
enter the University of Alabama,
were preparing to enroll in time for
the February term. (See “Legal
Action.”)
2) Montgomery’s three city com
missioners and the chairman of the
County Board of Revenue (Mont
gomery County’s ruling government
al body) announced they had joined
the Central Alabama Citizens Coun
cil. A big factor in their decisions
was apparently the boycott of city
buses by Montgomery Negroes. The
boycott began Dec. 5. (See “Miscel
laneous.”)
The legislature, called into a spec
ial session by Gov. Folsom to con
sider calling a constitutional conven
tion with emphasis on reapportion
ment, seemed more concerned with
school problems — segregation and
finances.
Although a two-thirds vote was re
crowded and for a longer period of
time in the old Negro division before
integration. Therefore the lags to be
made up are greater among the Ne
gro pupils he said.
Under the District’s peculiar setup,
the school and other community
agency budgets, must channel
through a maze of fiscal-eyed agents,
beginning with the city commission
ers.
BUDGET CUT SHARPLY
The commissioners cut the school
officials’ original request for 163
teachers to 40, stating the District
cannot afford a bigger school payroll.
In an unprecedented move after the*
District budget had cleared the fed
eral Budget Bureau and been pre
sented to Congress, the school board
hiked its request to 180 teachers. It
also decided to jump the commis
sioners’ decision and take its teacher
shortage appeal directly to the HilL
City officials pointed to the Budget
and Accounting Act of 1921. This law
prohibits government agencies from
asking for increased appropriations
on their own before congressional
committees—unless invited by the
latter to do so.
It appears the invitations will be
forthcoming. Rep. Earl Wilson (R-
Ind) has said he will do “everything
in my power” to see that school people
tell their story of critical staffing
needs. Wilson is ranking minority
member of the House Appropriations
subcommittee which considers the
District budget.
IMMIGRATION CITED
C. Melvin Sharpe, school board
president, stated the board will accept
any and all invitations to state their
case. Sharpe, in an interview said,
“Since the Supreme Court decision,
many new families have moved to
Washington. So, perhaps we get 5,000
quired to consider matters beyond
the purview of the governor’s call,
the lawmakers swiftly and over
whelmingly endorsed the “inter
position” resolution.
The Senate Jan. 18 unanimously
endorsed a series of constitutional
amendments which would authorize
the legislature to abolish the state
public school system if necessary to
resist forcible integration. The same
proposal was approved by the Senate
last summer but died in a House
committee despite determined efforts
by its principal sponsor, Sen. Albert
Boutwell of Birmingham, to get the
measure to a vote. At that time the
legislature had just passed a school
“placement” law designed to block
integration efforts by granting broad
assignment powers to local boards of
education. Apparently, many legis
lators believed then that the more
drastic Boutwell plan was unneces
sary.
SCHOOL ABOLITION DENIED
Boutwell has denied that the prime
purpose of his proposal, which would
be voted on in an election tentative
ly set for Aug. 28, is to abolish schools.
He has said that such steps would be
taken only as a last resort, that par
ticular schools might be discontinued
“if their operation should be found
to involve a substantial threat to the
maintenance of good will, peace and
order.” Should this be necessary,
Boutwell has said, the legislature
would have authority to allocate pub
lic money to the aid of private facili
ties in these localities.
‘NEVER SURRENDERED’
The interposition resolution which
the Senate endorsed by a shouting
voice vote and the House 86-4, argues
that Alabama and its sister states
never surrendered their rights, under
the 14th Amendment adopted in 1868,
“to maintain racially separate public
institutions,” as the resolution says
the U. S. Supreme Court has held.
The resolution says in part:
“That until the issue between the
state of Alabama and the general
government is decided by the sub
mission to the states, pursuant to
Article V of the Constitution, of a
suitable constitutional amendment
that would declare, in plain and un-
more youngsters from Alabama and
Georgia ... they’re here and in our
schools and it is our responsibility to
educate them regardless of their past
schooling inadequacies.”
Both Sharpe and Corning have in
dicated to the commissioners during
budget discussions that integration
required more teachers and smaller
classes—and that it would not save
money.
Washington parents are aroused
about the teacher cut to the point the
PTA Congress has interceded on
Capitol Hill to pave the way for the
school people to be given a hearing.
Actually, parents have testified both
before the commissioners and Con
gress that they are willing to pay
more taxes, at least for better school
conditions. Primarily, they have
asked for smaller classes. The PTAs
are racially integrated.
FACULTIES MOSTLY MIXED
According to school officials, a ma
jority of the city schools have racially
mixed faculties. White teachers still
are predominant in the high schools
and teachers colleges, but in elemen
tary, junior and vocational high
schools, Negro instructors are in the
majority.
Here is a racial breakdown of reg
ular teaching staff by school levels:
Elementary —1,137 Negro; 786
white
Junior high — 564 Negro; 381
white
Senior high — 364 white; 265
Negro
Vocational—80 Negro; 70 white
Teachers College—36 white; 28
Negro
Nearly all interracial staffs are in
former white schools. Few white
teachers have moved into former Ne
gro schools.
A top Justice Department official
last month told a group of Washing-
equivocal language, that the states do
surrender their power to maintain
public schools and other public facili
ties on a basis of separation of the
races, the legislature of Alabama de
clares decisions and orders of the
Supreme Court of the United States
relating to separation of races in the
public schools are, as a matter of
right, null, void and of no effect;
and the legislature of Alabama de
clares to all men that as a matter
of right this state is not bound to
abide thereby; we declare further,
our firm intention to take all appro
priate measures honorably and con
stitutionally available to us to void
this illegal encroachment upon our
rights, and to urge upon our sister
states their prompt and deliberate
efforts to check further encroach
ment by the general government,
through judicial legislation, upon the
reserved powers of all the states.”
