The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1962-08-14
W. D. workmon

certain judicial shreWdness
these days by citing STATE
constitutions as justification for
FEDERAL interference in state
affairs.
In the Tennessee reapportion-
ment case. for instance-w which
is Snowballing across the land
in massive proportions-the Su-
preme Court pointed out, effec-
lively. that the pattern of legis-
lative' apportionment in Tennes-
see did not comply with that
states OWN constitutional re-
quirements.
U d er such circumstances,
the Court added, Tennessee citi-
zens were entitled to turn to the
federal courts for relief.
Now comes a federal judge in
Virginia who rules that the
schools of Prince Edward coun-
ty long closed to avoid racial
Indignation must be reopened
next month under the threat of
further court action.
And here again, the federal
court cites the STATE constitu-
ton to justify its action. This
time. reference is to section
of the Virginia Constitution
which requires the state 'to
maintain an efficient system of
free public schools throughout
the state" and to support such
schools
With that requirement in the
state constitution, the court held
that 1.-THE state may not remove
from the system schools in
which the races are mixed.
This court holds that the pub
lie schools of Prince Edward
county may not be closed to
avoid the effect of the law of
the land as interpreted by the
Supreme Court, while the Com
monWealth of Virginia permits
other public schools to remain
open at the expense of the tax
payers"
Just such a decision has long
been expected by many Vir-
glnlanS who feared that they
had made a fatal error in not
deleting that public-school pro
vision from the state constitu-
ton.
OF all the southern states
fighting against federally direct
ed integration, South Carolina
showed the greatest foresight in
preparing against Just what has
now happened in Virginia.
Even b fore the Supreme
Court handed down its first de-
segregation decision in 1854,
South Carolinians struck from
their constitution a requirement
that the state provide for "a
liberal system of free public
schools. =
The groundwork for that ac-
ton had been laid even earlier.
In 1852. the South Carolina Gen
eral Assembly propos an
amendment which would delete
the school requirement from the
constitution. In the general cleo
ton of that year, the voters of
the state approved the change
by a substantial margin. Conse-
quently, the requirement for a
state supported school system
dropped out of the constitution
The actual operation Of the
state school system continued
without any change. Today, as
IN years past. South Carolina
schools are operated under joint
state and local financing ar
rangements-a on a racially
separated basis. But since 1854
there has been no state consti-
tutional requirement that there
be any public school system
The state statutes on education
continue in effect but they
can be changed in short order
by the legislature. without IN
dergoing the time consuming
process of constitutional amend
nent.
Virginians, on the other hand
may now be caught in the legal
tentacles Of their own constitu-
ton.
This does not mean, however
that the stalwart citizens of
Prince Edward County are any
more disposed to knuckle under
to the federal courts now than
they were this time last month