Southern Student Organising Commiitee ..

Vol. II, No. 3 April, 1965

The s pri ng corfe r ence d the .Sou th~1·n ~-t,luent' 01·gaidzi ng Cot:imi t tee { Jsc·.::; ) wfls held Harch 19-21 at U· e Old Ga;:mon T:: eo l o£;i.cal s ~nti!1ary j n At :i..anta, reorgiP.. Dr . :.~sHe Dunbar, Exe c11 t iv.:: D:'. r~ctor o f t :1e .:;out~ e:n RE>g i onal Gouncil, :lel ivr: re0 tPe IreynotP a ddress to t t e Ct)nf~::rence on Fr i da ,y e V('!l..i..ng . :·ir. St.lkf.lE>y Ce..rmichae l , :f i e ld Sc c:re ta:·y of t he ;jtu cie c.. t 'Jon Vi :J.i.e '1t Goo rdi na t i n[ ~cmmj t tee ( 5NCC) adt1re !'lse1 t h e c vnfcrence body o:1 S.1t u r da;; evr-•ni r .g . Jtb er c~r. f"!r ence spe<:~kers i nc l ud.;d :3te·.re \vei.'3smruJ. ~f t h e Free SpPech i·lf"\Vemen t , 11n ivE-rr- i t? <) ~ ,::., i i forni a, Mr. Ed Rich E.·r, fa Cl l l~y :1dv1lscr t ·) the .r'reedom Farty at tr1 ~~ Ur-.i v r., rsi. ty o f :tlrn·i :la, a n d Mr. Richa rd Rams ey, (;ollege Director o f t te J:.in e r ic;,,n 1-'rie nric Se rvi ce Commi tte~ i n Hlgh Point, .l"::>rth Carclir.a.

.. ssoc SPONSORS FSH TOIJR

SL: ve Wei~~·n·m , u s t af ~· membe r o f ·che .St J ·· d e n t s f or a Democrn ti ~ ~~ci 9~Y ( ED~) ard r ec•mt l y of t he J..'r ~e '3p€ e ch h e verr. en t. j _:

Followi.np: th~ l-': efl'O .:~ ad dx·esa 0.1 Fr i da:r ')Veni ng , t hf: r e "Jac <3 s ec-sicn f. ev ot erl t o l ncaJ ct=~mpus nro~rarrur:ing . Dr. i1n tt:hew J r nef' t et li-;P d tt.bou t t he ~evdn-pm~nt o f

• tr e campus po ~.i b c al p",!'t:' (Fre~do"!! P;_rty ) a t Lbe On ::.v e :·s i t y ;>i' ~"lorid::q .JoE~ph ;j!f.i(,h, Fr~t-"idf'n c o.: G,~oreia St..t­l en t s .f=or h umar rti.£2;Il+s , a nd w~11:, 1:11n

:~ob.~rt .s c f t h P .Srn. th Carol~.na St :.;den t ;:;('\unr- i l on hurnan h e•.a.ti.c,n e; di.s c u .::;sed the orgarti z~.ng o f t. L 1ue.:1t f':l 'O 'llJS on o. s 'Lett:­,,Ji de l evel. P .. i l 5mi t h, Kaox·.ri J l e 'Sdu ­ca ti0n l·r') j f'c t. , c.. J'!d Kei.th Bu.cd.~tt, rJn i vers l.t y cf Kent ucl<'y, dir=cu; ·s er'l L!"'e :;om,;li t t ee s truc tur~ i n car: ·yil.g cut lC' c.:;~. J. pr og '!"amc. .

