Jackson advocate. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1939-current, 1957-05-25
Diggs, Speech -.
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sary."
The criticism directed mainly at
the called for faith in our fists,
if necessary" could be heard from
little groups, who got together to
linger and discuss the speech. as
the crowd left the auditorium,
from whom could be heard the oft
repeated remark, the speech was
alright, if he just hadn't said that,
and similar words to the same ef-
feet.
During the course of the mill
tant and stirring speech, most of
which he appeared to be reading
from a prepared text, or notes,
the Congressman said that the
Deep South has won the first
round in the battle against compli-
ance with the Supreme Court deci-
sion of May II, 1854, by erecting
a maze of legal entanglements, and
have "outflanked our main position
with several diab,lically clever
devices, but, still he said, "integra-
ton is as inevitable as the rising
sun, even in Mississippi"
Charging white leaders with hav-
ing discouraged interracial COOP
GRAFTON, he said they have "pur-
posely misconstrued the intent of
the Supreme Court decision to
mean instant and complete school
Indignation everywhere, with no
time to work out a reasonable
plan, which he said, "is the remot-
est thing from the truth"
Asserting that whites have pop
ularized the sex angle until it has
now returned to number one on the
hate parade, ne asked the question,
when will these white people
learn that we don't want to be his
brother-in-law? adding, 1--WE want
to be his brother"
Concerning economic conditions
of the state, he said segregation
is hurting the states economy, and
Mississippi is having trouble add
ing industry because many pru-
dent northern industrialists hest
tate to invest in a state preoccu-
pied with the immoral and illegal
subjugation of As per cent of it's
citizens"
Asserting that "the number one
target of the black people of Mis-
sissippi is to obtain the right to
VOTE" he urged Jackson Negroes
to make the city the testing ground
of the initial effort. If unsuccess-
full in Jackson, with all the ad-
vantages usually found in a large
metropolitan area, he said, the
prospects for further enfranchise-
ment in the rest of the state will
be indeed limited.
He told the crowd that Gov
ernor Coleman told the Congress
sional Committee holding hearings
on civil rights legislation, that
there was no discrimination, and
that Negroes could qualify in the
same manner as whites under the
new vote qualification law recently
adopted by the state.
The tone of the meeting was set
by Rev. ]. A. Haughton, pastor of
Pearl Street AME Church, who
concluded a fervent invocation by
calling upon the Lord to "give us
men who are willing to die for
their rights as first class citizens. +"
Others appearing on the pro-
gram included Medgar Evers,
State NAACP Secretary, who in
PRODUCED Congressman Diggs, Rev.
Mangrum of Tougaloo College, and
Albert Powell, Commander of the
local American Legion Post, who
made the fund raising speech.
Following the fund raising
speech a group was named to lift
the collection which included E.
w. Banks of the Peoples Funeral
Home; Herschel Latham, of Lath-
am Funeral Home; DR.. A. H. Nc
Coy, NAACP Life Member, and