LOCAL TEACHER BILLS
The legislature approved two bills,
applying to Macon County (84 per
cent Negro) and Marengo (69 per
cent Negro) which would authorize
the county boards of education to fire
school teachers who belonged to any
organization which advocated racial
integration. The bills were offered by
Macon’s Sen. Sam Engelhardt and
Marengo’s Sen. E. O. Eddins. A third,
introduced by Sen. Albert Davis of
Pickens (49 per cent Negro) was
killed by Rep. Ralph Windle of
Pickens who moved that considera
tion of the measure be indefinitely
postponed, a request that was granted
under the local courtesy rule.
A bill similar to all three but ap
plying to the entire state was intro
duced by Rep. Reginald Richardson
of Hale County (70 per cent Negro).
It was still in committee with ap
parently little chance of passage.
Two Birmingham Negro women
were preparing, late in January, to
become the first of their race to be
enrolled at the University of Ala
bama.
The prospective students, Autherine
Lucy and Mrs. Polly Ann Myers
ton newsmen he doubted if simply
changing the name from “public” to
“private” schools in an effort to main
tain segregation would
Justice stand a court test.
Official’s Speaking not for attri-
Opinion bution, the official said he
doubted if such action
would stand up if public funds were
used to support the “private” schools.
He gave this opinion in comment on
the program of Virginia’s Commission
on Public Education headed by state
Sen. Garland Gray.
The official said it was difficult to
determine the end results of the Gray
program because of the various steps
it entailed.
Commenting in general on the sit
uation following the Supreme Court’s
decrees to end segregation in public
schools, the official said integration
had been progressing in a gratifying
manner and at a satsifactory rate. As
long as this continued, he said, he
doubted if any case would be initiated
by the government to speed up in
tegration.
He said he thought any cases orig
inating within the next several
months probably would come from
parents who felt their child had been
deprived of its civil rights. If it
seemed warranted, he said, the gov
ernment would join the case as an
interested party. The official added
that he thought passage of a Federal
Aid to Education bill would strength
en the government’s hand in such a
case.
On the enforcement side, he said he
did not think contempt proceedings
could be used at present because the
Supreme Court had not specified any
time limit in which integration must
be accomplished. He added it was his
belief one of the civil rights cases
would have to go back up to the high
tribunal to obtain a ruling on what
constituted a reasonable time.
Hudson, have been seeking enroll
ment at the university since 1952,
Early in January the U. S. District
Court of Appeals in New Orleans up
held a lower court injunction (Au-
therine Lucy, et al v. Adams) order
ing the university to accept the two
women, and all other qualified Ne
groes, as students. The original order
had been handed down by U. S. Dis
trict Judge Hobart Grooms of Birm
ingham. By upholding Judge Grooms’
“class action” order the Court of
Appeals in effect opened university
doors to other Negroes.
University attorneys have asked
the appellate court to withhold en
forcement of the inj unction until a
rehearing is held on the order.
Atty. Arthur D. Shores, counsel for
the women during their long court
fight, said his clients have again ap
plied for enrollment and expect to
begin classes in the February term.
Montgomery’s three city commis
sioners, Mayor W. A. Gayle, Clyde
Sellers and Frank Parks, joined the
Central Alabama Citizens Council
during January. Their action came
during the six-week boycott of Mont
gomery buses by Negroes protesting
seating policy.
Police Commissioner Sellers re
ceived a standing ovation when he
made a dramatic appearance at the
Central Alabama Council meeting at
the Montgomery city auditorium in
early January. Curt Copeland of Hot
Springs, Ark., editor of a pro-segre
gation magazine, was speaking when
Sellers entered. Copeland was saying
that many white businessmen are
reluctant to take an active role in
the segregation fight because they
have Negro customers. At that point
Sellers strode down the aisle and
proclaimed:
“I don’t have any Negro customers.”
Sellers was applauded again later
when he told the crowd:
“Last year I was called a fool when
I said publicly that I didn’t want a
Negro vote. (He referred to his race
for the commission seat last March.)
I wouldn’t trade my southern birth
right for 100 Negro votes, and when
this meeting is over I am going to put
up my $3.50 and join the Citizens
Council.”
OTHER OFFICIALS JOIN
Some two weeks later, Mayor Gayle
and Commissioner Parks made known
their membership in the Council.
On Jan. 25 Chairman L. R. Grimes i
of the Montgomery County Board of
Revenue endorsed the policy of the
city commission on the bus boycott
and announced that he too had joined
the Citizens Council, adding: “I think
every right-thinking white person in
Montgomery and the South should
do the same. We must make certain (
that Negroes are not allowed to fo rce
their demands on us . . .”
Board of revenue member Chap
pell Gray has been a Council mem-
ber for some time.
1,000 IN ATTENDANCE
’ _ t
Attendance at early meetings 0
the group was estimated at 300, bu
the January meeting drew li®®®‘
Principal speaker at a meeting of tn
Central Alabama Council Feb. 9 w
be U. S. Sen. James O. Eastland
of Mississippi.
A recording, allegedly made by
Negro NAACP leader speaking dj
Mississippi, was played at the .
meeting and, a few days later, in
state Senate. The speaker, identm
as Roosevelt Brown, mentioned int®^
marriage as one of the goals of 1
NAACP. -
On Jan. 19, Roy Wilkins, execuh*
secretary of the NAACP, wired
Alabama legislature: * 1
“We have a copy of this recor ~i t0
in our office and it is being peddled ^
anyone gullible enough to believe^
The recorded speech is a fake
nounced as such by us last No v
ber.” jgd
Sen. Engelhardt, who had requ e ^
the playing of the recording & /
(Continued on Next Page)
Integrated D. C. System Warns of Need for Funds
WASHINGTON, D. C.