Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 2—JULY, 1963—SOUTHERN SCHOOL NEWS
MISSISSIPPI
Greenwood Salesman Indicted
In Death of NAACP Secretary
JACKSON
A n outspoken segregationist
of Greenwood, charged with
murdering Medgar Evers, field
secretary of the National Associ
ation for the Advancement of Col
ored People and leader in efforts
to desegregate public schools in
Mississippi, was indicted by the
Hinds County Grand Jury on
July 2.
Evers, 37-year-old Mississippi-born
civil rights leader, was shot to death
at 12:35 a.m., June 12 when he stepped
from his automobile as he returned
home from a desegregation strategy
meeting. He was shot in the back and
died about an hour later in University
Hospital without regaining conscious-
Evers’ wife and three small children,
plaintiffs in a federal suit to desegregate
the Jackson public school system, were
in the house. They rushed to the door
when they heard the shot and found
Evers on the kitchen doorsteps where
he had managed to drag himself.
Charged with murder in the slaying
was Byron de la Beckwith, 42-year-old
salesman of Greenwood and member of
a pioneer family. Beckwith, a World
War II Marine veteran and gun collec
tor, was arrested June 22 by special
agents of the Federal Bureau of In
vestigation after a telescopic sight,
mounted on a 1917 Enfield 30.08 rifle
found near the scene, was traced to him
from a Grenada firm where it was
purchased.
A “latent” fingerprint which cor
responded with that of Beckwith was
found on the sight.
Bullet Identified
The bullet which pierced Evers’ body
was identified by FBI ballistic experts
and was similar to that of several
found in the chamber of the gun.
The Hinds County Grand Jury was
asked by District Attorney William
Waller of Jackson to return a true bill
against Beckwith.
When given a preliminary hearing
before Jackson Municipal Judge James
Spencer June 24, Beckwith pleaded
innocent. He was bound over to the
grand jury, and held in jail without
bond.
Beckwith is represented by Stanny
Sanders, former district attorney of
Greenwood; Hardy Lott of Greenwood,
and Hugh Cunningham, member of
Gov. Ross Barnett’s Jackson law firm.
Evers was buried in Arlington Na
tional Cemetery in Washington June 19.
Meanwhile, Charles Evers, of Chi
cago, has been named acting field sec
retary for the NAACP. He is a brother
of the slain man.
Evers was the first Negro to seek en
rollment in the University of Mississip
pi school of law in 1954, shortly after
the U.S. Supreme Court public school
desegregation decision. He was rejected
because he lacked qualifications and
did not appeal his case to the courts.
Instead, he became field secretary for
the NAACP and continued his desegre
gation efforts in that capacity.
McDowell Sponsor
Evers and his organization spear
headed the recent enrollment of Cleve
McDowell as the second Negro of rec
ord in the University of Mississippi.
McDowell was ordered admitted by
District Judge S. C. Mize and was en
rolled June 5 without incident, sharply
in contrast to rioting in which two men
were killed when James H. Meredith
became the first Negro student in
October, 1962.
Evers was one of nine Jackson Negro
parents who filed suit in federal district
court at Jackson for desegregation of
the Jackson Municipal separate school
system. They we represented by at
torneys of the NAACP legal education
division.
In a letter-opinion June 24, District
Judge Mize, who had ordered Mc
Dowell’s enrollment in the University
of Mississippi school of law, dismissed
the Jackson desegregation suit.
Legal Action
Court Dismisses
Suits at Jackson
Judge Sidney C. Mize of the South
ern Mississippi Federal District Court,
on June 24 dismissed two public school
desegregation suits filed by parents of
Negro children in the city of Jackson
and in Leake County (Carthage).
Medgar Evers
A gun collector was accused
The Jackson suit was filed by the late
Medgar Evers, slain NAACP field rep
resentative, and eight other Negro par
ents of Jackson.
The Leake County suit had been filed
by a group of Negro parents headed
by Dian Hudson.