Derke l t.:y , v1i :;.l. !;ou.r· a. ' nu.nher or t.: O•t t :vn n ccll~ge~ u~ier ~e r po~sarsh'p ni •te ticutherr.. ..:i t u dent Cr,c"l.n ::.zil':g ·.~ om~~ i t '~ ee ~ StevEo , c.: no t i.ve l•f '~'em :,.:.a, I :tori. da, a n J a cra'~ua ~. e n f the 'un i.ver.s jty : :t.· Twn p<:~ , r r ­cen t l y le f t h js jc~ ~ 3 a ~r3d~~~e acsi[ ­t n n t a t t.w Gnivc·rsi t J c.t C.:1:•.i i'o:rniz , Ber kf' l ey , f'o ~: :or~· f or :.:;L3 on .i V : Univr:r­s :i.ty Reform 1' r o j <:: c t . ~ 1is imnerEa t.~ r e s ­pc.ns i bi l i t .J i& Axpl a in::.n!1; thi.: ~ ;.u-p,J~ez nn.d gon l s of th~ Frt.>e ~peec~ i'hve'Tien t \·.rh i c h hav e be en J.e.r g e l y .~ic t•.Jrte c' b~ th e preGs .

The route wi 11 b t:g ·in ":h e v1e~kend of A.pril 2-4 with :; teve spe n.killf! :1t t he Vir.e:ini<.c Student Ci vil ~igh ts ~onf~r~nc e a t t he Dn iver~dt,y of V:i r g i n.i.r: in Char:' o t+es'h .lle A two week i n t e r l udP w:::.11 fo 2l m; d'V.ri :-.g wh i ch time Ste v e wi. :;.l Le ;;orking 0 11 t :-.e 1'1a r ch nn ~.Ja.sl--in.; to '1. tn f"la t1H' 'nEi r i n Vie t i~<>m . ':r·1e r.1 Ri rr p:-~.rt o f t h :> t c:>ur will beg in on or a round th '" w.H:ok en d o f A:r-rJl ; :;, 'i'h~ f nllowing p:Dcef:: hev e alr early heen t e n tati ve l.y s che<lu led : Durhac:- Ct apf•1 Hi l l , Gr e en s bo r o, Ncr th Cc-:!roJ.i ru:.. , Ln ox vi: l e-n'\.ty Mar y vil le , I'enne c.;s f'e , Lus t Colleg e ( Hol ly Springs , t~isE; .) Baton ko '.tge , Loui '5i a na , New Or l e a ns , Fa~'et t evi l l e , ,\rka nsas , a n d s eve ral n laces in ':.: exas . Tl.1ree o tber pr obabl e 1;t 0ps a r e At J a nta , 'J'us }:eg c e, 13.nfl ~1emphis .

.'Jr.t'..lr d.J. :V :lft. ~ rr:l)or. wcs r p er: t :! n r-: ix vw !'k ­s h c p f' : I.nnlemf,n t&ticn < •• f th~-~ Civil Ri ghta J3j 11, .C'nverty, · Pea.c ~ , Hni v ur si ty R~fomt, Lcbor llr:io:-.s, an<'! T:1to:d als . ft'0r~ "hop l eade r s we r·e r;or:-aan Hi :l.l o f U>e AFI.-CIO, .Tes<:;e Mor'!'l.~ f Dir~C i;C'r 0f :F'ed l"ra.J .?rogram6 :'or t h e Counci l of Ji'€ dera t Pd Cr~e.niza t i ona ( CO~'O ) , ~illiAm J effries , l .meric t.n fri e nd.:.; ..:. l':' rv~ce Commi t t eP. , Pa u l Boo t l-t, 'Pt::a.ce:. 'Rt:­sc~rch ~duca ti on }rojec t o f 3tu i ents ! or a lJcnoc r a t i c .S r;c ie ::y, Mr . J ..:: rry Levine, Cher.1 ic"ll lrlorkers l! "l.i on, 'ln<'l id che. e l L nrler, ~~ Na tion~l St ude n t Ass oc1e ticn. Other ~· ~:>sourcE> ~)er~3or ... s i.1~ l ilrl.e d 1\ic:ta:r.C: Rc:mscy, .:.rr. e .d c un i''r i ends ~en•ir'e Commi t tee , Conr a d .Jrowne , H.1.r.:h le.nde r Cen~er·, .St e v e We i ssma n 1•'r e e .Sp e e c t ~1cvem en t , '.!a H e r 'l'i : low, .Stu-

lrlent Non Vi ol€nt Coordi nat ing Com'Ti i tte eo, Al Ul.11"'r, [;.o ~ tth ern riegiona1 Council , a nd James Lay ~s , Na ticnal Sharecrcppe r~ FurLd.

