Letter to Wiley Branton

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Collection:: Land of (Unequal) Opportunity: Documenting the Civil Rights Struggle in Arkansas
Title:: Letter to Wiley Branton
Publisher:: Fayetteville, Ark. : University of Arkansas Libraries
Date of Original:: 1954-08-30
Subject:: African Americans--Arkansas
Civil rights--Arkansas
Race discrimination--Arkansas
Segregation--Arkansas
People:: Branton, Wiley Austin, 1923-1988
Crenshaw, J.C.
Location:: United States, Arkansas, 34.75037, -92.50044
Medium:: documents (object genre)
Type:: Text
Format:: application/pdf
Description:: Letter from Virgil Blossom to Wiley Branton, chairman of the Legal Redress Committee of the Arkansas chapter of the NAACP. The letter is in response to a petition regarding development of an early integration plan for Little Rock schools.
Integration -- Desegregation -- African-Americans -- Blacks -- Little Rock (Ark.) -- Virgil Blossom -- Little Rock -- Pulaski
PETITION TO: Little Rock School Board of (District No. or County, State), Mr. William G. Cooper, President and Superintendent of Schools of Little Rock, Mr. Virgil T. Blossom We, the undersigned, are the parents of children of age entitled to attend and attending the public elementary and secondary high schools under your jurisdiction. Pursuant to state law racially segregated public schools are nor being maintained by you for children of Negro parentage. As you undoubtedly know, the United States Supreme Court on May 17, 1954, ruled that the maintenance of racially segregated public schools is a violation of the Constitution of the United States and that "....in the field of public education the doctrine of 'separate but equal' has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal." We, therfore, call upon you to take immediate steps to reorganize the public schools under your jurisdiction in accordance with the constitutional principles enunciated by the Supreme Court on May 17. As we understand those principles, children of public school age attending and entitled to attend public schools cannot be denied admission to any school or be required to attend any school solely because of race and color. We request a hearing before the Board for the purpose of discussing this petition. We further wish to point out our availa- bility as parents and citizens of this community to be of whatever assistance we can to you in devising and implementing a program of desegregation in accordance with the Supreme Court's decision. We are further authorized to advise you that the Little Rock Branch of the NAACP at a membership meeting on August 1, 1954, voted to offer its services to the Board to aid you in the implemen- tation of a plan of desegregation, and we request that Mr. J.C. Crenchaw 702 West 9th Little Rock
Metadata URL:: http://digitalcollections.uark.edu/cdm/ref/collection/Civilrights/id/1397
IIIF manifest:: https://digitalcollections.uark.edu/iiif/2/Civilrights:1397/manifest.json
Additional Rights Information:: Please contact Special Collections for information on copyright.
Contributing Institution:: University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. Libraries
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