Judge Mize issued a letter-opinion in
both cases, explaining that “pressure of
other litigation and the necessity of
getting to these
MIZE
particular cases as
early as possible”
prevented him
from writing a
formal opinion.
In both cases,
Judge Mize said
“I have consid
ered the record
and briefs care
fully and have
reached the con
clusion that the
complaints should be dismissed.”
Judge Mize’s letter-opinion said “the
pupils applying for admission to these
public schools are and have been con
tinuously since the 1954-55 school ses
sion assigned to schools or attendance
centers in accordance with the pro
visions of Chapter 260 of the Mississippi
Laws of 1954.”
He observed that “provision has been
made by the board for the transfer of
any student assigned to one attend
ance center who desires to transfer to
another attendance center, . . . none of
the plaintiffs have ever requested a
transfer from the school or attendance
center to which they are presently as
signed ... to any other center ...”
The judge said “none of the plaintiffs
have exhausted any of the administra
tive remedies provided for in Chapter
260, Laws of 1954, or in any way at
tempted to use any of the administra
tive remedies provided by law.”
Trustees’ Authority
He said the law authorizes the
trustees to assign pupils, designates the
consideration in making the assign
ments, provides application for review
of assignments and permits a parent,
guardian or other person having
custody of a child to request a review
of any assignment so made. Other sec
tions, he said, provide appeals to the
circuit court and for jury trial, and
designate further procedure with refer
ence to appeals.
“The provisions of this law do not
compel integration,” the court declared,
“but give full authority for a child or a
parent to request assignment to a
school of his choice and provide a full
and adequate remedy to redress any
wrong if any occurs. Statutes of this
type have been upheld repeatedly by
the courts. Among the first courts to
pass on such an act was the Fourth
Circuit in Carson v. Board of Educa
tion .... They (the court) held that a
suit could not be maintained until the
administrative remedies had been ex
hausted, relying upon many authorities
cited in the opinion and which are re
ferred to herein. In the Carson case, the
court said:
“ ‘The federal courts manifestly can
not operate the schools. . . . Where the
state law provides adequate administra
tive procedure for the protection of
such rights, the federal courts mani
festly should not interfere with the op
eration of the schools until such
administrative procedure has been ex
hausted and the intervention of the
federal courts is shown to be neces
sary.’ . . .
“The filing of a general petition for
desegregation of the school system can
not take the place of the requirement
that the individual plaintiff must ex
haust his administrative remedies. .
Moreover, in Bush v. Orleans Parish
School Board . . . the court pointed out
that when the Bush case was decided
that there was no pupil assignment
statute on the books. In the Shuttle-
worth case, . . . the court pointed out
that the plaintiffs had exhausted their
administrative remedies. For this reason
the complaint in these cases should be
dismissed as prematurely brought, but
there are other reasons for which it
should be and must be dismissed.
“From the record in these cases it is
shown that none of the plaintiffs have
been denied entrance to any of the
schools. Neither of the plaintiffs have
sought and been denied the right to
transfer from one school to another.
Before one can claim a remedy he must
show that he had been denied a legal
right. The complaint apparently in one
complaint attempts to desegregate the
entire school system without showing
that any particular one has been de
prived of or denied any right and, par
ticularly no one of the plaintiffs in the
present cases attempt to show that he
has been denied a constitutional right.
The Fifth Circuit has pointed out
definitely that before the injunctive
process will be given it must appear
that the plaintiff himself has been
denied a right. See Brown v. Board of
Trustees, wherein the plaintiff sought
to bring a class action without showing
that plaintiff had been denied individ
ually any constitutional right. . . . There
are authorities where the constitutional
question is properly brought into issue
by individual pupils or their parents
making proper efforts to gain attend
ance at a particular school, but none
that I have been able to find where
someone who brought the action before
he had been denied any constitutional
right.
“For these reason, I am of the opinion
that the complaints must be dismissed.”
★ ★ ★
U.S. District Judge Sidney C. Mize
on June 17 dismissed school desegrega
tion suits filed against the Biloxi and
Gulfport school systems by the U.S.
attorney general on behalf of children
of the armed forces and federal em
ployes in the “impacted” area where
federal funds have been granted to re
lieve overcrowding due to the added
enrollments of the Negro children.
