Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-09-26
LETTERS TO THE STAR
Some Reactions to Developments at Little Rock

summed 1t all up when it
said: THE lot of the Negro
in the South was improving
steadily, and even rapidly,
before the Supreme Court
made its dramatic interven-
ton"
The rate Of school integra-
ton has slowed. not speeded.
since 1854. We now have
violence and threats of vio-
lence: the shameful spectacle
of heavily armed troops pa
trolling the lawns and school,
yards of once-tranouil towns
and villages: bombing of
school buildings - all the
dregs of hatred, envy, resent
ment.
Forced indignation in the
public schools is not the an
swer. / wonder what Earl
Warren and his liberal as
sociates must now think Of
their handiwork.
Old ReactiOnary.
It appears that our chill
dren are being used as guinea
pigs by those who have not
the intestinal fortitude to
handle things for themselves.
A l5-year-old is subjected
to stoning in North Carolina.
Children are injured else
where.
And why. in a world which
deplores viviSection. should
we use our children as clini-
cal specimens to sustain a
doctrine which is not accept
able to a sizeable portion of
our populace?
barnum.
David Lawrence. in his
plaintive outcries against the
so-called sociological and
psychological" Supreme
Court. speaks Of the law in
such vague and abstract Ian
guage that one might think
it to be imposed on our Ma
ton by machines or Martians
with complete disregard for
human nature. On the other
hand. he grants to the South
the privilege Of ignoring that
part of the Federal Consti-
tuition 1t finds too disagree
able. Whether Mr.. Lawrence
knows it or not. he is look
ing at the law from the point
of view Of sociology in doing
this.
What more important task
does the Supreme Court have
than insuring that the Con-
stitution remain a living doc
ument? What more useful
viewpoint to accomplish this
purpose than the sociology
cal? Is Lawrence attempting
to declare that sociology and
law are mutually exclusive?
In Puritan times misde-
meanors were punishable by
locking UP the guilty in
stocks. Laws pertaining to
this were upheld by the peo-
pie as proper. and perhaps
somewhere they may be still
on the books. Would Law
renee uphold these laws now.
say, in handling the juvenile
delinquency problem? After
all. 1t was the law once and
he seems to deny the court
the right TO review it on the
basis Of sociology but only on
that Of legality. whatever
that means to him.
With the exception Of a
few noisy. diehard firebrands.
the South itself has changed
though perhaps not as
rapidly as the rest Of the
Nation-and the sociological
facts will predominant down
there as they have elsewhere
in the Nation. If the Supreme
Court were to ignore these
sociological facts it would no
longer merit the high and
powerful position 1t main
tains in our Government. In
this way law does. and should.
bend to sociology; 1t always
has and will continue to do
so as long as government
lives.
]. A. Parker.
AAN
The spread Of racial strife
as evidenced by the Little
Rock situation is enough to
disturb all thinking citizens.
But equally disturbing is the
realization that when the
sound and fury have sub
sided. the American Negro
may be little better of than
at present. Many of the
charges and countercharges
now being tossed between
the North and the South are
purely political, and there
is real danger that the in
terest Of the Negro may be-
= come lost in the hate and
confusion.
There's little reason 10