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VIRGINIA SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS—NOVEMBER 1958—PAGE 13 Schools Remain Closed In Three Cities; Opening Prospects Clouded RICHMOND, Va. A BIG QUESTION MARK Tiling over the future of Virginia’s public school system as 12,700 children remained away from their regular classes in nine inte gration-closed schools in three lo calities. Division of sentiment among Virginians — though not neces sarily in the same proportion— was indicated when the Virginia Congress of Parents and Teachers defeated by a 557-557 tie vote a resolution supporting “massive resistance,” and then endorsed by a razor-edge margin of two votes, 515-513, a resolution favoring local option as the best solution to the school segregation problem. (See “School Boards and School men.”) In Norfolk, where six high and junior high schools are closed, City Council set Nov. 18 as the date for an advisory referendum on whether Coun cil should ask the governor to allow the city to re-open the schools on an integrated basis. (See “Community Ac tion.”) MORE COURT ACTION On the legal front, attacks on the constitutionality of Virginia’s “massive resistance” laws were made in a test case in the state Supreme Court of Appeals, while a federal district judge ruled that publicly-paid teachers could not serve in private schools which dis criminate against members of any race. And in Norfolk, three different fed eral court suits were filed aimed at forcing the re-opening of six closed schools. (“See “Legal Action.”) In the political arena, Dr. Louise Wensel, independent candidate for Sen. Harry F. Byrd’s seat in the U. S. Sen ate, continued her attacks on the state’s segregation policy, but observers vir tually were unanimous in the view that Byrd would be re-elected easily. PRIVATE SCHOOLING PUSHED In Norfolk and Warren County, ad ditional moves were made to provide private schooling for pupils from closed public schools. By the end of October, it appeared most of the children of the nine closed schools were receiving in struction either in private classes or in public schools of other localities. Section 129 of the Virginia Constitu tion was a center of attention last month as Virginians debated the state’s future course in the segregation crisis. The section provides “the General Assembly shall establish and maintain an efficient system of public free schools throughout the state.” BYRD CHARGED On Oct. 20, State Del. John C. Webb of Fairfax County charged U. S. Sen. Byrd and other state political leaders were conducting an “undercover drive” aimed at amending the Constitu tion to permit abolition of the public schools. Key leaders of the dominant Demo cratic Party organization in the state denied knowledge of any such move. CONTEND ACT’S DEAD Some lawyers argued Section 129 al ready was dead. The theory is that when the Supreme Court knocked out Section 140 of the state Constitution— the section providing for racially seg regated schools—it automatically also killed Section 129. If Section 129 is held by the courts still to be valid, then it is possible that Virginia’s future course in the segrega tion fight may be set by a referendum to determine whether the people want to retain or eliminate the requirement for a statewide public school system. SENTIMENT UNKNOWN As of now, no one can say with cer tainty what the preponderant sentiment of the people of Virginia is as to how best to maintain segregation or mini mize integration in the schools. The race issue completely overshad owed everything else in the annual convention of the state PTA in Rich mond Oct. 20-22. On the first day, observers reported sensing strong “massive resistance” sentiment in the convention when a fighting anti-integration speech by Gov. J. Lindsay Almond drew whoops and cheers and 11 interruptions by applause in 15-minutes. The governor strongly denied he was “an enemy of public education,” and declared he was not going to “destroy public education in Virginia” by assigning Negroes to white schools. ‘RESISTERS’ BEATEN The following day, however, the in cumbent PTA administration defeated by a 2-to-l majority a group of candi dates nominated from the floor by sup porters of “massive resistance.” The crucial test came on the third day when two resolutions dealing with the race crisis were presented. The first, supported by all-out segre gationists, called for support of the state’s “massive resistance” policy. Needing only a simple majority of one vote to pass, it was defeated by a tie vote of 557 to 557. The next resolution supported local option in the solving of the school question, a course strongly opposed by the state government administration. This resolution squeaked through 515 to 513; the change of one vote among the 1,028 cast could have beaten the meas ure. The approved resolution said in part: “We recognize that the problem [re sulting from the Supreme Court ruling] in the different communities of Virginia will best be solved by different ap proaches and, therefore, efforts to main tain an effective education program available to all children will take many forms throughout the state. “Therefore, we recommend that dis tricts, councils, locals and individual PTA members support the local option solution to the segregation program in schools, which would permit them to follow that course of action which will best serve education in their com munity.” Kentucky (Continued From Page 12) mediate integration of all public-school classes. A board spokesman, noting that grades 10 through 12 had been desegre gated two years ago and that “more in tegration would come as facilities per mit, ’ said the remodeled building would be needed even when all grades are in tegrated. „ '^ le spokesman said there would be Ro surplus room” even after two new e ementary schools are built. Because of overcrowding, Richmond last year ad some classes on a half-day basis ut now has obtained rooms in five local churches for five classes. WHAT THEY SAY Bishop G. Bromley Oxnam of Wash- mgton, president of the Methodist Coun- «l°f Bishops, in Louisville for an Oc- °ber discussion of Methodist world services: Segregation is fundamentally a sin 1 « * S ° ne thing to pass a lot of reso- u mns against segregation, another to Say *t effectively in action.” Bishop Paul E. Martin of Little Rock, head of the Methodist church in Ar kansas and Louisiana, who before he got to Louisville had spoken in favor of racially integrated schools said in a statement to Little Rock newspapers and on television: “I can do more in Ar kansas if I make my statements in Ar kansas.” 