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SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS—SEPTEMBER, 1962—PAGE 9 son, in sion in •es, or- rrds to n two ion of ruling a fed- egated te first . Five me de ed ad- egated :s will le took ■egated families a Negrc /ere as- .or higl chargee id asked or Higi metto is nder the all were basis o qualifiet he said, own ar tered ii on open nior am I official accepts were re in Pain lown be- 4 but i superin- s had re- enior am ave beei i a mint intenden lofficiall: 1 be ap i school idition t isegrega- ever, the be give a polio r transfe gely bf er or bo ult. at MiaB iecondar f the ek etermint iol boat rshall V t be use m desef year, and whi 1 precede rict coi* submit 1 ite at 1 Mainly legro $ iber. ^ usia A' 1 Dayto* :ing tbd her appl nd Maif attend h CoUf 1 expand were *■’ School 11) West Virginia (Continued From Page 7) ing attorneys Aug. 9, U.S. District Court Judge John A. Field Jr. told them to file briefs by Oct. 1. The judge explained he would want some time thereafter to study the briefs before setting a trial date. (Taylor v. Raleigh County Board of Education.) Conferring with Judge Field were attorneys Fletcher W. Mann of Beckley, representing the school board, and Wil lard Brown of Charleston, state counsel for the NAACP. The conference was held in Beckley. Raleigh was one of several southern West Virginia counties in which the NAACP sought to force racial desegre gation in public schools six years ago. The Raleigh case and all but one of the others were settled without trial in a series of conferences between school board representatives and the deceased Judge Ben Moore. The Raleigh settlement involved an agreement on a voluntary desegrega tion plan, as did all of the others. This agreement was first developed at the close of a hearing in Greenbrier County where Judge Moore succeeded in getting the board and NAACP to agree to a voluntary program of deseg regation. Several months ago, the NAACP pe titioned Judge Field for reopening of the Raleigh case, charging that school districts have been altered to avoid de segregation. The school board denied the charge. West Virginia Highlights The 11 state-operated colleges and universities will remove all questions dealing with race and religion from their application forms. The school desegregation case in Raleigh County, brought by the NAACP against the board of educa tion, will not be heard in federal district court until sometime after Oct. 1. Schoolmen Smith Cites Goal: Equal Opportunity State School Supt. Rex M. Smith promised Aug. 1 that his department will “spare no effort to insure that every pupil has an equal opportunity for a good education” in West Virginia. Smith at a news conference labeled the equal opportunity objective as the major one of eight on his list. He did not make any reference to race in the discussion, but Smith has been a consistent supporter of unsegre gated education since he was a county superintendent in upstate Monongalia County. He was chief school officer in that county in 1954 when the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its desegregation ruling, and Monongalia was the first county in the state to desegregate. # # # SOUTH CAROLINA Testimony Heard in Suit To Desegregate Clemson COLUMBIA A nother round in the legal struggle of Negro Harvey B. Gantt to gain admittance to Clem son College was fought in U.S. district court on Aug. 22, but the results were inconclusive. One unusual aspect of a hearing in the case heard before Judge C. C. Wyche, sitting in Greenville, was the departure from the procedure the jur ist has long followed in his court. Judge Wyche, at the request of at torneys for Gantt, allowed witnesses to take the stand at the hearing. As a result Clemson President Robert C. Ed wards was subjected to a lengthy and unexpected examination by Matthew J- Perry, a Columbia lawyer represent ing the 19-year-old plaintiff. Gantt, a Charleston native who is seeking to transfer to Clemson from owa State University, testified himself briefly. Lengthy Discussion Perry s motion to call Dr. Edwards stimulated a lengthy discussion be tween the judge and the attorney. Fin ally Judge Wyche agreeed, but noted: , ^ ve never had oral testimony at ese hearings. You are delaying my ecision by asking to put witnesses on e stand and giving the defendent a chance to reply.” Defense counsel William L. Watkins 0 Anderson objected to the ruling, f ,. tln l g ’ AVe are not prepared for a tun-dress trial at this time. The hearing concerned a plaintiff’s request for a permanent injunction re raining the college from refusing to ac , and act expeditiously, on applica- y° ns °f Negro residents of the state. Gantt, a former high school ° all standout, has made several at- en l er Clemson’s school of ar- i ecture in the past two years, i } er Judge Wyche rules on the in- m c . lon ’ the case will proceed on its ]j e f S ' request for injunctive re_ f r ^ vas designed to gain admittance t erjn an tt at the start of the September Dr. Edwards, under questioning, sup- Gantt Glemson contention that a _ ,. Was turned down because his Dl P tf 10n was not submitted in com- coTWri ° rm the time the cut off for that* era h° n of transfer students and avail f? trance test scores were not Te 6 at , tha t time. j ept - 6 Plaintiff’s position is that the re- cri - ? n resu lted solely from racial dis crimination. lenm? y questioned Dr. Edwards at g roe on college policy concerning Ne- seekf ant * on interviews of students dentadmission. The college presi- i- ai his institution had “no policy” '‘nevp Sard t0 Negr °es and that he had tl°n from C a 1V N d eg r a o.” 0mpleted aPI>UCa ' S. C. Highlights Federal Judge C. C. Wyche re versed his usual policy and permitted testimony at the Aug. 22 hearing on Charleston Negro Harvey B. Gantt’s request for an injunction that would restrain all-white Clemson College from denying admittance