Oral history interview with Julius L. Chambers, June 18, 1990
Subtitle: interview L-0127, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)
Contributors: Link, William A., interviewer; Southern Oral History Program; University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Documenting the American South (Project); University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library
Edition: Electronic ed.
Publisher: University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill
Published: 2007
Place of publication: [Chapel Hill, N.C.]
Language: eng
Subjects: Interviews; African American college administrators; College trustees; College integration; Trials, litigation; Affirmative action programs in education; Higher education and state; University of North Carolina (System)
Other titles: Interview L-0127, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007); Interview with Julius L. Chambers, June 18, 1990; Oral histories of the American South.
Description: Julius Chambers discusses his involvement with the University of North Carolina's Board of Governors from 1972 to 1977 as a representative of his alma mater, North Carolina Central University. He explains that smaller North Carolina colleges and universities and traditionally underrepresented groups found a voice in post-secondary school decisions during this period. During this period, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) established a set of criteria for the desegregation of higher education institutions. While he felt the North Carolina college system had not complied with the court order to eliminate the inequalities of segregated schools, other Board officials believed UNC had done enough and wanted the federal government to disengage itself from North Carolina affairs. Although university president William Friday also argued that the state's higher education system complied with the desegregation orders, Chambers favorably assesses Friday's leadership as UNC President and Board of Governors member. He contends that Friday built a consensus among Board members on a middle-of-the road political position. Nonetheless, because North Carolina delayed making meaningful changes in the desegregation of its post-secondary schools, HEW filed a desegregation lawsuit against UNC. The later reluctance of the Nixon and Ford administrations to support school desegregation and the endorsement of the Carter administration furthered the Office for Civil Rights' resolve to enforce the desegregation of North Carolina post-secondary schools. Chambers blames the retreat from desegregation initiatives on a conservative resurgence and on North Carolina's desire to end the ongoing debate on race in higher education.
Notes: Title from menu page (viewed on Nov. 25, 2008).

Interview participants: Julius L. Chambers, interviewee; William Link, interviewer.

Duration: 00:56:18.

This electronic edition is part of the UNC-Chapel Hill digital library, Documenting the American South.  It is a part of the collection Oral histories of the American South.

Text encoded by Jennifer Joyner.  Sound recordings digitized by Aaron Smithers.

Text (HTML and XML/TEI source file) and audio (MP3); 2 files: ca. 80 kilobytes, 103 megabytes.

Original version: Southern Oral History Program Collection, (#4007), Series L, University of North Carolina, interview L-0127, Manuscripts Department, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Transcribed by Karen Brady-Hill. Original transcript: 30 p.

Funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services supported the electronic publication of this interview.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System requirements:  Web browser with Javascript enabled and multimedia player.