3 THINGS TO DO Fletcher Martin, former city editor of The Louisville Defender and now of The Chicago Sun-Times staff, in a Louisville speech: “A Negro who goes North feels geog raphy has solved his problems, but soon finds there’s more prejudice in parts of Illinois than in Little Rock . . . There are three things Negroes must do to hasten all forms of desegregation: be equipped to hold any job, take advantage of all educational opportunities, and show in terest in and take part in all civic ac tivities.” Gov. A. B. (“Happy”) Chandler, on Arkansas Gov. Faubus’ integration policies and the Little Rock referendum on private schools: “All of these evasive things are just an attempt to get around the law . . . Nobody is above the law. I don’t feel we should ask the people for permission to obey the law. My obligation is to execute the law.” # # * Although the PTA delegates, by a narrow margin, rebuffed “massive re sistance,” some editorialists of both pro- and anti-“massive resistance” news papers in Virginia and adjacent Wash ington, D.C., expressed the view the vote was not necessarily indicative of the feelings of the people of the state as a whole. These papers pointed out that active PTA members, and especially those likely to be named as delegates to the state convention, have more than aver age interest in the public schools and might be expected to be more con cerned with keeping them open than would the average citizen. NORFOLK REFERENDUM In Norfolk, where considerable senti ment has been expressed in favor of asking the governor to allow the city to re-open the six closed schools on an integrated basis, City Council on Oct. 20 unanimously called for an advisory referendum on the subject on Nov. 18. Voters will be asked: “Shall the Council of the City of Norfolk, pursuant to state law, petition the governor to return to the city con- Deadloek at the Intersection —Richmond Times-Dispatch trol of the schools, now closed, to be operated on an integrated basis as re quired by the federal court?” Under the law, if both the scb~ board and local governing body of a city or town request it, the governor- may, if he wishes, return a closed school to the locality to be operated on an integrated basis. NOT BINDING The Norfolk school board asked the council to make such a request of the governor, but the council decided in stead to seek the people’s advice. The referendum results will not be binding on council. In addition to the question, the refer endum ballot will also carry a para graph “for information only,” explain ing that if the schools should be re-opened on an integrated basis, all state funds would automatically be cut off and parents of children attending those schools would be required to pay “a substantial tuition” for each child. EDUCATION ESSENTIAL In its resolution addressed to council, the school board said that the need for “a system of free public education is absolutely essential to the well-being of the city of Norfolk. The board con tinued: “It is now perfectly apparent that under the decisions of the United States Supreme Court, such public education cannot be had without some measure of integration.” The board also warned that “basic resources are being dissipated” and that navy personnel and ships might be transferred to other ports if schools re mained closed. TEACHERS ASK OPENING The Norfolk Education Association, a professional organization for some 1,100 white teachers, voted 487 to 89 for a resolution which asked council to seek return of the schools to the locality for operation on a desegregated basis, if they could not be operated any other way. In the meantime, the NEA was sup porting a program of “community tu toring classes” to help children from the closed schools to continue their education. Details of this program in Norfolk and of private classes in War ren County and Charlottesville are car ried in a separate story on page one of this issue of Southern School News. The Virginia Education Association Oct. 30 approved a resolution express ing “grave concern” over closing of the schools and urging the governor to call a special session of the legislature to assure continued operation of the schools. Attorneys for the 17 Negro pupils who had been ordered enrolled in the Norfolk schools temporarily ended their legal efforts to force re-opening of the schools. They withdrew their petition Oct. 10 when Federal District Judge Walter E. Hoffman told them that they were pro ceeding against the wrong parties. They had asked an injunction against the Norfolk school board, but Judge Hoffman said the governor had taken over control of the schools and that he (the governor) was not named in the petition. Late in October three separate suits were filed in federal district court at Norfolk attacking the constitutionality of Virginia’s anti-integration laws and asking for injunctions against keeping the schools closed. One of the suits was filed by a group of white parents, the second by the parents of one white child and the third by the NAACP at torneys. All three suits name Gov. Lind say Almond among the defendants, and all allege that closing the schools de prives the children of equal protection of the law under the Fourteenth Amendment. A “Rally for Open Schools” held at the Norfolk arena on Oct. 13 drew about 1,000 persons, considerably fewer than sponsors of the event had anticipated. Negro attorneys had a measure of success in another federal district court in the Charlottesville and Warren County cases. (Allen v. School Board of Charlottesville, and Kilby v. School Board of Warren County.) The attorneys had asked Judge John Paul to declare Virginia’s school-clos ing law invalid and to order the re opening of schools in