to him and other similarly placed Negro stu dents. A veteran South Carolina political reporter predicted that the state’s public schools would be desegre gated within 18 months. Dr. Edwards testified that interviews with applicants are designed to “assess intangibles” but that they are not given in all cases. He added that the college has not determined whether or not an interview will be necessary in the Gantt case. Asked how long it would take for Gantt to complete his applica tion if given the opportunity, Dr. Ed wards replied: “That rests with Mr. Gantt.” During the examination, Judge Wyche repeatedly objected that “all this (testimony) is in the record.” At another point, he told Gantt’s lawyer, “I might even say you had the nerve to send me a proposed order for setting this hearing.” The judge took the matter under ad visement at month’s end. South Carolina’s public schools opened Aug. 29 on a completely segre gated basis and only quick, affirmative action by Judge Wyche on Gantt’s re quest for an injunction can prevent the state’s colleges from maintaining their all-white position. The state is one of three left with no mixing of white and Negro students at any level of its educational system. What They Say School Desegregation Seen Coming to S. C. Within 18 Months William E. Mahoney, veteran political reporter, wrote in the Seneca Journal- Tribune that South Carolina will be “integrated” within 18 months. The newsman, who has close connec tions in the office of Gov. Ernest F. Hollings and other government circles, wrote: “We are going to integrate. And the total force of legal minds that this state can assemble won’t change it. It’s polit ical dynamite, so don’t ask a politician. But they’re of one mind now: the end (See S.C., Page 11) DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA HEW Official Reaffirms Intent To End Aid To Segregated Areas WASHINGTON he new Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, An thony J. Celebrezze, announced Aug. 22 that he plans to follow through on a recommendation by his predecessor to halt federal aid to some “impacted” school dis tricts in the fall of 1963 unless they stop practicing racial segre gation. Last March former HEW Secretary Abraham A. Ribicoff told Congress that after September, 1963, the federal gov ernment will regard segregated schools as no longer “suitable” for federal grants toward the education of children whose parents live and work on gov ernment installations. The policy would affect only a mi nority of the districts receiving school aid as “federally impacted” areas, since a larger portion of the assistance is allocated in behalf of federal depend ents who do not live on government in stallations. HEW officials contend that the statutes governing the aid program permit them to make a finding of “suit ability” in the case of children living on federal property, but not in the case of those who live on private property in the communities in which they attend school. Survey Planned HEW plans to survey 70 federal in stallations to determine local practices with respect to segregation. The depart ment hopes to talk local officials into desegregating schools serving children of military personnel. If the officials refuse, and if a base has a sufficient number of children, HEW will have to decide by January whether to engage in a crash program of build ing desegregated schools on the in stallation. Celebrezze’s confirmation of Ribicoff’s policy was stated in a telegram to Clar ence Mitchell, Washington director of the National Association for the Ad vancement of Colored People. The sec retary’s action came amidst NAACP demands for “immediate steps” to pro vide desegregated schooling for children of personnel at two Virginia installa tions. Celebrezze told the NAACP that in accord with Ribicoff’s announced policy, the United States Commissioner of Edu cation will provide desegregated educa tion for the base children, presumably by 1963, “or make other suitable ar rangements.” First Complaint The first NAACP complaint involved Ft. Lee, Va., which houses the Army Quartermaster School. Some 1,500 school-age children of Army personnel live on the installation, and 1,273 of these, including 104 Negroes, are depen dent on the public schools of Prince George County. Since the county’s Ne gro schools are far from the Army base, Prince George County sends the 104 Negro children to all-Negro schools in Petersburg, about five miles away in Dinwiddie County. The county pays for their tuition and for the 30-minute bus ride to and from Petersburg. During the past year, Prince George was entitled to $224,328 in federal “im pacted area” funds for operating ex penses incurred in behalf of the on- base children. The county has also re ceived substantial federal assistance for school construction. County School Board Chairman R. F. Livesay told a reporter that federal aid is a “considerable part” of the $1.3 mil lion school operating budget. ^ ill He Keep ’til November? D. C. Highlights HEW Secretary Anothny J. Cele brezze reaffirmed his department’s intention to cut off federal “impacted area” aid next year from segregated schools serving children who live on government installations. A special social studies curriculum was announced for a Washington junior high school as part of an effort to combat “voluntary resegre gation” of its neighborhood. Secretary of Labor Arthur J. Gold berg was nominated to the Supreme Court, succeeding Justice Felix Frankfurter. The Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 7 approved by a vote of 11- 4 the judgeship nomination of for mer NAACP counsel Thurgood Marshall. A District government survey showed that 68.5 per cent of the school system’s employes last June 30 were Negroes. “If the government threatens to cut off aid, then we would have to decide whether to integrate our schools,” he said. In response to an NAACP protest about the Ft. Lee