Sumter County, GA mass meeting, March 7, 1962
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Transcript
Transcripts may contain inaccuracies.
That's a lot of people. | 0:04 | |
- | I'll go in the middle and the lower. | 0:06 |
The lower-class people are called The untouchables. | 0:09 | |
And they mean that by that you just don't touch 'em. | 0:14 | |
And you don't come near 'em, don't associate with 'em, | 0:18 | |
because they, like they say we are, | 0:21 | |
they are no good. | 0:28 | |
They're lazy, they're diseased, they have no regard | 0:31 | |
for personal property or anybody else's property. | 0:36 | |
They're just messed up, so they're untouchable. | 0:40 | |
But you tell them that the untouchables | 0:45 | |
gained a new status in India because they came together, | 0:55 | |
as we're coming together. | 0:59 | |
Just one example and then I'll sit down. | 1:04 | |
(inaudible) more importantly. | 1:07 | |
But I'll tell you one of the ways that they stopped milk, | 1:08 | |
they stopped mail. | 1:13 | |
Mail trains, air mail. | 1:15 | |
Express. | 1:21 | |
You know that the way a city lives | 1:25 | |
the way it gets its vegetables, your oranges, your meats, | 1:29 | |
you don't raise it all in any one part of the country, | 1:33 | |
so that it in order for you to get, for example, | 1:38 | |
your communication system, your electric lights | 1:43 | |
and so forth. | 1:46 | |
They come in. | 1:48 | |
If not, the electricity is jumped. | 1:51 | |
It's coal, and they turn the meters off. | 1:55 | |
Oil, if the meter's run by oil, or gas, | 1:59 | |
if a particular meter or generator | 2:04 | |
that generates electricity for this county, | 2:07 | |
or for this representative city, | 2:11 | |
or one portion of a city, it comes in | 2:12 | |
either through the van trucks | 2:18 | |
or through the railroad | 2:22 | |
or in cars. | 2:26 | |
In other words, the clothes that you make, | 2:28 | |
the clothes that you have on now. | 2:31 | |
They weren't made here. | 2:34 | |
It's up the way. | 2:36 | |
They were made out there. | 2:38 | |
So that a truck or something had to bring 'em in. | 2:40 | |
Same thing about many of us have power, don't we? | 2:43 | |
Most people buy their milk. | 2:48 | |
They buy their tea. | 2:51 | |
They buy their canned foods. | 2:53 | |
And all this foods and meats and stuff comes in | 2:55 | |
by some means of transportation. | 2:58 | |
And this is one example of what happened in India. | 3:01 | |
In India, they had a law | 3:05 | |
that untouchables weren't | 3:11 | |
to ride on the highways, weren't to be on the highways | 3:13 | |
in no kinda way. | 3:17 | |
And this is what they did. | 3:20 | |
Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi. | 3:21 | |
He got the untouchables to hook their arms together, | 3:25 | |
and they sat right in the middle of the streets, | 3:30 | |
lay across the streets, one line. | 3:33 | |
Lay across the street, another line. | 3:37 | |
Lay across the street, another line. | 3:39 | |
Lay across the street, another line. | 3:41 | |
Woo! | 3:43 | |
All you could see is untouchables on the highway. | 3:45 | |
(laughing) | 3:47 | |
And that's just one way. | 3:50 | |
There are other ways, you can tell our brothers one way. | 3:52 | |
Or tell 'em that they read maybe of the books that George, | 3:55 | |
anything George would read one of the book on Moses. | 4:00 | |
He had another one of the books. | 4:04 | |
Autobiography by Jawaharlal Nehru, one of the men | 4:06 | |
who worked with Mahatma, that is Gandhi. | 4:10 | |
And no doubt, he might've come across, I forget the name, | 4:16 | |
(inaudible) in the life of India. | 4:24 | |
This is the kinda thing that we will have to do. | 4:30 | |
If one of us does what is radical enough, we'll call | 4:35 | |
from students across the country, we'll call for all | 4:39 | |
of the organizations who know anything about how it works. | 4:44 | |
We'll call for everybody. | 4:48 | |
We're asking them to quit school and come down here. | 4:50 | |
We're just that important. | 4:53 | |
And we let our hard brothers know that if they harm | 4:56 | |
one of us, they will have hell on their hands. | 4:59 | |
(audience chatting and clapping) | 5:02 | |
My other point eludes me. | 5:17 | |
(laughing and clapping) | 5:19 | |
- | We will start in about ten more minutes | 5:25 |
before at least in our minds we're gonna be able | 5:30 | |
to get out tonight and (inaudible) | 5:32 | |
For there's so much left to be said and (mumbling). | 5:36 | |
(inaudible) was talking about going around churches | 5:41 | |
and so forth. | 5:45 | |
Brother Lee, though, I'm one of the (inaudible) | 5:48 | |
If you gonna take a gang for a fight, | 5:52 | |
you talking about getting any of that money out | 5:55 | |
(inaudible) to that preacher. | 5:58 | |
(exclaiming) | 6:00 | |
You'll get into a fight. | 6:02 | |
So what I'm thinking over here, we organize | 6:04 | |
the soul searching. | 6:06 | |
We organize the union meeting. | 6:08 | |
For church service. | 6:10 | |
So let's let the union meeting go on right and do it | 6:12 | |
and let's organize with what us wants, along this side. | 6:14 | |
And I was looking in here and we got two nights | 6:18 | |
and we, that I don't see that we, uh, | 6:21 | |
don't have a match with it. | 6:26 | |
What about let's take one of those nights for all those | 6:29 | |
(inaudible) and harmonize and get together. | 6:34 | |
I think that'd be the best thing to be done. | 6:39 | |
See there's Tuesday night and Friday night, I believe. | 6:43 | |
Thank you. | 6:49 | |
- | If you remember last week, John said to Joe | 6:51 |
he didn't have a place for a citizenship school | 6:57 | |
So John left, so we can't really jump on it. | 7:02 | |
For anybody who is interested in going | 7:06 | |
to a citizenship school next week, next Tuesday night | 7:10 | |
in Lee County, get in touch with John or myself. | 7:15 | |
As he said in the report | 7:19 | |
we talked to the ministerial alliance | 7:22 | |
and what we're really working on is getting someplace | 7:24 | |
within Americus where we can meet | 7:28 | |
not only for mass meetings, but for citizenship school. | 7:31 | |
So anybody who wants to go next Tuesday, get in touch | 7:36 | |
with us, get in touch with Ethan Ellis. | 7:41 | |
He'll get in touch with us. | 7:45 | |
Young people, remember Sunday. | 7:46 | |
We have to have numbers. | 7:50 | |
Have to be on time, also. | 7:52 | |
Big Bethel church, 11:30 in the morning. | 7:56 | |
Remember that after that, too | 8:01 | |
those people who are going | 8:05 | |
to be in the first anyway - the first initial | 8:08 | |
core group, in terms of canvasing in Americus. | 8:12 | |
Stay around after the service. | 8:17 | |
At Big Bethel we're gonna have a workshop afterward | 8:20 | |
to set up our plan for next week. | 8:23 | |
Any questions on any of this? | 8:28 | |
Okay, thank you. | 8:33 | |
- | Chairman? | 8:35 |
Since we're here, I'd just like to poll the house. | 8:37 | |
How many went down and signed up for registration | 8:40 | |
are in the house this week? | 8:43 | |
Hands up, just see how many went down. | 8:44 | |
And how many went down? | 8:48 | |
Put your hands up! | 8:50 | |
Hands up, everybody who went down. | 8:51 | |
All right, I don't see but two hands right now. | 8:53 | |
Three, three. | 8:56 | |
Four. | 8:57 | |
That's all I see? | 8:59 | |
All right, I'm gonna ask this question. | 9:01 | |
How many has been down? | 9:02 | |
Hands up. | 9:05 | |
How many has been there? | 9:06 | |
Put your hands up, we're putting our hands up. | 9:09 | |
All right. | 9:12 | |
Hands up, be frank, now. | 9:14 | |
All right, now let's let this hand down now. | 9:15 | |
How many in here from 18 years up that need | 9:18 | |
to go down, hadn't been down. | 9:22 | |
Hands up. | 9:24 | |
Be frank, now let's be frank. | 9:25 | |
Let's be frank. | 9:27 | |
Let's mean this (mumbling) you see. | 9:27 | |
This is not a bargain, this is a business matter. | 9:31 | |
If you come asking for business lift your hands up. | 9:34 | |
Hands up! | 9:36 | |
How many of you ain't been down, let's be frank, | 9:37 | |
how many ain't been down? | 9:39 | |
Well (inaudible) let me tell you one thing. | 9:41 | |
This meeting is for one specific thing, | 9:44 | |
to get you to go down to register. | 9:47 | |
Wait up, be quiet, be quiet Fred, be quiet back there | 9:49 | |
Be quiet back there. | 9:52 | |
We just sitting (inaudible) be quiet. | 9:53 | |
This meeting's for one thing, that you go down to register. | 9:55 | |
Now if you haven't gone down, and Fred, | 9:57 | |
you hold your hand up, go down and sign up for registration. | 10:00 | |
Please, that's what this meeting is for. | 10:02 | |
