NAACP Defended by Daisy Bates

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Collection:: Land of (Unequal) Opportunity: Documenting the Civil Rights Struggle in Arkansas
Title:: NAACP Defended by Daisy Bates
Publisher:: Fayetteville, Ark. : University of Arkansas Libraries
Date of Original:: 1962-08-28
Subject:: African Americans--Arkansas
Civil rights--Arkansas
Race discrimination--Arkansas
Segregation--Arkansas
People:: Sutton, Ozell, 1925-2015
Location:: United States, Arkansas, 34.75037, -92.50044
Medium:: letters (correspondence)
Type:: Text
Format:: application/pdf
Description:: Letter from Daisy Bates to attorney Wiley A. Branton discussing the need to coordinate desegreation through the NAACP.
Segregation -- Desegregation -- African-Americans -- Blacks -- Little Rock (Ark.) -- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People -- Arkansas Council on Human Relations -- Little Rock -- Pulaski
MR. BRANTON - 2- Aug. 28 Conference of Branches for legal assistance. You were employed by the State Conference to work with Attorney U. Simpsom Tate to handle the case. When the lower court decided agianst the plaintiffs, an appeal was made to the Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. for assistance in appeal to the Eight Circuit Court of Ap- peals. I know that you know all of this. But, to keep the record straight, I am refreshing your mind to the fact that the Little Rock school case is an NAACP project. In view of the above facts, I feel that nay instructions or informa- tion for further action in the case, should have been directed to Rever- end Mr. Crenchaw, president of the Little Rock brach or to Attorney George Howard, jr., president of the Arkansas State Conference, or L.C. bates, Field Secretary for Arkansas. I am well aware the the Legal Defense and Educational Fund spent quite a deal of money. And, I am also aware that it was the Arkansas State Conference of Banches that sought aid from the Fund. It can be recorded too, that the National Office of the NAACP spent thousands of dollars in the case. Since both organizations coordinated their efforts and funds to fight the case, I made several public appearances to raise funds for both or- ganizations. And I still feel that any action take, even now should be made known to both organizations. It is my feelings, that, if at the time, the Little Rock School Board announced that it was not going to integrate the elementary schools this year, you were too busy to take legal actions, the local branch, State Conference, Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the National Office of the NAACP, should have been notified. This would have cleared the way for some other lawyer on the staff to have taken the necessary steps. I have been confronted with another problem that concerns us greatly. It is the attitude of the people here since they have been alerted to the fact, that they do not have to come through NAACP channels to file suits against discrimination. The statement you said you made to a group of Little Rock citizens, that 'You do not have to come through the NAACP to file suits against discrimination" and a subsequent statement that has been attributed to you, that they did not have to worry about financing the suit, have had devastating effects in the effectiveness of the NAACP here and have add- ed nothing to our campaign for members and funds. Many of the plantiffs in the suit you filed here to break down dis- crimiantion in public facilities, who are nore not members of the NAACP do not feel any moral or financial responsibility toward the NAACP, or the Legal Defense and Educational Fund judging form the small amount raised for the support of the suit.
Metadata URL:: http://digitalcollections.uark.edu/cdm/ref/collection/Civilrights/id/1516
IIIF manifest:: https://digitalcollections.uark.edu/iiif/2/Civilrights:1516/manifest.json
Additional Rights Information:: Please contact Special Collections for information on copyright.
Contributing Institution:: University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. Libraries
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