About Southern school news. (Nashville, Tenn.) 1954-1965 | View Entire Issue (June 1, 1963)
SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS—JUNE. 1963—PAGE II Negro Gets U.S. Court Order, Enters University of Mississippi Law School (Continued from Page 2) intent is there any contractual liabil ity on the part of the defendants. “There is no merit in the argument of plaintiff that if the assurances au thorize separation of the races in the schools, they are unconstitutional. The constitution does not compel or require mixing of the races.” Judge Mize said “had the defendants breached their assurances the remedy and the relief that plaintiff could ob tain is specifically provided for in and limited by the statutes themselves.” He continued: “The entire administration of the acts is delegated to the United States commissioner of education. Where the commissioner feels that any assurance given is not being carried out there shall be a hearing after reasonable no tice before the commissioner and the finding of the commissioner is subject to judicial review on the record by the United States Court of Appeals. “The prescribed administrative rem edy is exclusive. No right is given the commissioner to require compliance with the assurances by injunctive re lief. “Where a statute creates a right of action and therein fixes the remedies available, the specified remedies are an integral part of the right and are substantive conditions and as such are exclusive. The statute does not make the assurances contractual promises that can be enforced by specific per formance or injunction but merely assurances of a nature that a failure to comply therewith would authorize enforcement of the statutory reme dies.” Pointing to the legislative history of the Civil Rights Acts which he said “clearly reflects that the failure to grant to the United States the power to bring civil rights actions was de liberate on the part of congress,” Judge Mize said: Cites Congressional Action “For example, an effort was made to have Congress amend 42 U.S.C. 1985, to authorize suits to be brought in the name of the United States, but after heated debate the proposed amendment w as defeated. Congressional Record, 85th Congress, 1st Session, pages 10998-12565. There was a determined effort to ■mend the 1960 Civil Rights Act, PL 86-449, 74 Stat. 86, so as to author - lze Ihe United States to institute civil proceedings to protect rights under the ourteenth Amendment. It was unsuc cessful. Congressional Record, 86th Congress, March 30, April 8, Aug. 30, I960, pages 17513-22 et seq. The only Civil Right Act in which ogress has authorized the institu- i® suits by the United States is U.S.C. 1971, dealing with deprivation °f voting rights. U w? c °urt therefore finds that the a ™ States has no cause for action no standing as a plaintiff in this curt to enforce any rights under the urteenth Amendment to the Consti tution,” he said. Style of the Case is United States of rat eri S a V ' Gulfport Municipal Sepa- ‘ e School District; James S. Eaton, Resident, and Charles R. Storey, Earl nipmk^’ ^ k- Green and G. M. Owen, °f the hoard of trustees, and t sn ' -Oby, superintendent of educa- ‘Here, Mr. Gulliver. The Lit tle People Decree Whose Jackson Daily News plished. He did not ask the court to pass on his allegation that President Kennedy’s proclamation against resist ance and his executive order sending the troops to Oxford are unconstitu tional. A supporting affidavit by Dr. E. R. Jobe, executive secretary of the college board, contended that occupation of the campus by troops “is preventing and discouraging students from choosing the university” for the 1963-64 session and “threatens an income loss of $100,000 and $500,000 because of re duced enrollment.” Claims Situation ‘Intolerable’ “The presence of the contingent of armed forces at the University of Mis sissippi is resulting in an intolerable situation without any compensating values whatso ever,” Dr. Jobe said. He added: “They are not serving any con structive purpose as to maintaining peace and order at the university. For many months the campus police, under the control of university authorities, have exer cised sole responsibility for discipline and good order. “The presence of troops under these circumstances gives constant notice to all citizens, businessmen, professional workers, parents of students or other visitors that conditions at the univer sity are not permitted to return to normal. “The unwarranted perpetuation of tension and the atmosphere of military occupation brought about by the con tinued presence of said armed forces is resulting and will result in irrepar able injury and damages to the uni versity and to the state of Mississippi in: “1. Preventing and discouraging stu dents from choosing the University of Mississippi as an institution to attend during the 1963-64 session. “2. Impairing the reputation and in tegrity of the university in the matter of being able to operate independently and in an orderly manner. “3. Making it difficult to provide at- What They Say tractive working conditions for faculty and staff personnel. “4. Threatening loss of accreditation of the university. “5. Preventing the university from the full and complete enjoyment of all its property and facilities. “6. Reducing the income of the Uni versity by an estimated $100,000 to $500,000 during the 1963-64 session be cause of reduced enrollment.” Dr. Jobe said he based his state ments “on personal observations, inter views and conversations with respon sible officials and employes of the University of Mississippi and with members of the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning, contacts with responsible persons in the field of higher education and conver sations with alumni of the University of Mississippi.” Patterson’s Petition Patterson stated in his petition that the enrollment and admission of Mere dith “was accomplished on the morning of Oct. 1, 1962 and said