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University Daily Kansan Thursday, April 15, 1965
Where White & Black Cannot Talk
(Editor's Note: This is another in a series of articles by a Daily Kansan staff reporter who spent the spring vacation in Jonesboro, La. The author said Ralcal Equality. His trip was sponsored by the Reader's Digest Scholarship Fund.)
By Harry Krause
Communication between the whites and Negroes in Jonesboro, La. appears, at best, strained. Some members of both groups attempt to exchange ideas, but these efforts are often stifled.
It is relatively easy to find outspoken pro-CORE Negroes, but it is difficult to locate either outspoken white supremicists, or whites who are sympathetic toward the Negro cause.
Australia Cunningham, a Negro teacher at all-Negro Jackson High School, is an alternate member of the Jonesboro United Citizens Committee. This is an organization of whites and Negroes who strongly believe that there must be intensive communication between the races to iron out racial difficulties in the community.
Some of the citizens, Negro and white, refer to the UCC as the "bi-racial committee." Cunningham says that this is a mistake, because the term "bi-racial" connotates "a group of men, with one white face sitting next to one black face, solving immediate racial problems.
"The committee is nothing like this. It is, rather, a group of serious men whose activities may forego the need of organizations like CORE.
"It is obvious that whites here know nothing about Negroes and Negroes know nothing about whites. There are elements in both races who don't care what goes on, but are interested only in the publicity gained." Cunningham continued.
"The UCC is not interested in publicity, but only action. The committee works with the whole phase of community life—education, housing, integration of public facilities, economic betterment, and most important, understanding."
Cunningham feels that schoolchildren should remain in school, and not work on CORE projects. "The parents should be the ones participating," he added.
"Who is the pronounced leader in CORE here? There is no one," he said.
Ronnie Moore, a Negro CORE field secretary, says that the purpose of CORE in Jonesboro was "to organize the Negroes so that a unit can be developed for civil-rights projects.
"CORE wants to change the political atmosphere of the state. We have made no real dent in the power structure (problems of economical and political nature) in Louisiana," he said.
"The federal government promises us liberty and yet refuses to do anything. They send FBI investigators who are racists to question us. How can we cooperate with racists?"
There were four FBI special agents working in the Jonesboro area during the week the KU group was there. One was from Boston, another from New York, and two were from Louisiana.
Tim Miller, Wichita senior, a CORE volunteer in Jonesboro last week, said that the FBI agent who questioned him "acted as if he did not believe me."
Miller said, "The agent kept saving 'It didn't really happen like that, did it?' I was explaining the incident about the Blue Grill which our group attempted to integrate."
KU Teacher Wins Chemistry Award
Edward E. Smissman, distinguished professor of pharmaceutical chemistry, has been awarded the American Pharmaceutical Association Award in pharmaceutical and medical chemistry.
Prof. Smissman received a $1,000 stipend for research April 1 after having been selected by the Association's Committee on Research Achievement Awards.
Prof. Smissman, who is head of the department of pharmaceutical chemistry at KU, was named University Distinguished professor last May.
Tony James, the owner of the Blue Grill, was interviewed about four hours after two KU students, Miller and Mike Jennison, New York City freshman, and a local Negro CORE worker entered his restaurant for service.
"If my restaurant were located in New York, I would have served them without question," James said. "I'm caught between two groups, CORE and some Jonesboro whites who don't want me to serve Negroes.
"I don't know which way to turn. The whites say that if I serve Negroes, they will stop coming to my place. If I refuse service to Negroes, I will end up in court, and probably lose the case. I can't afford to lose
my white business, and can't afford to pay court costs. Who am I to turn to?
very many of them around. A small group of white citizens just gets disturbed by the civil-rights activities.
"If these groups will just sit down and discuss their differences, the whole situation will cool off. The biracial committee is the best thing going," Chief Peevey said.
Fleevey said that he has had complaints from some of the Negroes in town about the "white students coming down here and causing trouble."
"The white people down here are mostly good people. There are extremists on every side. And you can't blame all the violence here on the KU Klux Klan. There aren't
Adrian Peevey, Jonesboro police chief, said, "The situation in Jonesboro is bad because these people
"The only hope for people in the middle like me is something like the bi-racial committee. These people may come up with a solution that can be worked out. People have to talk."
won't work out their differences peacefully. These outside agitators, like the students from KU, ARE agitators. They cause trouble. They stir up the violent elements in town and make my job of keeping the peace more difficult.
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