It's not a side show to come to see what is being done | 10:04 | |
(mumbling). | 10:07 | |
This is a business meeting, strictly business. | 10:09 | |
Strictly business. | 10:13 | |
Nothing else but business. | 10:14 | |
But you ought to go down and register | 10:17 | |
and to be a decent citizen. | 10:19 | |
And if you're not registered voter | 10:21 | |
I say, I'm gonna tell you the truth, | 10:22 | |
you're lacking one thing in your life. | 10:23 | |
That's being a citizen. | 10:25 | |
And if the (inaudible) | 10:26 | |
and member of the church | 10:29 | |
I think you're lacking just one thing | 10:30 | |
that's being here and not being a registered voter. | 10:32 | |
So please go down and sign up for registering, | 10:35 | |
if you haven't signed up. | 10:38 | |
Go down there and sign as soon as possible. | 10:40 | |
Don't come out here just to see the crowd. | 10:43 | |
Don't come out here for folly. | 10:46 | |
Come out here for business. | 10:49 | |
(clapping) | 10:51 | |
- | I might add, too, that John and I have seen a number | 10:55 |
of people in Americus, and in De Soto and Cobb this week. | 11:00 | |
Among them, Mr. Westin. | 11:07 | |
And I really don't think that we could've accomplished | 11:10 | |
as much as we think we accomplished, anyway. | 11:15 | |
And maybe we haven't done too much. | 11:18 | |
We think we did a little bit. | 11:20 | |
But I don't think we could've done as much as we did do | 11:22 | |
without the help of Mr. Westin. | 11:25 | |
And I think that he deserves a very large hand | 11:28 | |
and (inaudbible) hisself and working himself | 11:33 | |
as hard as he has been doing. | 11:38 | |
I think he deserves a hand. | 11:41 | |
(clapping) | 11:43 | |
- | So we're gonna | 11:48 |
We moving on, now. | 11:49 | |
We got another one. | 11:51 | |
A reverend, here, Reverend Wells | 11:53 | |
Always love to hear something from him. | 11:55 | |
Because if anybody had spent their time | 11:59 | |
and looked at society, he has. | 12:02 | |
We've had a very full day and on through the night. | 12:08 | |
(mumbling) that have made the same thing, | 12:12 | |
but I do know of him. | 12:14 | |
And I feel that it would be an injustice, | 12:16 | |
by not allowing him have a chance to speak, just a few words | 12:20 | |
We do understand the time and, just a few words. | 12:24 | |
(clapping) | 12:29 | |
- | I'm told I'm going to make it just a few words | 12:35 |
because we got very special guests here that we are, | 12:37 | |
would like to hear from, and I'm going to divide the time. | 12:43 | |
And Mr. Reverend Sherrod will introduce this guest. | 12:49 | |
But I will say that only today | 12:54 | |
a little something dropped | 13:02 | |
in my mind that I thought was picked. | 13:04 | |
And when I got home from work, this evening, | 13:14 | |
I called one of the special guests, one of these people | 13:19 | |
that Mr. Reverend Sherrod is gonna introduce. | 13:26 | |
And I said I have something on my mind. | 13:32 | |
Will you walk with me? | 13:37 | |
And of course they agreed. | 13:42 | |
The fact about these both of these people walking | 13:47 | |
with me this afternoon. | 13:50 | |
(mumbling) | 13:53 | |
And about six of us went to different areas | 13:56 | |
in our community, walking shoulder to shoulder. | 14:01 | |
And asked and spotted the people about in different blocks | 14:10 | |
and different sections of the community, asking them | 14:17 | |
if they wouldn't work hard with us. | 14:22 | |
(chatting) | 14:28 | |
- | Now, you also know that he threw the Omnibus case | 14:31 |
out of court. | 14:35 | |
It wasn't good enough for him to rule in favor | 14:39 | |
of desegregation of (coughing drowning out speaker) | 14:43 | |
and the library and so forth, you remember that. | 14:48 | |
Well, the case, my case was also before him. | 14:52 | |
And I was in injunction against demonstrations | 15:01 | |
on the part of the Albany Movement. | 15:07 | |
And all the organizations connected | 15:09 | |
with the Albany movement. | 15:11 | |
And well, that has yet, hasn't been ruled on | 15:13 | |
by Judge Elliot, and he's keeping that. | 15:16 | |
He's holding that for more information. | 15:20 | |
For information so that somebody get- | 15:22 | |
if cope beat one of our Negroes in Albany, | 15:25 | |
than we can bring it to Elliot say, "Here, you see? | 15:30 | |
"Here's another sign of police brutality." | 15:32 | |
Or if we demonstrate, then this case will bring | 15:35 | |
to Judge Elliot. | 15:42 | |
Say, "You see, you told those Negroes not to demonstrate | 15:44 | |
"and there you go demonstrating." | 15:46 | |
So the point is that he has the case open. | 15:49 | |
The Omnibus case was appealed to a higher court. | 15:55 | |
I believe the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals | 15:59 | |
under Judge Bell, Hubble and Booth, I believe. | 16:04 | |
The city council, the commissioners, the city commissioners | 16:13 | |
in Albany | 16:17 | |
today - or last night - announced | 16:21 | |
that all the segregation laws on the books | 16:26 | |
in Albany are to be declared null and void. | 16:32 | |
Another point they made was that the library will be open. | 16:40 | |
The library would be open. | 16:45 | |
You see, they had closed all the public facilities | 16:47 | |
except the hospital and so forth, which is subsidized | 16:49 | |
by the city, although it's partly private. | 16:53 | |
And they had, they said that the library would be open | 16:59 | |
on a trial basis for 30 days. | 17:04 | |
They didn't say how. | 17:07 | |
Didn't say, what they did say was that | 17:08 | |
since the library isn't entirely a public facility, | 17:11 | |
and that is to say that it's not owned by the city, | 17:15 | |
just partially financed by the city. | 17:20 | |
Since this is the case, then, the people who direct | 17:25 | |
the library | 17:29 | |
can tell Negroes, or anybody else, | 17:33 | |
whether or not they'll be able to be served in the library. | 17:37 | |
So, what they have done is to say, "Look country. | 17:43 | |
"Now look Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. | 17:50 | |
"Look good. | 17:55 | |
"We the city commissioners of Albany are not | 17:58 | |
"at fault anymore. | 18:01 | |
"The city is integrated, as far as we're concerned. | 18:05 | |
"You see? | 18:09 | |
"And the library's open. | 18:11 | |
"Of course, there are parts that are closed | 18:12 | |
"to everybody, when it's cold. | 18:14 | |
"We as yet haven't done a thing about the hospital, | 18:20 | |
"but you have to look at the fact that all the segregation | 18:26 | |
"laws are off and that this is partly | 18:30 | |
"a private hospital, too. | 18:33 | |
"And they can either accept or reject Negroes. | 18:36 | |
"And we have to protect them, so it's not our fault." | 18:40 | |
But | 18:43 | |
It's still possible | 18:47 | |
that if a private, as they call it, a private company | 18:48 | |
tells a Negro he doesn't want him to come in, | 18:57 | |
then it's his right to do so. | 19:03 | |
But we hold that that's wrong. | 19:05 | |
We hold that if this is a store, here. | 19:08 | |
This is a store. | 19:14 | |
And you have stockings here. | 19:19 | |
Hats, raincoats for sale. | 19:24 | |
This table. | 19:27 | |
And on this table, you have food for sale, | 19:30 | |
you allow me to buy food here. | 19:36 | |
And you invite the public. | 19:40 | |
Then this table has also to be available to me | 19:43 | |
in any way that it's available to me in this table, | 19:48 | |
or to anybody else in this table, because all of us, | 19:51 | |
citizens of the United States | 19:55 | |
we can demand that we have due process of the law. | 19:59 | |
We can demand that we are equal under the law. | 20:04 | |
So that you can't tell me that because I'm a Negro, | 20:09 | |
you can tell me that because I'm not dressed properly, | 20:13 | |
or that I'm boisterous in my conduct | 20:17 | |
I'm talking loud or I'm smellin'. | 20:21 | |
Because of that, I want you to get out of my store. | 20:25 | |
And you can only ask me. | 20:29 | |
Then you can call the police, write a warrant, first. | 20:32 | |
Don't be arresting me without a warrant. | 20:36 | |
'Cause if you arrest me without a warrant that means | 20:40 | |
this man is not arresting me. | 20:42 | |
This man is not having me arrested. | 20:45 | |
The man who owns the store, he's not having me arrested. | 20:47 | |
But that's what they've been doing, you see? | 20:50 | |
They get the man behind here who's selling to me a brick | 20:52 | |
They say, "Well, we'll take care of it," | 20:56 | |
the city commissioners. | 21:00 | |
"We'll take care of it. | 21:01 | |
"The burden's on our shoulders. | 21:03 | |
"We'll tell the cops to come in and arrest this man. | 21:04 | |