situation, Army Sec retary Cyrus R. Vance told Mitchell that the Army does not sanction segre gation in any program under its con trol, but “the choice here is to allow its children to attend schools designated by the school board or not attend schools at all.” Vance’s reply was termed “wholly unsatisfactory” on Aug. 22 by W. Lester Banks, executive secretary of the Vir ginia NAACP. Second Case The second case involves Fort Bel- voir, the Army Engineer Center in Fairfax County, Va., near Washington. The NAACP asked HEW on Aug. 31 to investigate charges of public school dis crimination against children of military personnel at the post. Banks charged that “both the Ft. Bel- voir command and the Fairfax County school authorities are guilty of discrim ination against junior and senior Negro high school students.” Belvoir children beyond the seventh grade must attend schools off the post. There are four desegregated elementary schools on the installation. Ft. Belvoir authorities said that most of the junior and senior high students attend schools in Fairfax County. They said the installation provides transpor tation to and from the schools, but that county officials determine which schools the individual students attend. Banks said the protest to HEW was initiated after the Fairfax County NAACP branch was unsuccessful in persuading officials to “correct discrim ination in the education of military per sonnel dependents.” The Washington NAACP branch later joined in the pro test. Meanwhile, legislation to extend and expand the “impacted areas” aid pro gram is bottled up in subcommittees of the House and Senate. The present au thorizing legislation expires June 30, 1963. The subcommittees have scheduled several meetings to act on the extend ing legislation, but have failed to mus ter quorums for the action. Government Officials To Become Teachers In Unique Program A unique blue-ribbon social studies curriculum will be instituted this month at Paul Junior High School in North west Washington as part of an effort to cope with “voluntary desegregation” of a neighborhood—the flight of whites and mass influx of Negroes. The project, developed by parents of Paul students and other residents of the neighborhood, was announced Aug. 4. It has the active support of the Board of Education, the District Commissioners and the White House. Paul Junior High has maintained high academic standards in recent years while its neighborhood has undergone rapid social transition. The student body has changed from 100 per cent white to 60 per cent Negro. ‘Crossroads’ Situation This situation “struck us as being a crossroads,” said Lee White, Assistant Special Counsel to President Kennedy and one of the residents instrumental in drafting the new social studies pro gram. The pattern in many cities—and in many District schools—has been that when the proportion of Negroes to whites in a school rises substantially, the school quickly becomes all-Negro. “It has been recognized for a long time in connection with urban renewal problems that some attention should be given to what has become known as voluntary resegregation,” White said. Through the efforts of Neighbors, Inc., a community action group, and other organizations, about 50 white families have recently moved into the Paul area, where Negroes are also moving in, White said. Professional families—gov ernment officials, journalists, scientists and diplomatic personnel of both races —are among the new residents. To serve the children of these fami lies, the new social studies program will attempt to marshal Washington’s gov ernment resources. Cabinet members and other government officials have agreed to work with students. (See D. C., Page 13) Judiciary Committee Approves Thurgood Marshall Nomination The Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 7 voted 11-4 to approve Thur good Marshall’s nomination to be a federal circuit court judge in New York. The four voting against recommend ing Marshall’s confirmation by the Senate all are Southern Democrats: James O. Eastland, committee chairman, Mississippi; Olin D. Johnston, South Carolina; Sam J. Ervin Jr., North Caro lina; and John L. McClellan, Arkansas. Marshall, former general counsel to the National Association for the Ad vancement of Colored People, played a key role in many of the South’s major school desegregation court cases. South ern senators have been accused of deliberately stalling on confirmation of his nomination. Subcommittee Vote Johnston is chairman of a subcom mittee that conducted hearings on Marshall’s nomination, first submitted by President Kennedy almost a year ago. The subcommittee was reported Aug. 29 to have voted 2-to-l to recom mend rejection of the appointment. The subcommittee completed its lengthy hearings on the nomination Aug. 24. Called as a witness at the final hearing, Alfred H. Kelly, professor of history at Wayne State University, testified that a humorous remark by Marshall which he quoted in one of his papers had been picked up and dis torted during the subcommittee hear ings. Kelly had quoted Marshall as say ing, “When us colored folks take over, every time a white man takes a breath he will have to pay a fine.” Kelly said that for the subcommittee to take this remark and “treat it as a threat or even a philosophical observa tion” was “absurd, even grotesque in its bizarre distortion of reality.” President Confident President Kennedy was asked about the delay in the confirmation of Mar shall’s appointment at his Aug. 22 press conference and replied: “I think it has been much too much delayed. I am confident, in fact I am sure, that the Senate will not adjourn, and I have been given those assurances, that the Senate will not adjourn with out action being taken by the United States Senate on the Thurgood Marshall appointment. “When it does come to a vote, and it will, it is my judgment the Senate will confirm him overwhelmingly.”