individual has been in constant and uninterrupted at tendance at the University of Missis sippi since that date.” “None of the conditions as set forth in the presidential proclamation and executive order, and upon which their issuance was predicated, exist on the campus of the University of Mississippi or within its vicinity,” the suit con tended. “However, a number of Armed Forces personnel, acting under the command and supervision of the de fendant and his predecessor in com mand, have remained upon the prop erty of the plaintiff, State of Mississip pi and Board of Trustees of State In stitutions of Higher Learning, and are continuing to occupy said property,” the petition continued. Patterson charged that “continued occupation of the university campus by the presence of said personnel is un lawful, without authority and contrary to the authority of said proclamation and executive order of said John F. Kennedy.” His petition also stated: “The unlawful presence of armed forces personnel at the University of Mississippi from Sept. 30, 1962 until date, has constituted and is constitut ing an unlawful trespass which has deprived and is depriving the above mentioned plaintiffs of their rights to full and complete enjoyment of their property and has therefore caused them to suffer irreparable injury. “Unless defendant is ordered or en joined by this court to remove himself and personnel under his command from the property of plaintiffs he will continue his acts of unlawful trespass to the irreparable injury to the plain tiffs.” The petition asked for issuance of a preliminary injunction and a perma nent injunction “enjoining the de fendants, his successors in command, his subordinates, both officer and en listed, his agents, attorneys and em ployes and all persons acting in concert with him from: “A. Refusing to forthwith remove himself and all persons under his com mand, supervision and control, from the property of the University of Mis sissippi; “B. Acting under the purported au thority of Proclamation No. 3497 and Executive Order No. 11053, issued Sept 30, 1962, by John F. Kennedy; “C. Acting under any orders from the secretary of defense or the secre tary of the Army issued pursuant to the proclamation and executive order referred to in (b) above.” The court also was asked to “grant such additional relief as justice may require together with the costs and disbursements of this action.” Legislative Action Department Refused To Supply Names, Committee Reports The General Legislative Investigat ing Committee said May 1 that federal authorities had refused to give it the names of U.S. marshals in its inquiry into asserted “brutalities” against stu dents and citizens during the Univer sity of Mississippi desegregation riot ing Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, 1962. The statement was in the second re port issued by the permanent commit tee headed by State Rep. Russell Fox of Claiborne County. At the same time, the committee challenged any justice department official to deny under oath that mar shals tortured prisoners during the crisis. The committee said it sought the names of the marshals in order to question them under oath in their in vestigation of the rioting. In the earlier report, the committee charged that “deliberate and repeated brutalities” were exerted on students and citizens by federal marshals at a “detention stockade” set up off the campus. The Justice Department labeled the original report an “untruthful docu ment” and said no names were listed of those responsible for the accusa tions. ‘Objective and Disinterested’ “Contrary to the assertions of the Department of Justice, the committee files contain sworn testimony from a great number of objective and disin terested observers of the events de scribed in the committee’s report,” the legislative group said. The committee said that “13 wit nesses who appeared before it told of systematic brutalities committed by marshals in an isolated garage near the campus on Oct. 1, 1962, the day after Negro James Meredith was es corted on the campus.” “The department knows there are more than 50 witnesses available who will verify the findings of the com mittee in this respect,” the report stated. Chairman Fox said the committee j had requested the names, addresses and present assignment of all deputy | marshals involved in the Ole Miss operation through U.S. Sen. James O. ! Eastland (D. Miss.). Information Refused “The department, in a letter from Deputy Attorney General Nicholas de B. Katzenbach to the committee chair man, dated March 15, 1963, refused to furnish the requested information,” the legislative committee report stated. “Instead, he (Mr. Katzenbach) replied that, ‘I cannot see any legitimate need for the information you have requested or that giving you the names and ad dresses of these particular officers would serve any useful or legitimate purpose.” The committee asserted that “the JOBE ★ ★ * Patterson Files ■^uit For Removal Federal Troops ^n e t, Att ^ ey General J oe T. P: sissinr,; ^ soft hr Northern M W%Ll ederaI Court District at O tb removal of U.S. troc V ersitv !f ^ f ° rd cam P u s of the Ui ^ y of Mississippi. since ]as?°r\ S b , ave free* 1 stationed the James tr J tober w hen Negro stude Col w- Meredith enrolled. °fticer J*r ^ Lynch > comr nandi ant m the troops, is named defen of the q* f 114 filed Ma y 23 on beh Soarj of ~ of Mississippi and t of Higher T mstees of State Institutic Patt L eaming. !