"You don't have to draw out a warrant or anything. | 21:08 | |
"We'll arrest 1,000 of 'em," because some rich men said so, | 21:10 | |
to the well-a-dos. | 21:14 | |
It's Weatherlys and Healys. | 21:16 | |
And so forth and all of them. | 21:18 | |
'Cause they said so to. | 21:19 | |
Then we arrest them. | 21:22 | |
Neighbors in the Chapel Hill and some people. | 21:23 | |
But this is the point. | 21:29 | |
Even if a man in his business wants to segregate, | 21:41 | |
he can't segregate. | 21:47 | |
Some of us don't understand that. | 21:51 | |
They think that because you have us all business, | 21:55 | |
it's your business, you can turn around | 21:59 | |
anybody you want to. | 22:04 | |
You can fire anybody you want tp. | 22:06 | |
But that's not true. | 22:10 | |
You can't fire me because | 22:13 | |
I want to register to vote | 22:18 | |
Some of us have to understand that, too. | 22:22 | |
And we have our rights! | 22:24 | |
And that's the reason we keep asking, | 22:28 | |
"What did the man say?" | 22:30 | |
You got to get him in it. | 22:32 | |
He gotta come out. | 22:34 | |
See, he can say, "Well, I fired him because he's too slow." | 22:35 | |
But if he tells you, and somebody hears it, | 22:39 | |
you got witnesses, and then we can do something about it. | 22:42 | |
Especially if he has more than one person saying | 22:48 | |
the same thing. | 22:50 | |
Like I said, excuse me, it was a little long. | 22:53 | |
Anybody wanna ask me something | 22:57 | |
about the situation in Albany? | 23:00 | |
Any questions? | 23:09 | |
- | Are y'all going to use the facilities that they | 23:11 |
grant y'all to use now? | 23:13 | |
- | Well, that's the only way. | 23:15 |
That's a good question. | 23:16 | |
They said that all the stores in Albany, | 23:18 | |
I mean they said that all the laws on the books in Albany | 23:23 | |
as far as segregation was concerned are no good. | 23:29 | |
They are null and void, they're no good. | 23:33 | |
They aren't on the books anymore. | 23:36 | |
Some of the laws were, for example, | 23:39 | |
that no Negro and white should sit together | 23:46 | |
in a bus cab, I mean in a, well on the bus. | 23:50 | |
Also, they couldn't sit together in a cab. | 23:53 | |
They couldn't ride in the same cab. | 23:55 | |
Add to this the fact that they had to put | 24:00 | |
"For Colored Only" on the bus, and "For Whites Only" | 24:02 | |
on the bus | 24:06 | |
(mumbling) | 24:08 | |
Cabs. | 24:12 | |
But now, since they wiped out those segregation laws, | 24:14 | |
they don't have to put "For Colored Only" | 24:17 | |
on a cab, do you? | 24:21 | |
Since they wiped it out. | 24:22 | |
And you don't have to put "For Whites Only" on the cab. | 24:26 | |
And if they wiped them out, a white | 24:29 | |
and a black man can sit together in a cab. | 24:33 | |
Also, there had laws against using | 24:38 | |
against eating in public places with Negroes and whites. | 24:44 | |
They had it written in the law that you have to, | 24:51 | |
it had to be a solid partition | 24:55 | |
between the blacks and whites anytime | 24:58 | |
that they would eat in the same building, | 25:04 | |
there had to be a solid partition. | 25:07 | |
And also on the bus. | 25:09 | |
They said that you have to sit in the back. | 25:11 | |
Negroes had to sit in the back and whites would sit | 25:19 | |
in the front. | 25:22 | |
Also, another funny thing concerning the cabs, | 25:23 | |
and the buses, too, was that if you had a white child, | 25:26 | |
then you could sit in the front. | 25:30 | |
Or if you had a white child, you could ride | 25:33 | |
in a white cab. | 25:35 | |
(soft laughter) | 25:37 | |
But the laws have changed, right? | 25:39 | |
At least the segregational laws, aren't there anymore. | 25:43 | |
So that means that segregation laws aren't there anymore, | 25:47 | |
then you can go to the library. | 25:51 | |
You can go over to the stores. | 25:53 | |
But, there are some places in the country | 25:56 | |
where there are no segregation laws on the books, | 26:00 | |
where when we went to the counters to eat, | 26:05 | |
or went to the library to get our books, | 26:08 | |
we got arrested. | 26:12 | |
And there were no laws saying that you got | 26:16 | |
to sit in the back or that you got to sit in the front, | 26:18 | |
or that you got to stand up, or that you gotta sit down. | 26:21 | |
There were no laws. | 26:23 | |
Now our idea is that the reason that they're throwing | 26:25 | |
these out is to make it easier. | 26:28 | |
They're trying to slip by. | 26:35 | |
They think they gonna get away with it. | 26:37 | |
They're gonna tell the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, | 26:40 | |
"Looky here. | 26:43 | |
"We're integrated. | 26:45 | |
"We don't have no laws, no segregation laws | 26:47 | |
"on our books. | 26:50 | |
"We're integrated, then." | 26:53 | |
But we're going to help them in their case. | 26:55 | |
- | Or somebody. | 26:59 |
- | Yeah, we're gonna help them so they can present | 27:01 |
a good case. | 27:02 | |
So they can take pictures of Negroes sitting | 27:04 | |
and eating together with whites. | 27:06 | |
(laughing) | 27:08 | |
In the library, at the counters. | 27:10 | |
In fact, we have a meeting in store | 27:13 | |
for Saturday at high noon. | 27:15 | |
And when we call meetings at high noon | 27:18 | |
everybody understands what is gonna happen. | 27:20 | |
- | Well tell us. | 27:23 |
- | Either that day or soon afterwards. | 27:25 |
Something's gonna happen. | 27:27 | |
And I can say that something is gonna happen Saturday. | 27:30 | |
Now what's gonna happen we're gonna learn | 27:33 | |
when we come there on Saturday. | 27:34 | |
Any other questions? | 27:37 | |
Oh, yeah, one thing I forgot. | 27:41 | |
You forgot it? | 27:45 | |
Do you have it with you? | 27:46 | |
I can't hear you. | 27:49 | |
- | I did, though. | 27:50 |
- | Oh, you got it. | 27:51 |
Oh, you got it. | 27:52 | |
You heard that poem that he wrote? | 27:55 | |
(chatting) | 27:58 | |
That's good, that means we have a poem now. | 27:59 | |
Now we have a play written by a young | 28:02 | |
(coughing drowning out speaker). | 28:04 | |
Here in Sumter County. | 28:06 | |
Two-act play that we plan to present. | 28:08 | |
We don't know how to present. | 28:13 | |
Wondering if the young lady may have some ideas on you. | 28:18 | |
She might know some friends of hers | 28:21 | |
who can act | 28:24 | |
and you might like to get together with them. | 28:28 | |
We got three copies of it. | 28:32 | |
There are six parts, I understand, for it. | 28:35 | |
We duplicate those parts so that each person | 28:41 | |
in the play could have a part, the whole conflict | 28:44 | |
for themselves, and the director could have a part. | 28:48 | |
I know you're wondering who wrote this play. | 28:55 | |
One of you. | 28:57 | |
Now when this person stand now, I want you to give 'em | 29:00 | |
a good ovation. | 29:01 | |
A good one. | 29:03 | |
And this person is | 29:05 | |
Ms. Brownie Wright. | 29:08 | |
Would you stand up, Ms. Wright? | 29:12 | |
(clapping) | 29:13 | |
Do you think that if we made copies | 29:23 | |
duplicate it, that same play, | 29:26 | |
about six times, that you could get some people | 29:31 | |
to present the play one night in this meeting? | 29:33 | |
Do you think? | 29:36 | |
(singing) | 29:40 | |
♪ One man's hand can't change the status quo ♪ | 29:42 | |
♪ Status quo ♪ | 29:48 | |
♪ But if two and two and fifty make a million ♪ | 29:50 | |
- | Come on, friends. | 29:57 |
♪ We'll see a day come round ♪ | ||
♪ We'll see that day come round ♪ | 30:03 | |
- | Come on, friends. | 30:05 |
♪ One man's eyes can't see above the clouds ♪ | 30:11 | |
♪ Above the clouds ♪ | 30:16 | |
- | Come on, friends. | |
♪ Two men's eyes can't see across the clouds ♪ | 30:19 | |
♪ Across the clouds ♪ | 30:25 | |
- | Thank you. | |
♪ But if two and two and fifty make a million ♪ | 30:28 | |
♪ We'll see that day come round ♪ | 30:36 | |
- | Thank you. | 30:40 |
♪ We'll see that day come round ♪ | 30:40 | |
♪ One's man eyes can't see the road ahead ♪ | 30:47 | |
♪ The road ahead ♪ | 30:52 | |
♪ Two men's eyes can't see the road ahead ♪ | 30:54 | |
♪ The road ahead ♪ | 30:58 | |
♪ But if two and two and fifty make a million ♪ | 31:01 | |
♪ We'll see that day come round ♪ | 31:07 | |
♪ We'll see that day come round ♪ | 31:10 | |
- | Come on, friends. | 31:16 |
(chatting) | 31:17 | |
Come on, friends. | 31:22 | |
Let's get through. | 31:24 | |
♪ I'm gonna sit at the welcome table ♪ | 31:28 | |
♪ Oh darling, I'm gonna sit at the welcome table ♪ | 31:34 | |
♪ One of these days, hallelujah ♪ | 31:40 | |
♪ I'm gonna sit at the welcome table ♪ | 31:42 | |
♪ I'm gonna sit at the welcome table one of these days ♪ | 31:48 | |