The Coordi.nat:i n r: Corumi. ttee c umpoc.ed of on e o.e l eg 3.t e f r om 0ach camrus g rcup :net t h r oup;hout t h e afterr~oon on S& t urday to

heriy We s t, poru l a r f olk ~:i nger \·.'ho ha n a n album ou t on Pte Vf.l.ngua r d label ma y tour wi t h Ste ve . The Sou t h ern Studer~t Cr~ani ·· zing Committ~e will. also t e <U'rtJ ng;in,~

~eparate cngc:.gement.s f or i·'lis s \'Jest . J dr a w u p tiH' o ff i cic1l c 0nference O.ocurnent

( Gcn t i nuc d on page 2) • •

SPRING CONF'E:RE.;KC:E:, coilt.

which was read and passed by the con­ference body on Sunday morning . The statement said in part, 11As students living in this gener<:t tion and believilll) in the dignity of all mankind, we affirm our belief in a new South that will bring democracy and justice to all its people. The goals that we would work for are:

1.

2.

Accomplishment of a completely integrated society, and the rise of full and equal opportunity for all.

An end to personal poverty and deprivation.

2

In the.midst of the . .Selma. Voter Ree;io- • trntion Campnicn_ nnd .. Alo.brunn' s sava()e response to it, Hammermill paper company. of Erie,-Pennsylvanitl,. nnnounced that.it would locato.a $35 million paper mill in Selma. The decision to locate in Selma, according to the Hammermill president Donald s. Leslie Feb. 4, was based on the "fine reports" the company had received about "the character of the community and its people."

Hammermill's decision may have been based on Governor George Wallace's agree-

' ment to use the credit of the state of An end to "public poverty" which Alabama to help finance construction leaves us without decent housing, not only of the plant but also of access schools, parks, medical care, roads, inland docks and-a now- br-i.dg.e and communities. under a procram which would employ partly

4. A d t . · t h l"t" federa l as well as state funds. emocra ~c soc~e y w .. ere po. ~ ~cs. poses '1 meaningful dialogue, and The Student Non Violent Coordinating Com-

where each man has a voice in the mittee (SNCC) has called for a nation wide decisions that affect men's boycott of the Hammermill Company. John lives. Lewis, Chairman of SNCC, stated in a let­

6.

A world working toward the easing of the t ensions of the Cold vJar with positive emphasis on peace and world wide understanding.

An end to man's inhumanity to man.

Other business included adoption of by­laws and the election of officers for 1965-66. The newly elected officers are: Chcdrman, Hownrd Romaine, University of Virginia; Vice-Chairman, Howard Spencer, Rust College; Secretary, Herman Carter, Southern University, and Treasurer, Roy Money, Vanderbilt University. The conference body voted to endorse the March on Washington to End the \tJar in Vietnam, April 17.

ter to a Hammermill Executive:

"We are convinced that a boycott of your products is necessary, in view of the fact that you have received public protests of your decision to build in Selma and have not, so far as we know, responded to them as we believe you should.

"We call on you to r everse wha t we r egard as your tacit support of r acist policies of the of ficials of Alabama and Se lma. Your refusal to do so may well be inter­preted by the public as a blatant dis­regard not only for your own interests but for the interests of freedom, jus­tice and democracy in this country."

SPRING CONFERENCE, cont. A newly elected Executive Committee consis­ting of two pers ons from each state met 2. A newsletter to act as the central

1---------I~·t~m~neertdiatery following-the~st-co~~~~r------&.~nfl~~~~*ffi~~Ga~~~~~~~a_------~--~

s ession on Sunday morning to discuss the plans for specific programs for the summer and fall. The program adopted is as fol-lm,rs:

1~ A campus traveler program to en­courage local s tudent groups to work on i ssues r elevant to their campuses as well as to become a part of the broa der movement for freedom in the South. It is hoped that we can eventually have one traveller for each sta te. The duties of the travel er a r e : a . Inform college s tudents about

acti vities on other Southern campus es .

b. Assist students in evalua tion of t heir loca l s itua tions.

c. Encourage s tudent involvement i n issues re l evant to the l oca l s ituation.

d . Assi st s t udents in thP. :i mple ­mentation of t heir own loca l progr ams.