Mississippi Highlights
Medgar Evers, Negro civil rights faculty losses.
leader of Mississippi and father of
three children seeking desegregation
of Jackson public schools, was shot
to death June 12. Byron de la Beck
with of Greenwood was charged with
Negro Cleve McDowell registered
in the University of Mississippi
school of law without incident and
was given a “courteous” reception by
students.
murder and indicted.
Suits for desegregation of the Jack-
son public school system and schools
in Leake County (Carthage) were
dismissed by U.S. District Judge Sid
ney C. Mize on grounds the plaintiffs
had not exhausted their full admin
istrative remedies.
U.S. District Judge Sidney C. Mize
dismissed school desegregation suits
filed by the U.S. attorney general
against the Biloxi and Gulfport
school systems, both in federal im
pacted areas.
Law School Dean Robert J. Farley
of the University of Mississippi re
tired following desegregation of that
division. A faculty member listed 39
Three hundred federal troops on
the “Ole Miss” campus were with-
drawn and assigned to federal prop,
erty nearby. Negro student James
Meredith said the troops should be
maintained since state officials have
refused to guarantee protection of
“certain individuals.”
The University of Mississippi sum
mer school registration set a record.
Jackson officials named the city’s
first Negro policeman and announced
that recreational facilities and public
libraries had been desegregated.
However, demands by Negro leaders
for school desegregation were reject-
ed on grounds that this was before
the courts.
Judge Mize ruled that the federal
government cannot file such suits be
cause only an individual can go to court
in a civil rights case. The government,
in its suits, had contended that segre
gation was harmful to the morale of
the military personnel at bases nearby
who have children in the schools of the
two cities.
★ ★ ★
U.S. District Judge Sidney C. Mize
on June 26 delayed until October a
hearing on a desegregation suit filed by
Negro parents against the Biloxi Mu
nicipal Separte School District. The suit
was brought by Dr. Gilbert R. Mason
on behalf of his son, as a class action
for 23 other Negro children.
The delay forestalled any likelihood
of a preliminary injunction sought by
the Negroes so that the schools could
be desegregated during the coming fall
term.
In The Colleges
Farley Retiring
As 4 01e Miss’
Law School Dean
Robert J. Farley, who retires Sept. 1
after 18 years as dean of the Univer
sity of Mississippi school of law, which
was recently desegregated without inci
dent, said in Jackson June 21 that, “The
white muslim branch of the Citizens’
Councils has attempted in recent years
to have me ousted.”
“However, I withstood their attempts
and remained,” he said in an address
before the law school alumni meeting
during the recent convention of the
Mississippi State Bar.
Dean Farley asserted that “some
members” of the faculty have come'
under criticism in recent years since
the 1954 school desegregation decisiot
of the United States Supreme Court be
cause “we taught what we thought the
law is.”
The 64-year-old dean, who reaches
the mandatory retirement age of 65 in
December, said he had asked “my
friends” on the college board “not to
make a fight for an extension.” Exten
sions are usually granted year-to-yeai
for persons in “strategic positions” u:
to 70 years of age.
“My staying on would bring in a fight
and I don’t think there is anything to
be gained by it for the university,
Dean Farley said.
Moving to Florida
Dean Farley announced that he is
joining the faculty of the University
of Florida law school.
In his address before the “Ole Miss
law school alumni, Dean Farley re
counted asserted pressures by street!
pro-segregation groups and politicals
because of his position. He said eco
nomic intimidation seems to be the P n '
mary method of the white musto
branch of the Citizens Councils.”
“I remained at ‘Ole Miss’ even thoug-
I had learned back during the depr«‘
sion that a man can make a living wl “,
amount of ability,” he saio
ta
or
a maximum
(See MISSISSIPPI, Page 3)
‘Not One Rude Remark,’ McDowell Says
Cleve McDowell, Negro who was en
rolled without incident in the Univer
sity of Mississippi law school June 5,
told newsman he was well pleased with
his acceptance by white students.