♪ I'm gonna tell God how you treat me ♪ | 31:55 | |
♪ Oh darling, I'm gonna tell God how you treat me ♪ | 32:01 | |
♪ One of these days, hallelujah ♪ | 32:06 | |
♪ I'm gonna tell God how you treat me ♪ | 32:08 | |
♪ I'm gonna tell God how you treat me one of these days ♪ | 32:13 | |
♪ I'm gonna eat at the (inaudible) ♪ | 32:21 | |
♪ Oh darling, I'm gonna eat at the (inaudible) ♪ | 32:27 | |
♪ One of these days, hallelujah ♪ | 32:32 | |
♪ I'm gonna eat at the (inaudible) ♪ | 32:33 | |
♪ I'm gonna eat at the (inaudible) one of these days ♪ | 32:39 | |
♪ Come by here, oh Lord, come by here ♪ | 32:46 | |
♪ Oh Lord, one of these dreamers gonna come by here ♪ | 32:52 | |
♪ Oh Lord, one of these dreamers, Lord, come by here ♪ | 32:56 | |
♪ Oh, one of these dreamers, Lord, come by here ♪ | 32:59 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:04 | |
♪ Oh Lord, in Sumter County, Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:08 | |
♪ Oh Lord, in Sumter County, Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:12 | |
♪ Oh Lord, in Sumter County, Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:16 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:21 | |
♪ Register to vote, my Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:25 | |
♪ Register to vote, my Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:29 | |
♪ Register to vote, my Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:33 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:38 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here, my Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:42 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here, my Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:46 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here, my Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:50 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:55 | |
♪ White folks are crazy, Lord, come by here ♪ | 33:59 | |
♪ White folks are crazy, Lord, come by here ♪ | 34:04 | |
♪ White folks are crazy, Lord, come by here ♪ | 34:07 | |
♪ Oh Lord, come by here ♪ | 34:12 | |
♪ Oh Lord, (mumbling), come by here ♪ | 34:17 | |
♪ Ah ♪ | 34:20 | |
♪ We shall overcome ♪ | 34:26 | |
♪ My God, we shall overcome ♪ | 34:32 | |
♪ Someday ♪ | 34:38 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 34:44 | |
♪ Deep in my heart I know that ♪ | 34:47 | |
♪ I do believe ♪ | 34:53 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 34:58 | |
♪ We shall overcome someday ♪ | 35:00 | |
- | We are not afraid. | 35:09 |
♪ We are not afraid ♪ | 35:10 | |
♪ We are not afraid ♪ | 35:17 | |
♪ We are not afraid ♪ | 35:24 | |
♪ Today ♪ | 35:28 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 35:34 | |
♪ Deep in my heart I know that ♪ | 35:36 | |
♪ I do believe ♪ | 35:43 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 35:47 | |
♪ We shall overcome someday ♪ | 35:49 | |
- | We'll walk hand in hand. | 35:57 |
♪ We'll walk hand in hand ♪ | 35:59 | |
♪ We'll walk hand in hand ♪ | 36:05 | |
♪ We'll walk hand in hand ♪ | 36:11 | |
♪ Someday ♪ | 36:16 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 36:21 | |
♪ Deep in my heart I know that ♪ | 36:24 | |
♪ I do believe ♪ | 36:29 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 36:34 | |
♪ We shall overcome someday ♪ | 36:36 | |
- | We are on God's path. | 36:43 |
♪ We are on God's path ♪ | 36:46 | |
♪ We are on God's path ♪ | 36:51 | |
♪ We are on God's path ♪ | 36:57 | |
♪ We pray ♪ | 37:01 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 37:06 | |
♪ Deep in my heart I know that ♪ | 37:09 | |
♪ I do believe ♪ | 37:15 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 37:19 | |
♪ We shall overcome someday ♪ | 37:21 | |
- | Go ahead and hum. | 37:28 |
(humming) | 37:29 | |
(humming) | 37:35 | |
- | And be the cause from this place and go out | 38:01 |
into the field of the world until the job is done. | 38:05 | |
We pray that thou would go with us and keep us. | 38:11 | |
This we ask in the name of Lord Christ, amen. | 38:15 | |
♪ We shall overcome ♪ | 38:20 | |
♪ My God, we shall overcome ♪ | 38:24 | |
♪ Someday ♪ | 38:29 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 38:34 | |
♪ Deep in my heart I know that ♪ | 38:36 | |
♪ I do believe ♪ | 38:41 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 38:45 | |
♪ We shall overcome someday ♪ | 38:47 | |
- | We are on God's side. | 38:54 |
♪ We are on God's side ♪ | 38:55 | |
♪ We are on God's side ♪ | 39:00 | |
♪ We are on God's side ♪ | 39:05 | |
♪ Today ♪ | 39:09 | |
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪ | 39:14 | |
♪ Deep in my heart ♪ | 39:16 | |
- | They think that because you have us all business, | 39:30 |
it's your business, you can turn around anybody you want to, | 39:36 | |
you can fire anybody you want to. | 39:41 | |
But that's not true. | 39:44 | |
You can't fire me because I want the very same vote. | 39:47 | |
Some of us have to understand that, too. | 39:55 | |
And we have our rights! | 39:59 | |
And that's the reason we keep asking what did the man say. | 40:03 | |
You got to get him in it. | 40:06 | |
He gotta come out, and see, he can say, | 40:09 | |
"Well, I fired him 'cause he's too slow." | 40:11 | |
But if he tells you and somebody hears it, | 40:13 | |
you got witnesses. | 40:16 | |
And then we can do something about it. | 40:20 | |
Especially if we have more than one person saying | 40:23 | |
the same thing. | 40:24 | |
Like I said, it was a little, excuse me, a little long. | 40:27 | |
Anybody wanna ask me something | 40:31 | |
about the situation in Albany? | 40:34 | |
Any questions? | 40:43 | |
- | Are y'all going to use the facilities | 40:45 |
that they grant y'all to use now? | 40:47 | |
- | Well, that's the only way. | 40:50 |
That's a good question. | 40:51 | |
They said that all the stores in Albany, | 40:53 | |
I mean they said that all the laws on the books in Albany | 40:57 | |
as far as segregation was concerned are no good. | 41:03 | |
They are null and void, they're no good. | 41:07 | |
They aren't on the books anymore. | 41:11 | |
Some of the laws were, for example, | 41:15 | |
that you had that no Negro and white should sit together | 41:19 | |
in a bus cab, I mean in a, well on the bus. | 41:24 | |
Also, they couldn't sit together in a cab. | 41:28 | |
They couldn't ride in the same cab. | 41:30 | |
Add to this the fact that they had to put | 41:33 | |
"For Colored Only" on the bus, and "For Whites Only" | 41:36 | |
on the bus, I mean, | 41:41 | |
Cabs. | 41:46 | |
But now, since they wiped out those segregation laws, | 41:48 | |
they don't have to put "For Colored Only" | 41:51 | |
on a cab, do you? | 41:55 | |
Since they wiped it out. | 41:57 | |
And you don't have to put "For White Only" on the cab. | 42:00 | |
And if they wiped them out, a white | 42:04 | |
and a black man can sit together in a cab. | 42:06 | |
Also, they had laws against eating | 42:12 | |
in public places with Negroes and whites. | 42:20 | |
They had it written in a law that there had | 42:25 | |
to be a solid partition between the blacks and whites | 42:30 | |
any time they would eat in the same building. | 42:37 | |
There had to be a solid partition. | 42:41 | |
And also on the bus. | 42:43 | |
They said that you had to sit in the back. | 42:45 | |
A Negro had to sit in the back and whites would sit | 42:52 | |
in the front. | 42:56 | |
Also, another funny thing I find is the cabs, | 42:56 | |
and the buses, too, was that if you had a white child, | 43:00 | |
then you could sit up front. | 43:04 | |
Or if you had a white child, you could ride | 43:07 | |
in a white cab. | 43:09 | |
(laughing) | 43:10 | |
But the laws are changed. | 43:13 | |
Right? | 43:15 | |
They said at least the segregation | 43:17 | |
laws aren't there anymore. | 43:19 | |
So that means if the segregation laws aren't | 43:21 | |
there anymore, then you could go to the library. | 43:23 | |
You can go over to the stores. | 43:26 | |
But, there are some places in the country | 43:29 | |
where there are no segregation laws on the books | 43:33 | |
where when we went to the counter to eat, | 43:38 | |
we went the libraries to get our books, we got arrested. | 43:41 | |
And there were no laws saying that you have | 43:48 | |
to sit in the back or that you got to sit | 43:52 | |
in the front or that you got to stand up | 43:53 | |
or that you gotta sit down. | 43:55 | |
There were no laws. | 43:57 | |
Now, our idea is that the reason that they are throwing | 43:58 | |
these out is to make it easier. | 44:01 | |
They're trying to slip by. | 44:08 | |
They think they going to get away with it. | 44:10 | |
They're gonna tell the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, | 44:13 | |
"Looky here. | 44:17 | |