4.

student groups. It will publish r eports on t he various types of acti­vities of local action groups on Southern campuses. In addition, the newsletter will t ry to encouraGe discussion of iss ues r elevant t o the building of a new and just order in the South.

Initia t e programs a nd help local campus groups and advise SSOC con­tacts of opportunities to participa te in proj ects in ar eas of poverty , desegr egati on, univer s ity r eform , capi t a l punishment, peace , l abor unions , a ca demi c f r eedom, and unem­ployment.

Confer ences--sta t e , r egiona l, and sout hwide , to kindle inter est and partid pa tion in t he i ssues which conf~·ont the South , the nation , and the world.

3

Statewide Group Forme£ in West Virgini~

Students Now for Action and Progr ess

I The Appalachian Conference

(SNAP) has been formed by students from West Virginia State, Concord, Bluefield State College and Marshall University. SNAP is a statewide coalition of student organizations to bring about meaningful changes in the existing political, social, and economic con~itions. The major concern~ of the group shall be in the areas of civi~ rights, education, poverty, and peace. The I methods t o be used shall be those of re­search, negotiation, and direct action. A basic outline of the program is:

A. Civil Rights '

1. State civil rights legislation I with the establishment of a Fair 1

Enployment Practices Commission. 1

2. Desegregation of the state I school system. ·

"Beca use of the te .hnological r evolut ion occuring in our nation and the increasing inequality of the distribution of the benefits from that technology, there is great need for people to organize and control their own destinies." (Statement of Organization, Appalachian Economic & Political Action Conference) The Appa­lachian Conference is a bringing together of twelve organizations to begin organ­izing of poor in Appalachia.

Appalachia covers nine states where 15 million people live. Of these, one and a half million are unemployed. There a re four main reasons for working in Appala­chia:

, 1. The federal government has

stand against unemployment poverty.

taken a and

3. Open neighborhoods in regard to I housing.

4. Complete intec ration of all hos- I . pital f acilities and staffs.

2. There is the oppor tunity for a strong alliance between Negroes ahd whites to solve their common problems.

B. Education

1. Academic fre edom for both stu­dents and professors.

2. The up-grading of t eachers' s alaries on the college level.

3. Establishment of a statewide tutoria l service.

4. Establishment of a ·statewide system of free adult education.

c. Poverty

3. The union movement has been a strong tradition for change in that area.

4. The people of Appalachia have acute poverty and intimidation thus offering a r eal potential for organizing .

The coordinator for the Appalachian Con­ference is Buford Posey, a native of Philadel phia, Mississippi. In June of

1. Organizing self-help programs this past year Mr. Posey was forced to with the people in poverty- l eave his home to avoid being killed by stricken areas. ~· the Ku Klux Klan after he learned the

2. Assisting the ap~ropriate privat names of seven of the slayers of Chaney, and public officials in c ombatin Goodman, and Schwerner, and gave t his youth problems. information to the FBI.

D. Peace This week SSOC r eceived a l e tter f r om

1. Realizing t ha t war cannot win peace, but only annihilate man­kind, we strongly advocate the settlement of national and inter national preblems- through non­violence, and peaceful negot i a­tions.

