Jackson advocate. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1939-current, 1951-02-10
Something About The Case OF
The Martinsville Seven

Over in Virginia Monday the last trio of the Mar
tvle Seven were executed the first four have been
executed the previous Friday the result of conviction
and death penalties in rape in which the actors
and all the circumstances fitted the traditional pat
tern.
While the Execution of the Seven Negroes for
CRIME against single individual leaves the entire
American Negro community in shocked bewilderment
the faith of the American Negro Community in the
right and justice OF the Democratic concept is more deep
y touched by the fact that the of the Martinsve
Seven repeatedly turned down by the United States
Supreme Court to which Negro citizens have come to
look more and more in recent years for the final finest
and highest demonstration of American Democratic Jus
tice.
Because of this deep touching of the faith of the
American Negro Community by the action of the
Supreme Court in the Martinsve case it might we'll he
good for the spirit of the Negro and of the nation for
that matter to raise the question as to what in the
MartsVle case might have had the greatest influence
upon the court.
1t is of the saddest facts of our times that the
light against communism in this country has reached
the point in which the opposition to driving some of
us to actions just little short of desperation
Another sad fact growing out of the fact that
we are becoming almost desperate in our fight against
communism, is the widely held opinion among other
wise sane and responsible white people that the Amer
can Negro is peculiarly attracted by communism No
more erroneousness conclusion has been held or
adopted with respect to the thinking of the Negro And
we refuse to accept the conclusion reached by some
Negroes, that the reason certain white people are so
quick to think of certain Negroes being communist is
because OF the fact that these white people feel that if
they were being treated in Negroes are
else aside from followers of the American Democratic
Ideal and Deep believers in the American Christian
faith
The question arises then what effect did this belief
IN communism among Negroes in America have on the
United States Supreme Court in the case of the Martins
vile Seven.
Before attempting our answer to the above oues
ton however dgress for moment lay at the feet
OF Negroes themselves greater share of the RESPONSE
blty Tor the executions in the MarnSVile case in the
fna outcome of the of the Trenton six and in the
flnal outcome of the Magee here in Mississippi
we base this conclusion firm belief that the
results IN each of these would have been different
mad they been defended in the very beginning by the
National Association for the Advancement of colored
people, and the for its not being in these cases
from the very beginning because the organization
did not have the money.
The NAACP is broke today yet it is the only or
ganzaton recognized the just defender the Negro
accused of crime In this country Therefore, Negroes
high and low everywhere in this country but particular
y in Mississippi sitting around lamenting over the ac
ton of the United States Supreme Court in the Martins
Vile case asSuge their feelings at by taking out
a membership in the NAACP, or by sitting right down
and sending some money to the National Office for the
Legal Defense Fund
Returning to the question: the conclusion might
we'll be taken that the United States Supreme Court
elected to sacrifice the Martnsve Seven on the Alter of
the opposition to it. rather than to set an example that
might cause the Nations Is million Negro citizens to
look towards communism in the future
In taking this view we join American citizens every
where In the hope that when to final Joiner
of the issue with communism if that cause necessary
and inevitable, that all actions, that bring us be-
fore the OF the world be the result of and
sound Judgment and in the further hope that Democra-
will live to great triumph the case of the Mar
tnsville Seven.