° r ^hkh n tk aSS , erted that the P ur PO= mrd l a J tne troops were sent to O °f Meredith Ctober to gain enrollme Noting _ an< f to restore peace afi rupted have been accoi Rights Commission Continuance Urged The chairman of the Mississippi State Advisory Committee to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission said in Wash ington May 23 that “for many thou sands of Mississippi citizens the abandonment of the Civil Rights Com mission would be utterly disastrous.” Appearing before the Constitutional Rights Sub-committee of the Senate, Mrs. Wallis I. Schutt of Jackson, wife of a businessman, said: “It is well nigh impossible to find words strong enough to convey accu rately the importance to the Negroes of having one place where they can speak their minds and tell of their troubles. “The existence within the state of an organization dedicated to the equal rights under law of all citizens, is im mensely important to a people who are not receiving the benefits of those rights just now, but know there is hope so long as the nation is aware of their plight. “Bringing those problems into the open for objective discussion by a bi- racial group is a step forward in Mis sissippi. The state advisory committee provides one of the first opportunities for Negroes and whites to discuss problems during the period of transi tion.” Mrs. Schutt said “it is only recently, in spite of all that opposing forces could put in our way, that we have been able to so establish our committee in the eyes of the citizenry at large that they are beginning to seek us out and hear what we have learned. “We do not enjoy being thought of as being loyal to a program or laws which we consider wrong and abusive; yet we are loyal—we are loyal to Mississippi, we are also loyal Ameri cans, loving and upholding and fight ing for the ideals on which America was founded and we want the world to know there are Mississippians like that,” she added. Dean Erwin Griswold of the Har vard Law School also appeared before the committee, headed by Senator Sam J. Ervin, D-N.C. Griswold said the Civil Rights Commission’s request rel ative to stopping federal funds to Mississippi was limited, A member of the commission, Gris wold said the report was widely in terpreted as a request that President Kennedy bar all funds as long as Mis sissippi practiced segregation. “Of course we did not recommend that funds be cut off from school lunches, dependent children, impecu nious mothers or the blind,” he said, “Our only recommendation was that the president explore his authority for cutting off funds where the money is used in support of discriminatory pur poses.” President Kennedy has said he does not have that authority. justice department admitted that pris oners were taken to the garage build ing near the airport and has failed to deny specifically the systematic bru talities carried on therein all night, Oct. 1.” Referring to a statement of the Jus tice Department that “claimed the re port to be unfounded because the newsmen did not learn of the brutali ties by the marshals,” the committee report said: “The department of justice deliber ately concealed from newsmen the use of the detention stockade at the sedi mentation laboratory garage and the brutalities were committed by the marshals when newsmen were not present. Many were committed under cover of darkness.” Denials Invited The committee said further: “If there is any official of the de partment of justice or any person deputized as a marshal who partici pated in the operation . . . who will deny the specific findings of the com mittee . . . this committee will be happy to hear such witnesses and will schedule a special meeting for this purpose, provided such witness will waive the immunity which would be accorded them by Section 3365-08 of the Mississippi code of 1942.” The section provides that any wit ness before the investigating commit tee is immune from prosecution in the matter on which he testifies. Delaware (Continued fiom Page 7) cision providing for complete desegre gation throughout the state.” Other panelists at the meeting stressed Redding’s theme. “We still have Negroes who do not know why segregation is bad,” said Mrs. Leona Farrington, education chairman for the New York State NAACP. Miss June Shagaloff, education spe cialist for the national office of the NAACP, said these steps are needed to eliminate de facto segregation in the North: • Change the feeder pattern of ele mentary to secondary schools so that Negro elementary schools don’t all feed to the same secondary schools. • Change the grade structure of schools. If a Negro elementary school’s attendance area abuts a white elemen tary school’s area, combine both areas and make one school grades 1-3 and the other grades 4-6. • Switch pupils from overcrowded Negro schools to under-enrolled white schools. This leaves the sending school segregated, but at least desegregates the receiving school. Miss Shagaloff acknowledged that in some cases it will be impossible to pre vent a school from being segregated, but said in these cases the NAACP de mands that facilities and teachers in the Negro schools be improved until equal to white schools. ★ ★ ★ Three Threats Listed To Public Education Groups which seek to abolish the public schools rather than desegregate them represent one of three threats to public education, in the opinion of Delaware’s superintendent of public instruction. Dr. George R. Miller Jr., stressed this factor in a speech at the dedica tion of new school facilities at Middle- town High School. Two other threats, he said, are the growth of private and parochial schools and “unfounded criticism” of public education which seeks to undermine the confidence of the public. Dr. Miller called the “phenomenal growth” of private and parochial schools the “greatest weakening influ ence affecting the public school sys tem.” Secondly, he said, “but no less a threat to public education, is the at titude of some people who state that they will abolish the public schools rather than desegregate them.” Dr. Miller said the American pub lic school is probably the most effec tive unifier in the whole American melting pot, and that it has helped to absorb hordes of immigrants that might well have split into another so ciety. Public schools, he said, “have weak nesses, but for the sake of the future let us eliminate or overcome those weaknesses, but let us not sow seeds that will further weaken them.”