"We integrated. | 44:19 | |
"We don't have no laws, no segregation laws on our books. | 44:21 | |
"We integrated them." | 44:27 | |
But we're going to help them in their case. | 44:30 | |
- | Or somebody. | 44:33 |
- | Yeah, we're gonna help them so they can present | 44:35 |
a good case. | 44:36 | |
So they can take pictures of Negroes sitting | 44:37 | |
and eating together with whites. | 44:39 | |
(laughing) | 44:42 | |
In the library and at the counter. | 44:43 | |
In fact, we have a meeting in store for Saturday | 44:47 | |
at high noon. | 44:49 | |
And when we call a meeting at high noon, | 44:51 | |
everybody understands what is gonna happen. | 44:53 | |
- | Well tell us. | 44:56 |
(chatting) | 44:57 | |
- | Either that day or soon afterward, something gonna happen | 44:58 |
and I can say that something is gonna happen Saturday. | 45:02 | |
Now what's gonna happen, we're gonna learn | 45:07 | |
when we come there on Saturday. | 45:08 | |
Are there any other questions? | 45:11 | |
Oh yeah, one thing I forgot. | 45:15 | |
You forgot it? | 45:18 | |
Do you have it with you? | 45:20 | |
I can't hear you. | 45:22 | |
- | I did, though. | 45:23 |
- | Oh, you got it! | 45:24 |
Oh, you got it. | 45:26 | |
You heard the poem that he wrote? | 45:29 | |
(chatting) | 45:31 | |
That's good, that means we have a poem now. | 45:33 | |
Now, we have a play written by | 45:35 | |
(coughing drowning out speaker). | 45:37 | |
Here in Sumter County. | 45:39 | |
Two-act play that we plan to present. | 45:42 | |
We don't know how to present it. | 45:47 | |
Wondering if the young lady may have some ideas on it. | 45:51 | |
She might know some friends of hers who can act, | 45:55 | |
and you might like to get together with them. | 46:01 | |
We got three copies of it, there are six parts, | 46:05 | |
I understand, for it. | 46:09 | |
We duplicate those parts so that each person | 46:14 | |
in the play could have a part. | 46:17 | |
The whole part just for themselves. | 46:20 | |
And the director could have a part. | 46:22 | |
I know you're wondering who wrote this play. | 46:28 | |
You know it was one of you. | 46:31 | |
And when this person stands now, I want you | 46:33 | |
to give 'em a good ovation. | 46:34 | |
A good one. | 46:36 | |
And this person is Ms. Brownie Wright. | 46:39 | |
Would you stand up, Ms. Wright? | 46:45 | |
(clapping) | 46:46 | |
Do you think that we may duplicate it? | 46:55 | |
That same play about six times. | 47:00 | |
That you could get some people to present the. | 47:05 |
- | Might touch others, in terms | 0:02 |
of what I am attempting to say here. | 0:04 | |
You see | 0:08 | |
Christianity says one thing to him. | 0:12 | |
Let's say that we as a religious group | 0:16 | |
have shouted about so long and so fervently | 0:22 | |
It says to me | 0:27 | |
that one of the greatest laws | 0:33 | |
of God Almighty | 0:39 | |
is the divine law of balance | 0:43 | |
the divine law of equilibrium. | 0:47 | |
When you see these scales of justice, how are they? | 0:52 | |
They're in balance, aren't they? | 0:56 | |
They're equal. | 0:59 | |
Is this right? | 1:00 | |
When we look at our heavenly bodies | 1:02 | |
we know that the stars in their unerring | 1:06 | |
(audio scratching) | 1:12 | |
no conflict with any other celestial bodies. | 1:15 | |
Is that right? | 1:19 | |
- | Right. | 1:20 |
- | God Almighty has somehow created a sort of perfection | 1:21 |
by keeping everything in balance. | 1:27 | |
Everything, in what some people call a state of equipoise, | 1:30 | |
a state of equilibrium, a state of equality, | 1:36 | |
if you will, a state of justice. | 1:41 | |
You see, when we look at nature, | 1:45 | |
we see this very blessing, throughout. | 1:47 | |
Now let's look at our fields. | 1:52 | |
I was riding along with Mr. Mays coming here tonight. | 1:55 | |
I looked out and saw a crop of barley that he planted. | 2:00 | |
It was beautiful and it was green. | 2:05 | |
I reflected, here too, we have a sort of equilibrium. | 2:09 | |
We have a sort of equipoise. | 2:15 | |
We have a sort of equality. | 2:18 | |
Equality in terms of this barley being the basis | 2:22 | |
for sustaining the life of what are called by scientists | 2:28 | |
as herbivorous animals. | 2:34 | |
Animals that live on vegetation. | 2:36 | |
Of course, the bodies of these animals that live | 2:41 | |
on vegetation sustain man and other flesh-eating animals. | 2:46 | |
Is that correct? | 2:53 | |
(people murmuring agreement) | 2:54 | |
You get a sort of balance there. | 2:55 | |
This equipoise, this equality | 2:57 | |
this justice, if you please | 3:03 | |
And we could take this example on and on, and on and on. | 3:07 | |
I think that ultimately we come to the conclusion | 3:14 | |
that it is a divine law that things must be in balance, | 3:20 | |
things must reach a state of equality. | 3:27 | |
Well if you don't believe this now, | 3:34 | |
let's kinda upset this system, this rhythm we talk about. | 3:36 | |
We have a doubt, it affects everything else in the cycle, | 3:43 | |
is that correct? | 3:49 | |
- | Correct. | 3:50 |
- | It kinda shakes it up. | 3:51 |
You create chaos when you get out of this equipoise, | 3:54 | |
when you get out of this balance. | 4:02 | |
So I think that we can all agree | 4:05 | |
that it is apparently, a divine law, | 4:10 | |
that God Almighty believes in equality. | 4:17 | |
- | Amen. | 4:21 |
- | Then if we be the Christians | 4:24 |
that we profess to be | 4:30 | |
we demand the fulfillment of what is divine. | 4:34 | |
We demand equality because it is good. | 4:44 | |
When we say good we mean God and God-like. | 4:50 | |
And I think that we ultimately have to say, | 4:55 | |
that though we be afraid, for many reasons maybe, | 4:59 | |
we know that this is right, and it represents a fulfillment | 5:07 | |
of what is required of us | 5:13 | |
as the Christians we profess to be. | 5:16 | |
How do we show that we believe in this? | 5:22 | |
Well, I think one way would be to do the sort of things | 5:28 | |
that you would feel get him, demonstrating an interest in. | 5:32 | |
You translate what you pray about, what you shout about, | 5:39 | |
what you preach about, into the reality of fulfillment, | 5:46 | |
of accomplishment, of doing. | 5:53 | |
Now, let's think in terms of this | 5:57 | |
as it relates to our government. | 6:00 | |
The issue that men have been talking | 6:03 | |
about voting and registration. | 6:05 | |
How do you relate this? | 6:09 | |
How do you take voting and registration | 6:11 | |
and relate it to what I've been talking about? | 6:14 | |
As representative of what is divine? | 6:16 | |
What appears to be a divine law of Almighty God? | 6:20 | |
I think it should be able to do that simply | 6:28 | |
by saying it is our responsibility | 6:34 | |
to sanction, to approve, to encourage laws | 6:39 | |
that conform to the laws handed down to us by Almighty God, | 6:46 | |
and that is through our conscience of what is right. | 6:54 | |
But how do we, how do we help create these laws? | 6:59 | |
Through our form of government | 7:07 | |
there is but one way that we do it. | 7:09 | |
That is by registering and voting. | 7:12 | |
You see, we have a representative form of government. | 7:15 | |
A government where all of us are not permitted | 7:19 | |
to go to Washington and vote yea or nay on a certain law, | 7:21 | |
but we send the people there who are committed | 7:28 | |
to represent us and they represent us as we know. | 7:33 | |
It's a very practical and real situation, | 7:40 | |
based upon the amount of votes that they get. | 7:43 | |
And this is how we change from good to bad laws, | 7:48 | |
from evil to divine laws. | 7:53 | |
I say ultimately to you, | 8:00 | |
that it becomes your sacred responsibility, | 8:08 | |
it becomes my sacred responsibility, | 8:13 | |
not only to myself, you know, I don't want to get too wound | 8:17 | |
up here, I think that maybe I should just leave it here. | 8:22 | |
I have some pet theories about how it is necessary | 8:25 | |
to love one's self before he can love others. | 8:29 | |
But maybe another time, if you'll invite me back, | 8:34 | |
I'll talk about that. | 8:38 | |
- | Tell us now. | 8:39 |
- | But maybe I should, well, I take the position | 8:41 |
that maybe I won't have anything to say | 8:48 | |
the next time but I don't wanna run the risk | 8:50 | |
of you not inviting me back! | 8:52 | |
(people laughing) | 8:54 | |
But in concluding, I'd simply like to say | 8:57 | |
that this is an inspiration to me. | 9:03 | |
I shall always nurture what I have here seen. | 9:08 | |
I will cherish the invitation extended by you | 9:16 | |
through Sherrod and through the other members | 9:22 | |
of the young people who are actively interested in you. | 9:27 | |