Acting chairman is Pat Austin, 1643 Ninth Avenue, Huntington, West Virginia, 125701

~UOTED WITHOUT COi'1M:&l\fT • • •

Mr. Posey which r ead in part: "The total finances of the Appa l achian Conference now are exactly $72.03. Unless we r eceive additional funds from our sponsors immediately, we shall be

1 forc ed to sus pend oper ations." ' I f you wish to help or would like further information v!rite :

Appalachian Economic & Politica l Action Conference

1900 McCalla Avenue Knoxville, 'l'ennessee 37915

11\tJhat t hen of the man of freedom? He is t he man who aspires to stand his ground in the world, who values the necessary deed more highly than a clear conscience or the duties of his ca lling , who is r eady to s acrifice a barren principle for a fruitful compromise or a barren mediocrity for a fruitful radicalism. Wha t then of him? He must beware l est his freedom should become his own undoing . For in choos ing the l esser of two evils he may fail to s ee that the greater evil he s eeks to avoid may prove the l esser. Here we have the raw material of tragedy."

--Dietrich Bonhoeffer

QUESTION OF THE MONTH: \rJha t i s purple and will never be????

(See page 3 for the answer)

"Advocates of the Beginning" ~r,'-';?-nized nt_ March_all Uni::_~rsi_!y

4 Volunteers In Service To America

i Campus political partie,c:; are springing up I' VISTA spells war on poverty. It means r.:m on southern campuses in an amazing number. active corps of full-time volunteers who A rec ent party formed at Marshall Univer- have launched an all-out effort to combat sity in Huntingdon, Virginia was known as the forces of despair which threaten the Advocates of the Beginning. The r..dvoca tes heart of Anv:rica. stated in their platform: "We offer a plan incorporating revision and expansion of present programs- .,.,i th initiation of ne"' phases of studGnt government activity. With active participation by students, these proposals will constitute the Begin­ning of Marshall's Finest Houl'."

Called Volunteers in Service to America, VISTA is one of the major anti-poverty programs established by the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964. It involves full commitment in the most civilized effort of our time and provides a volun­teer with the knowledge that he ha d ser­Ted both his'nation and his . fellow man. The Advocates' platform had three sections

Revision, Expansion, and Initiation. Their platform included Revision: elimination of Volunteers are people who have agreed to dormitory curfew for ~unior and senipr work \>lith persons in disadvant'3.c:~d e.reas

' to improve their living st:Br..( ~· _.: , ; -;~ Ti1sir women, quiet enforced in library, commen- goal is to break the vin:'.ous c:;c}e of pov­surate pay for men and women dormitory erty and they are especiAlly trained by counselors, availability of single meal cafeteria tickets, dormitory lobbies open VISTA to accomplish this. until 1:00 on vreekends and on Sunday VI.STA offers a dual challenge to t\10 age mornings. Expansion: increc:Jsed r ese'3.J'Ch groups . For a rec ent high school or col-grants , phyGical i mpr ovements on car.1pus, l ege grad1~3.te it o ~'f ers an exci ti:1g ex-syllabus of student cources by secti<"'n ( perience wil::.t;h could possibly pave the way instructors under advisory system, s:1eciall for a future C<;>.re.:'Jr. For the older val­activity fee arrsngement for married stu- unteer, many of whom may come out of re­d~nts, and evaluation of campus cov~ses, tirement to serve, it vrovides the know­textbooks, and faculty int0rests. I2?·~ic~- le·Jge they are ,~.sbg their ~,risdom and !_io!!: student government vlhite pa'!'E: ... ·s on ! talents to great:!y affect the nation'"s C'3Il·F•-ts defi?iences,. srecial monti::1.y '! economy and its people . s enate meet~ngs des~gned for aud~cnce f VTST ' ' ld' · 1 . . . Boot camu or - .~ s so ~ers ~nvo ves rcact~on, pres1dent1al press confer ences, , ·. k f 1 . d ~ t' -· - . . • four to s1x wee s o so l evuca ~on Jn student government sponsorsh~p of fore~gn I . ~ f ., f h d' . 1 bl t the effects of _pcverty and how to com .Jat 1lms, a rce speec po 1urn ava1 a e o . . · ~ ~-h