“I appreciate the way I was re reived
and at this time I have not heard even
one rude remark,” he said.
His appearance on the campus con
trasted sharply with the rioting which
marked the entrance of James H.
Meredith as the university’s first Negro
student of record eight months prev
iously. Meredith returned to the school
for the summer session June 6, the day
after McDowell registered. His registra
tion was uneventful.
Prior to McDowell’s arrival with two
federal marshals under a Mississippi
Federal District Court order, Gov. Ross
Barnett in Jackson issued a statement
that “it would be unwise and futile for
the state of Mississippi to enter into a
physical or shooting combat with the
United States Army. Such would un
doubtedly result in death or injury to
many of our people.”
Gov. Barnett had been urged by
some of his leaders to attempt per
sonally to block McDowell’s entry on
the campus in a peaceful manner. How
ever, he decided against that, but as
serted that “Cleve McDowell’s attempt
to enter the campus and register in the
school of law meets with our positive
and determined protest and our sov-
erign state proclaims to all our sister
states that these acts are in violation
and utter contempt of the right of our
people, as guaranteed by the federal
constitution.
“The federal authorities must, there
fore, accept the responsibility for his
(McDowell’s) entry and his presence
upon the grounds at the university.”
During McDowell’s enrollment, he
was escorted by Bums Tatum, six-foot-
six-inch chief of the campus police.
Cleve McDowell
Well pleased
The 21-year old honor graduate from
Jackson State College for Negroes
asked newsmen not to “pursue me or
ask for any information that might
hinder my studies.”
“I am going to Ole Miss to get a
degree in law,” he told a news confer
ence. “I want that understood in the
beginning.”
Although only two federal officers
were with McDowell when he drove
onto the campus, about 60 others were
in evidence around the grounds. The
Negro student was accompanied by
John Dear, justice department attorney.
He was assigned a room in Baxter
Hall, the dormitory in which Meredith
stays.
McDowell is carrying seven hours of
study. In addition to legal history, he
is taking legal bibliography and civil
law.
The campus newspaper, The M .
sippian, printed a picture on its .
page of McDowell walking across^ j
campus with the caption: “New
Student.’
In an editorial, Student Editor
J<*
in an editorial, stuaem , a;
Lee III said “Ole Miss students^
every opportunity to duplicate 11®^
erally triggered riot of Sept. 30 ^ ^
McDowell’s entrance” in attribu ^
peacefulness of the campus to ^
integrity and sound judgment ° $
Miss students” and the “well
and expedient handling of the
ment by university authorities.
liti
be<
No
Do
ant
cor
I
An
30i
Troops Removed
In another development, i
federal troops stationed at the r
sity for the protection of Mein i rc
removed from the campus an near ft
to semi-permanent quarters ° n
federal lands. ^ V
Earlier, State Attorney Gen feC .,
T. Patterson had filed a pe tlt10 , 0 f 0*
eral court at Oxford for yial
troops. It has not been called ' .
Col. William Lynch, comI "T, t . s**
the “Ole Miss Army conning Re
conditions indicated there is ^ un-
need for Army personnel ai
Oil!
it ,
onl
sefi
dig
sch,
3 r j
L
•auj
»as
Ml)
versity.” ,
Meredith questioned the se rti»C
the removal of the troops, ^>ses-
was “for obvious political P u e
S,
tie,
kfie
by
Gi
%
v 51
★ ★ ★
, Uni v ,-
Dr. E. Phay, provost for * ho0 l,j£
s
lb
LJT. Hi. riuxy, c C hO<? A< :rC\
sity of Mississippi summer r-
June 13 that enrollment f° t jn <•
“has soared to the secon
university’s history.
imversity s 0 j
He said figures from g to i
ne saiu - . ... a -
Registrar Robert EUls f ° ca mpi> s J ^
2,248 students were on th n
11. and that the total reg^ T 0 f Is
v
^d,
Sh
S
%
0tl
K