And also in themselves in terms of contributions | 9:31 | |
that you're making to us. | 9:35 | |
Thank you. | 9:40 | |
(people applauding) | 9:41 | |
- | Come on, let's give him another one. | 9:49 |
(people applauding) | 9:51 | |
Most welcome. | 9:57 | |
- | (mumbles) We are not quite sure how to react to this. | 10:00 |
I think it was a very smart move, hoping maybe to delay | 10:05 | |
a reaction that might come from the community. | 10:10 | |
However... | 10:14 | |
(background noise drowns speech) | 10:15 | |
I don't think it's (inaudible) | 10:16 | |
All this change in law means is that each restaurant owner, | 10:22 | |
each taxi cab owner | 10:29 | |
can decide for himself whether he wants | 10:33 | |
to integrate or segregate - and I have a feeling | 10:35 | |
that people aren't gonna go rush out to do anything | 10:40 | |
but maybe with a little help. | 10:42 | |
(background noise drowns out speaker) | 10:44 | |
There will be community organizing at (mumbles) | 10:46 | |
(people laughing) | 10:56 | |
We've been doing some canvassing this week. | 11:02 | |
To gather people for the next meeting (background noise ) | 11:05 | |
We registered 15 people last weekend | 11:21 | |
and Reverend (inaudible) has been working this week to | 11:24 | |
To make a special drive | 11:29 | |
to get people out and I know we have a number of people | 11:31 | |
here (mumbles) and all we have to do is tell people. | 11:34 | |
(background noise drowns out speaker) | 11:40 | |
(people applauding) | 12:04 | |
- | The topic of my poem is, register and vote. | 12:09 |
Most every Negro say, I want to be free. | 12:13 | |
But if you say vote, they're going to disagree. | 12:16 | |
They are scared the chief is going to put them in jail. | 12:19 | |
But you know, if they do something wrong, | 12:21 | |
they just going through hell. | 12:23 | |
Both (mumbles) and then let you out and know you wouldn't. | 12:26 | |
You know, the court has your age, | 12:35 | |
but SNCC is going to guarantee that you can go to your grade | 12:37 | |
You may have stopped at the second grade, | 12:41 | |
you can go on a run, | 12:43 | |
but you can't get a 12th grade education. | 12:45 | |
Stop down to the slave king of South Hill. | 12:48 | |
But we have some white brothers here and that's the reason. | 12:50 | |
(mumbles) is here, but if they come to your house | 12:54 | |
and ask you to vote, you will want to shoot them. | 12:59 | |
Now you know I am telling the truth. | 13:02 | |
Let's vote and act new. | 13:04 | |
Look at Sherrod, he was working on Virginia | 13:06 | |
He just come to help us. | 13:08 | |
We have people from all parts of the world, | 13:10 | |
they just come to help us and show us their love. | 13:12 | |
Tracia Hall, she has did everything | 13:17 | |
she could to help us install. | 13:19 | |
I will close my poem by saying, vote. | 13:22 | |
(people applauding) | 13:24 | |
- | The insurance company threatened | 13:29 |
to take away the insurance. | 13:30 | |
And so therefore they were turned down to the church. | 13:31 | |
Now, I figure as everybody knows | 13:34 | |
about this law now we can move ahead. | 13:36 | |
This same federal injunction up against Chaplain and them | 13:39 | |
can be used against anything and anybody | 13:42 | |
that impedes anybody from attempting to register and vote, | 13:45 | |
going down to register. | 13:50 | |
In other words if Deke and Cooper, you go down | 13:51 | |
and register and vote, and you have insurance | 13:54 | |
with the National Life Insurance Company | 13:58 | |
and they say to you, because you registered | 13:59 | |
they gonna take the insurance away from you | 14:02 | |
You can file a federal suit against them. | 14:03 | |
You don't pay for it, the government pays for it, | 14:06 | |
they gonna file the suit against them, | 14:08 | |
and they can get in trouble, which means | 14:09 | |
same thing about an insurance company and the church. | 14:13 | |
And plus the fact, Reverend Freeman | 14:15 | |
and a bunch of other insurance companies, or somebody, | 14:17 | |
a white insurance company wants to take their money away, | 14:20 | |
some black people don't have insurance | 14:23 | |
(mumbles) you don't have to worry about that. | 14:25 | |
But if it was a problem that nobody else | 14:27 | |
could give insurance to the church, | 14:29 | |
that insurance company can be put under federal injunction. | 14:31 | |
And they have to keep their insurance | 14:34 | |
unless the church doesn't keep up the payments, | 14:36 | |
but if the church has the payments up, | 14:38 | |
there is absolutely nothing that the authorities can do | 14:39 | |
or anybody who has financial control over that. | 14:42 | |
In other words, if I can make this clear by repeating it, | 14:45 | |
anything that anybody does to anybody | 14:51 | |
who attempts to register and vote | 14:54 | |
or who is espousing people to register and vote | 14:55 | |
anything, including me, everybody, | 14:59 | |
if anything happens to that person | 15:02 | |
whether he loses his job or they threaten to lose his job | 15:04 | |
or anything like that, the person who threatens | 15:07 | |
to take the job away from the guy, | 15:09 | |
or take the insurance away, or hit him over the head | 15:12 | |
or anything that can be clamped | 15:15 | |
on by the federal government. | 15:17 | |
It's the federal law and they take care of it. | 15:18 | |
You don't have to file a suit, all you have to do is | 15:22 | |
tell or call the Justice Department | 15:23 | |
and they'll take care of it. | 15:25 | |
So this is what we told the ministers and they went for it. | 15:27 | |
And they're having a pastoral conference on Saturday, | 15:32 | |
in which they're gonna try to get it. | 15:37 | |
We have to keep our fingers crossed. | 15:38 | |
All of us, especially those of us in Americus. | 15:39 | |
On Saturday, that Reverend Thomas | 15:44 | |
and Reverend Freeman can persuade the other ministers | 15:45 | |
for every church in Americus | 15:47 | |
who's gonna be represented down town to open it's doors. | 15:50 | |
What the program is, according to Reverend Thomas, | 15:52 | |
what his suggestion was, and what they are gonna try to push | 15:55 | |
is that every church in Americus at about 5:30 | 15:58 | |
to start with would open their doors. | 16:01 | |
So it's not on one, you know, the burden, | 16:03 | |
it's not on one, so they, one won't be afraid. | 16:05 | |
And they can hold the meeting once a month | 16:07 | |
or once every two months, and rotate | 16:09 | |
so that a meeting is going around each church. | 16:11 | |
This will be great in terms of unity in the black community. | 16:15 | |
This will be wonderful if we could get | 16:18 | |
every church in Americus to open its doors. | 16:19 | |
But I wish that all of us could pray | 16:21 | |
and also talk to whatever church you go to, | 16:23 | |
talk to Deacon Boards, talk to the minister, | 16:26 | |
and try to persuade him, and them to go along | 16:29 | |
And open all the churches in Americus for us to meet. | 16:33 | |
The next thing is that some of us, | 16:36 | |
hang on a minute, some of us this coming Sunday, | 16:39 | |
we're gonna be in (mumbles) | 16:44 | |
Could you raise your hand? | 16:46 | |
- | Excuse me, let's give him a hand. | 16:50 |
(people applauding) | 16:53 | |
- | If you are in Americus on Sunday, | 16:57 |
and are gonna be going to church this Sunday. | 16:59 | |
We're all gonna be going to the Big Bethel Baptist Church. | 17:02 | |
Reverend Battle is the pastor. | 17:07 | |
Reverend Battle, as people from Albany know, | 17:08 | |
he was very active in the Albany movement and I think, | 17:10 | |
didn't he start the carpool or begin working in it | 17:14 | |
or something like that? | 17:16 | |
Anyway, Reverend Battle has been fighting | 17:18 | |
to get his people to accept | 17:20 | |
the voter registration meetings at his church. | 17:24 | |
He's been unsuccessful | 17:26 | |
He's having a meeting right now with his Board of Deacons. | 17:28 | |
It's the second time it's come up | 17:32 | |
and we hope that he can get the church. | 17:34 | |
If not, if he doesn't get the church tonight, | 17:37 | |
a bunch of us are going to visit | 17:40 | |
that church on Sunday and hold service there | 17:43 | |
and a number of other things. | 17:45 | |
We won't go into that, | 17:46 | |
but we're probably gonna report on that next Thursday. | 17:47 | |
In terms of-- | 17:51 | |
(audio distorts) | 17:52 | |
- | And fighting free together, | 18:05 |
and really get on with the registration. | 18:08 | |
Now, I understand that you have done, | 18:12 | |
probably better, you have taken the lead here, | 18:13 | |
more so than anybody else | 18:17 | |