the two localities. VALIDITY UNDECIDED Judge Paul declined to pass on the validity of the law, explaining the same question already was under considera tion in a state supreme court case. But he did say that he was “not wil ling to countenance” the operation of private schools with publicly-paid teachers, since it would be “in clear violation of the mandate of the United States Supreme Court.” The ruling caused the Warren County Educational Foundation to postpone until later in the month the opening of private classes in which it had expected to use public school teachers. Later, teachers not on the state payroll were obtained. In Charlottesville, City Attorney John S. Battle Jr. advised the school board there was no reason why public school teachers couldn’t continue in the private program until such time as that program was shown to be discrimina tory by refusing to admit a Negro ap plicant. STATE LAW ATTACKED In the state supreme court test case, which was initiated by the state ad ministration, a court-appointed lawyer argued that Virginia’s anti-integration laws violate six sections of the state Private Schools (Continued From Page 1) school teachers—like those in Norfolk and Warren County—are still receiving their state salaries, it appears the Charlottesville private school arrange ment will be jeopardized if any Negro child tries to participate. Until then, however, the theory is the private sys tem has not been proven discrimina tory, and therefore the teacher may continue to serve. In Warren County, the private classes are being taught by former public school teachers. VARIOUS FINANCES Financing of the schools is being handled in a variety of ways. Pupils are charged a small fee. But in Norfolk, for example, the $20 tuition fee at Tidewater Academy is not nearly enough to pay teachers’ salaries and other costs, so campaigns are being waged to raise funds from the public. The Warren County Educational Foundation has announced a goal of $175,000 to finance its operations for the remainder of this school year. Members of the Textile Workers Union of America, Local 371, at the American Viscose Corp., Front Royal voted 235-49 to assess themselves a dollar a week for the Warren private schools. When national AFL-CIO headquarters found fault with this as sessment, the employes then voted to constitution and the 14th Amendment to the federal constitution. Attorney Samuel H. Williams of Lynchburg, in a brief filed with the court, maintained the laws violate these sections of the state constitution: Section 1—By depriving citizens of a locality of “the enjoyment of life and liberty” and their property in the form of school buildings. Section 11—By depriving citizens of their school property without due proc ess of law. Section 63—By providing for special assessment and collection of taxes for school purposes contrary to the re quirement that tax laws be general in nature. Section 129—By failing to maintain the public school system required by this section. Section 136—By interfering with the power of local authorities to determine local school taxes. Section 52—By failing to meet a tech nical requirement (as to the fund cut off law only) that the purpose of an act must be stated in the act’s title. As to the federal constitution, Wil liams said the state laws violate the 14th Amendment’s provision against racial discrimination, as interpreted by the U. S. Supreme Court. Here are other developments in Vir ginia’s school crisis during October. The Alexandria school board voted to reinstate a Negro mother who had been fired from her job in a school cafeteria because she was among the plaintiffs in a desegregation suit filed against the board. Board Chairman Robert C. Howard quoted school Supt. T. C. Wil liams as saying his original action in firing Mrs. Blois Hundley had been “hasty and not well considered.” (See last month’s Southern School News for background.) PAROCHIAL SCHOOLS MIXED A number of Catholic parochial schools of the Richmond Diocese (which includes most of Virginia), are operat ing on an integrated basis for the fourth consecutive year. The Rev. J. L. Flaherty, superintendent, says no racial breakdown of the number of students involved is available, as reports by race are not made by the individual schools. The total enrollment of all the schools in the diocese is 31,059. The League of Women Voters cir culated a letter urging Virginians to speak out in defense of the public school system. The letter referred to the Supreme Court’s “clear and un equivocal decision” on desegregation. The Virginia NAACP, holding its an nual conference in Hampton Oct. 10-12, set its sights on a 50,000-membership for 1959. The present state membership is about 27,000. Plans were made to try to increase Negro voting. The confer ence was told that only 131,626 of 422,- 663 Virginia Negroes who are 21 or over are registered to vote. # # # voluntarily contribute the $1 a week as individuals. All these private school efforts are being carried on without any statewide direction or co-ordination. However, a group of leading segregationists have set up the Virginia Education Fund to raise money to assist local organiza tions which are operating or will op erate such schools. Former Gov. Thom as B. Stanley is chairman of the ad visory board, and Lewis S. Pendleton Jr., Richmond lawyer, is president. As to curriculum, there is little or no laboratory work in the private schools. The emphasis is on the academic sub jects, and textbooks and equipment are scarce. At Norview Methodist Church in Norfolk, for example, each of the 24 members of a typing class has to provide his own typewriter. Since there are no adequate cafeteria facilities, most of the classes are held in the morning, adjourning in time for children to go home for lunch. To some adults, one heartening as pect of the Virginia school crisis has been the demonstration by some chil dren of an intense interest in getting an education. One pretty teen-age girl in a “tutoring group” at Norfolk told a reporter: “Before our school was actually closed, if somebody had told me I’d miss being in school I would have told them they were crazy. But not now.” # # #