Evening star., 1960-07-12

] -SS SOAAt NA0OO
(Ga0 lawyer and member @
the delegation. discounted
walkout by his State. But h
said he was unable to say wha
some other State might do.
AS for the fight they planne,
to wage on the convention floor
he said: The people ough
to know what is being don
to them"
The civil rights issue was tn,
only major controversy that de
veloped during the writing O
the platform attacking tn
Eisenhower a d m in istration'
handling Of foreign policy, call
ing for stronger defense meas
ure, new diplomatic approache
and a whole range of domesti
proposals. One Of these will
be a plan for medical care o
the aged under the social Sc
curity system.
The civil rights issue wa
the last taken up by the plat
form committee and the battl
lasted for several hours.
Erwin Offered Changes
Senator Erwin Of North Car
olina made the first Southern
move. He proposed amend
ments to strike out four of tn,
provisions most objectionabl,
to the Southerners FEPC
permanent Civil Rights Com
mission, civil injunctions anc
desegregation in all schools b,
1868.
He warned there would b,
great opposition in areas O
the country faithful to thu
party" if the civil rights planI
was adopted.
In a plea for moderation
Senator Stennis of Mississippi
said I'VE are leading ourSelve
down the road to almos
certain defeat in areas of oul
Southland"
Mr.. Bloch then made a pie,
on the basis of practical poll
tics and declared: "At tn
behest Of a well-organizet
minority you are going t,
take the chance of driving ou
Of the party the only States
practically speaking, which sup
ported the party in 1852 ant
1856" I.
Senator Eastland of Missis
sippi warned that you ar,
kissing the South and Borde
States good-by" and Senate
Holland of Florida said "adop
ton of the platform mean
surrender of the party" as IA
as the South is concerned.
Supporters UnyieldinE
| Supporters of the plank wer
unyielding. Representative Gel
Ter of New York called it "i
decidedly liberal platform" an,
said that anything less nigh
spell defeat and disaster 80
the party"
Philip Perlmar1 of Baltimore
the platform co-chairman, sale
Il beg you to adopt this plat
FORM" and continued:
Here we are in the 2Otl
century, long after we not onl
promised equal rights to al
citizens -. but we have faile,
ANONYMOUSLY in those prom
liSes."
Mr.. Bowles made his owI
appeal and said: Il believ
very deeply that this platform
plank is necessary. 1t reflect
what 1 believe in, and wha
most Americans believe in"
Senator Ervin's motion
were defeated on voice votes
Then Lewis A. McMurran o
Newport News, Va, offered al
amendment "in a spirit O
compromise" 1t would hay
confined the civil rights sec
tion to expressing the ide
that ''it was the duty" of Con
gresS, the President, Fedora
courts. the States and thei
agencies and individual citi
zens to protect the rights O
all individuals. 1t was ruled ou
OF order and then came tn
climactic and decisive vote t,
adopt the civil rights plank.
Three Other Votes
Other than civil rights ther
were only three recorded vote
two on the farm plank ant
one on revision of the immi
grafton laws to remove ma
tional quota limitations.
The committee adopted by
vote of 1922 a farm program
calling for price supports a
80 per cent of parity. Oppo
nents called it "the Farmer
Union proposal completely
and sought to have it recon
sidered. They were beaten
1929.
The elimination of nationa
quotas was approved by a vot
OF 1928 after Senator EaStlan,
of Mississippi. chairman of tn
Senate Judiciary Committee
led an unsuccessful fight :,
have it stricken from the plat
form.