in the time I've been going around. | 18:18 | |
So I want to commend you and to encourage you | 18:21 | |
to keep on, and we'd like to see you come | 18:24 | |
to our meetings a little bit more, | 18:28 | |
so that we can get the spirit and so that we can | 18:29 | |
learn together, and that's all that I have to say. | 18:31 | |
(people applauding) | 18:35 | |
- | Next person. | 18:41 |
- | The person that helps us when we're in trouble | 18:43 |
with that cause and that's all the time. | 18:46 | |
(people applauding) | 18:48 | |
- | Thank you everybody, if there's one thing | 18:54 |
I can't do it's speak, I mean you will soon find that out, | 18:56 | |
I mean, you don't have too much longer to wait. | 18:59 | |
(people laughing) | 19:01 | |
I want to speak to you about something | 19:06 | |
I mean a little different. | 19:07 | |
I mean we feel as if we know some poeple, | 19:09 | |
but we don't know him yet. | 19:12 | |
I mean you just saw that little boy (mumbles), | 19:13 | |
maybe you will know him for what he is. | 19:17 | |
Tonight I want to speak to you of something, | 19:21 | |
you might as well call it control of the Credit Union. | 19:23 | |
In this, I mean it's helpful for each and every one of us, | 19:28 | |
and I mean the little people, to put money in it, | 19:32 | |
a dollar, $5 or something when these times | 19:36 | |
of pinches come when you need to get fertilized | 19:39 | |
and stuff like that. | 19:42 | |
You can bring them to your own and join | 19:43 | |
and you're not shut out. | 19:46 | |
I mean you don't have money to operate or anything. | 19:47 | |
This is very important. | 19:50 | |
We can have freedom | 19:53 | |
but as long we don't have any money to go along with it. | 19:59 | |
I mean that's, the man who has the money, controls. | 20:04 | |
But tonight I wanna speak about two things. | 20:07 | |
First, who knows anything about the system of sharecropping? | 20:09 | |
I was born in this country. | 20:15 | |
I mean I know about sharecropping. | 20:16 | |
Who else in here knows about it? | 20:17 | |
(people murmuring) | 20:19 | |
Anyway, the game of sharecropping started | 20:21 | |
after the Civil War which had left the white man, | 20:25 | |
I mean with the money, and left our ancestors, | 20:29 | |
I mean with the faith and everything. | 20:33 | |
So the results of Civil War, | 20:36 | |
I believe both men were handicapped | 20:37 | |
and neither one could go anywhere without the other one. | 20:39 | |
So this system of sharecropping was formed | 20:43 | |
and which was the lesser evil than slavery, | 20:46 | |
which I can say it's not too much different than. | 20:49 | |
I mean, it still exists. | 20:52 | |
But anyway, I wanted to tell you a tale | 20:54 | |
of something that happened about 40 years ago, | 20:55 | |
something occurred and in this tale, I use a magic ruler, | 20:58 | |
which we had learned to dislike so much | 21:03 | |
because it's been used, so bear with me | 21:06 | |
as I am trying to illustrate a point. | 21:08 | |
As far as (mumbles) about nine or 10 years, | 21:12 | |
and one day he was out there fixing his fence. | 21:17 | |
So the boss told him, he said, John, | 21:20 | |
he said (that's the boss) | 21:23 | |
He said, go up to the house and get my dinner. | 21:25 | |
He said, yes sir boss and then he went up to the house. | 21:27 | |
When he got up there and started back with the dinner, | 21:30 | |
he pulled the paper up off the plate and he looked. | 21:35 | |
And he sees some biscuits and he sees some gravy | 21:36 | |
and he sees some fried chicken. | 21:40 | |
Well it looked good to him, | 21:42 | |
'cause he he'd only eaten cornbread and fatback. | 21:44 | |
(people laughing) | 21:47 | |
He said, I sure had to stop and eat one of them | 21:50 | |
biscuits in that gravy. | 21:52 | |
So he kept on and when he got close, | 21:54 | |
I mean, (mumble) had got the best of him. | 21:56 | |
So what he did, he sopped one | 21:59 | |
of them biscuits in that gravy | 22:00 | |
and tried to conceal the damage. | 22:02 | |
He got back down there and the fella looked at him, | 22:05 | |
and he said, John. He said yes sir, boss? | 22:07 | |
(people laughing) | 22:10 | |
He said, you been sopping in my gravy? | 22:11 | |
No sir boss, no sir boss. | 22:12 | |
Yeah you have. | 22:15 | |
No, no nigger fills my plate and sopping my gravy. | 22:16 | |
(people laughing) | 22:19 | |
So he went back to the house, crying to Mammy. | 22:21 | |
Mammy, you know boss, he told me to leave | 22:24 | |
and he isn't a good man. | 22:27 | |
Mammy tells him, now I been trying to tell you | 22:29 | |
for the last ten years that the man was no good. | 22:30 | |
You should have been gone before now. | 22:32 | |
So he leaves and moves over to another county. | 22:35 | |
Starts working and doing pretty good. | 22:38 | |
Man is kept on that job for about 4 years | 22:40 | |
'til John decides to rent. | 22:43 | |
When he started renting and everything, he still did well. | 22:46 | |
So he fooled around and bought a few acres of his own. | 22:49 | |
So one Sunday morning, he was at the house there | 22:52 | |
and he called Mammy. | 22:55 | |
He said, Mammy, he said, get that new dress I bought. | 22:56 | |
She said, where are we going, John? | 23:00 | |
He said, we going over there where we used to stay. | 23:02 | |
So she got the new dress and got in the buggy. | 23:05 | |
And old John had him a fine horse and buggy. | 23:07 | |
So he started over where he used to stay. | 23:10 | |
So old boss was on the front porch reading | 23:13 | |
his paper with his glasses pulled down over his nose. | 23:15 | |
He looks up, he says, John, is that you? | 23:18 | |
He says, yes sir boss. | 23:21 | |
He said, hey Mammy, look at that pretty face you got on. | 23:23 | |
He said, who bought you that dress? | 23:26 | |
She said, John bought it for me, boss. | 23:27 | |
And John said, whose horse and buggy there? | 23:29 | |
He said, mine boss. | 23:32 | |
And said, so John, tell me what you're doing now. | 23:33 | |
He said, boss, I'll tell you like it is, | 23:36 | |
'cause I'm sopping in my own gravy. | 23:37 | |
(people laughing) | 23:39 | |
This is what we must do. | 23:55 | |
I mean, we must learn to cling together. | 23:57 | |
We must learn to help each other. | 23:59 | |
This thing will work at a very low rate of interest | 24:01 | |
because it'll be owned by the people. | 24:06 | |
Any of y'all been to the loan shops or the finance company? | 24:09 | |
I have, anybody in here? | 24:14 | |
Well, you know how you borrowed at $5 and pay 8. | 24:16 | |
(people laughing) | 24:20 | |
As long as we have to go for five and pay eight back, | 24:24 | |
we aren't paid right | 24:29 | |
If we can set up our own organization | 24:32 | |
where we can borrow $5 for 50 cents back. | 24:35 | |
Then we'll get somewhere. | 24:38 | |
Anyone who'd be interested in this idea, | 24:41 | |
I mean after the meeting, anytime in the near future, | 24:44 | |
I will appreciate if you get around | 24:49 | |
someone who (inaudible | 24:52 | |
It is for the benefit of all | 24:56 | |
and not to make one or two big men. | 24:58 | |
Anyone's interested in making one or two big men, | 25:01 | |
I mean they're big enough, you're not looking | 25:04 | |
for the benefit of the people. | 25:08 | |
Thank you. | 25:09 | |
(people applauding) | 25:11 | |
- | I know I'm acquainted with the idea that he presented | 25:22 |
and perhaps you'd like to ask him some questions. | 25:26 | |
I know Mae will ask some questions, 'cause that's his baby. | 25:29 | |
(people laughing) | 25:33 | |
- | No, I was just going to say that this idea | 25:35 |
has been brought up out here in Lee County | 25:39 | |
and we not only thought that the people should take part | 25:43 | |
in it as individuals but we thought that it would | 25:47 | |
be a good thing for our union and association | 25:51 | |
to take part in it and instead of giving it | 25:57 | |
to the church, which is supposed to be the people, | 26:01 | |
the church, the churches, could buy stock in the thing. | 26:06 | |
And you know a lot of money goes to the church | 26:11 | |
and by the time it is divided among all of the people | 26:13 | |
who have their hand in that gravy, | 26:17 | |
nobody gets very much of it, but if you could put this | 26:19 | |
gravy in one big pot and just hold it there | 26:22 | |
and freeze it sort of, and we get ready | 26:29 | |
for when those people who actually need the gravy, | 26:32 | |
we could sorta unfreeze part of it and use it | 26:34 | |
to the benefit of all the people who are in need of it. | 26:37 | |
This is not to go against the church, | 26:44 | |
but it does sort of illustrate sort of what has happened | 26:47 | |
in our reunions and associations because I have been | 26:51 | |
going to them and I hope you don't make any decisions | 26:55 | |
as to which one of these people I am. | 26:59 | |
One of these street barbershop lawyers, | 27:01 | |
you know, sitting around town and he said, | 27:05 | |
our unions and associations are | 27:07 | |
a heaping and preacher's racket, he called it. | 27:11 | |
And he said this is what happens. | 27:14 | |
There's three kinds of people to go to. | 27:16 | |
One kind is the person that is getting the gravy. | 27:19 | |
The other kind is the person that wants to get | 27:22 | |
where he can get some of the gravy. | 27:26 | |
And the other kind is the people | 27:28 | |
that don't know any better. | 27:29 | |
Well, I think that we are beginning to | 27:31 | |
among a lot of the Deacons in our county, in Lee County, | 27:38 | |
and around in the neighboring country | 27:44 | |
are beginning to think that the church | 27:46 | |
can do something constructive to help the people. | 27:48 | |
And to help a lot of people. | 27:53 | |
Again I would like to, I think we have mentioned | 27:56 | |
that we all know about Deseret which is an auxiliary | 27:58 | |
of the Mormon Church and when they came to Georgia, | 28:04 | |
I'm told that they brought seven million dollars. | 28:08 | |
And I think if you remember a few years ago | 28:12 | |
on a wagon train when these people were going out West, | 28:15 | |
all of their money was stolen. | 28:18 | |
It was in a little shoe box. | 28:19 | |
It was in a little black box | 28:21 | |
about the size of this recorder here. | 28:21 | |
(baby babbling drowns out speech) | 28:24 | |
Went out and rescued and brought it back up | 28:25 | |
in Salt Lake City. | 28:28 | |
(people laughing) | 28:29 | |
Now they are able to come now in Florida, | 28:31 | |
this same church organization owns two counties, | 28:35 | |
bought out everything. | 28:39 | |
All of the people and everybody sold out to them. | 28:41 | |
And they brought the price of land to Georgia | 28:43 | |
from about 55 or $60 an acre to where now land in Georgia | 28:46 | |
in this area here is selling for $150 per acre. | 28:50 | |
And this is because the church people together, | 28:55 | |
working like Christians ought to work in all churches, | 28:59 | |
got together and saw fit to use that money | 29:04 | |
to the best interests of all the people the same. | 29:07 | |
And I think all of us know that we have got | 29:11 | |
to become self-supporting. | 29:17 | |
We gotta look to ourselves and we gotta work among ourselves | 29:20 | |
and we gotta work with ourselves to do some of the things | 29:26 | |
that must be done so that we can be completely free. | 29:29 | |
(people applauding) | 29:33 | |
- | I don't know, boss, I don't know if you all set | 29:40 |
a date to meet, did you set a date to meet? | 29:43 | |
- | No, what we were really going to do, | 29:47 |
as far as the churches were concerned, | 29:51 | |
they are meeting the 5th Sunday, | 29:53 | |
the Boards are meeting the 5th Sunday | 29:55 | |
and the 5th Saturday, I mean. | 29:57 | |
And two of the unions in Lee County, | 30:01 | |
I've been in association with the unions | 30:04 | |
and Lee County will have representatives talking | 30:06 | |
to the Board members of these unions | 30:09 | |
and after that we can tell you about what the churches, | 30:12 | |
or how they have accepted the idea, how the masses | 30:19 | |
of their members, union members accept it. | 30:22 | |
If this organization -- if there's a root foundation | 30:26 | |
that was already been started somewhere, | 30:30 | |
we would (mumbles) whatever they say. | 30:32 | |
But we can get a lot of interest-- | 30:34 | |
- | Well then you two can get together and anybody else | 30:37 |
who is interested, after the meeting. | 30:39 | |
Let's say that after the meeting, those interested | 30:43 | |
in this Credit Union-like organization | 30:45 | |
will meet over here on the left hand side | 30:51 | |
so that y'all can talk and set up another meeting, | 30:55 | |
then we can talk. | 30:59 | |
- | One thing I would like to say to the people, | 31:02 |
I mean it's a little man's organization and it grows big, | 31:05 | |
by having a lot of little people in it. | 31:10 | |
So I mean, don't let money worry you on this thing | 31:13 | |
I mean because for $5, I mean | 31:17 | |
you have a full vote and a full voice. | 31:21 | |
- | And we had-- | 31:28 |
Might be too long for tonight | 31:34 | |
but that's what we were trying. | 31:37 | |
Don't forget the idea that we had | 31:45 | |
concerning the school, night classes. | 31:48 | |
(mumbles) Talking about citizenship, you know that? | 31:55 | |
Were you gonna saying something about that? | 32:01 | |
(men mumbling) | 32:03 | |
Yeah, had this responsibility for the night, | 32:15 | |
but you understand that the idea | 32:20 | |
is to teach those of us who can't read and write | 32:26 | |
how to read and write enough to pass the test | 32:32 | |
that is given. | 32:37 | |
You know, you have to write your name, first name and last, | 32:41 | |
your address, the precinct or if you live in the town, | 32:44 | |
you'd leave it blank, your birthday, and so forth. | 32:49 | |
And then you have to write a portion of the Constitution | 32:55 | |
or read it back. | 32:59 | |
If you can do that, then you are registered. | 33:00 | |
I wish you could understand that. | 33:06 | |
This is what (coughing drowning out speech) | 33:08 | |
classes on property and other things which can (mumbles). | 33:11 | |
If you like to, for example, if you'd like to learn | 33:18 | |
something about social security, | 33:21 | |
we can get information on it, we can keep a sharp track | 33:22 | |
on social security (inaudible) | 33:28 | |
and also any other subject that you might think of, | 33:34 | |
the meaning of the church might come in, | 33:39 | |
might wanna have a class on that. | 33:41 | |
It depends on what you want. | 33:45 | |
The other point I'd like to make concerns Easter weekend, | 33:49 | |
at which time we'll have the student non-violent | 33:57 | |
coordinating committee conference in Atlanta, Georgia | 33:59 | |
and if we have enough people to go, | 34:05 | |
and there's enough people want to go, | 34:07 | |
we will take a bus up to Atlanta. | 34:10 | |
The cost, right now is $8 for room and board. | 34:15 | |
And we'll take care of the travel, some kinda way. | 34:21 | |
One way we're gonna do it is by selling records. | 34:27 | |
How many of you know about the record, Freedom in Hand? | 34:33 | |
I think we introduced this record here. | 34:35 | |
So, next, one meeting we'll bring it, | 34:39 | |
possibly the next meeting, we'll bring it | 34:42 | |
and let you see it. | 34:44 | |
It's a record about what happened in Albany. | 34:48 | |
We made it. | 34:52 | |
It tells the story of how it originated, | 34:55 | |
the Albany movement - how it originated. | 34:58 | |
It has the freedom songs on it - many of the freedom songs | 35:00 | |
It has the mass meetings in Albany | 35:04 | |
and it has one sermon by (coughing drowned out words) | 35:07 | |
by Reverend Benjamin Gay, he was the (mumbles) | 35:12 | |
So that we're trying to present that, | 35:18 | |
but at this conference, (mumbles) | 35:20 | |
'cause they're gonna have people | 35:23 | |
from all over the country coming together. | 35:25 | |
People who've been catching it over in Leflore County. | 35:27 | |
You might have, yeah, I think I heard Joyce talk | 35:30 | |
about what we were doing in Leflore County. | 35:33 | |
The fact that last night, just last night, | 35:37 | |
our boys got shot at and you heard about the boy | 35:40 | |
who got shot in his shoulder and in his neck, | 35:44 | |
almost near to death. | 35:48 | |
I don't know why (coughing) | 35:51 | |
I was thinking about the girl outside. | 35:52 | |
This or not, what we had planned to do | 35:55 | |
if anything had happened to that boy, | 35:59 | |
if that boy had died, Mississippi would have known | 36:01 | |
across the whole state, we would have disrupted the state. | 36:07 | |
You may wonder how. Let's take 2 minutes to explain to you | 36:15 | |
and now here's another thing that you can tell | 36:20 | |
our white brothers here, we stand non-violently | 36:22 | |
and with love but if any of us die, | 36:26 | |
if any one of us die | 36:31 | |
not one car, not one bus, | 36:37 | |
not one little train will move | 36:44 | |
from the place around which the person died. | 36:52 | |
- | Say that again. | 37:00 |
- | Not one train, not one railroad train, not one car, | 37:01 |
not one bus will move in or out of the city. | 37:08 | |
Now how are we gonna do that? | 37:18 |
Item Info
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