11 t d t t 11 t. d t d f ~t. The volunt P.er 15 un::od to adap u .. e a s u en s a a 1mes, an a s u y o . ·: . d _ ~ · '- --

ff h · f f • d . sk1lls they !:ave to the ;oo an co.lu:t " 1 •. ons o campus ousJ.ng or sa e.Ly an pr~ce . 11 1 . . . th f' -1 d T, · ·

b'l't they w~ l '1.0. :t.n e J. ·) • .. us ;;r o.u~-reasona J. 1 y. . ·· · . ing is prov1ded by r r ofess1onals who have

jdone identical wcrk themselves and who Danie Stewart, presidential candidate of Advocates of the Beginning, and active in civil rights activities published a small leaflet \,ri th this statement: l

ean soundly evaluate it.

.Eligibility is open for anyone who is over

118 and is willing to commit one year of

"VIhat if Danie makes it --- and he demon-

1. service to VI.STA's domestic peace corps.

strates? Well, what of it? Perhaps you've . . . . . . th ,.ht f d t t · f h · ht A.dd1 banal ~nformahon may be obta~ned by

oug o emons ra 1on or . uman r1€ s I .. . VIS'rA Office of E · yourself. Perhaps you haven't. But whetherlwr~t1ne . ' . conom

1c

you would or you wouldn't you can 't say Opportun1ty, wash~ngton, D.C~ , -~-that Dan±-e~:st taHcs-- and--do-esn-'~ - - ---- ~---~~-- --

see , Danie is some kind of nut or some-thi.n6 . He believes that if you bell eve in somethine, you should act on it and not jus t sit around and cry in your beer about it. Danie doesn't get a kick out of demo~strating •••• he only believes in demc~strations as a l ast resort but it is n t;cessary sometimes -- there ' s no getting around tha t fact . And so , the question

A new campus political party has been or3ar.ized at the University of Tennessee, The "Fr<::E: Party" proposes cha:-.s;es in policy on U'l' housing , stu•:"<mt organizations, ROTC and other matters.

on everyone 's mind is, 'Will he or won 1 t . he? 1 \/ell, he might -- not as the prosi- 1 lillswer. tc . the .quc<st;i.an of the month:

·· dent of Marshall University student body, f • but as an incividua l of action and princi-l ple. Sorry , but he can ' t sacrifice pri- ) ns iple for anyone or anything"! I The Advocates of the Beginning didn't win the election at Marshall Univers ity. Cmu-­pus politica l ,arties that advocate s uch programs seldom do . But another student body has been chal1eiJged . It ' s happened a t Floricla , Virgj niR , Tt::rmcssee , \ves t ern Kentucky State , and the Univc L·c.i Ly of J-l.r-kA nsas •

THE GR. .PE SOCIETY! II II

Our t hanks to Connie Curry for the QUes tion of the Month . C~nnie says "I made it up all by mys elf."

The SSOC News l etter needs articles . Send crunpus news to P.O . Box 6403, Na~1vllle , Tenness ee , 37212

•

.South Carclina .Stu·len ts i'~ee ~

On the weekend of April 2-4 the South Carolina Student Council of Hwnan Relations met under moss covered trees at the Penn Conference Center at .i:"rogmore, South C-s.rnlina. .3t.udents from 15 South Carolina crua!JUSP.S were p!"'esent f.or the meeting ~:hich was enti t:P-d "Stud~nts In Action ;r:n Col!l· .. unHy And On Campus . 11

On Friday nicht a. man from the Office cf Economic Opportunity spoke on the War on roverty .9.nd its varjous aspects. He -..•as infonned and a.rticulate and discussed some of U :e weC!.knesses 0f the program when questioned. ~orne ques tioning centered arm.:nd the ''radica:11 dimension of the poverty !>l'Ograrn - th oe part id pat ion of the' poor themselves on locc l community $Ction committe~s. He C')rlged rath~r tr:an answere o_uestions cor!cerr.ir.g p;ua:r-antees of parti.ci r~tion by the poor.

~aturday morning bP.gan with a panel dis­cussion of poverty. In t:he after"l.OOl'l t he:·e v:as a pane l discussion of ''Ise:ues in 1-Iigher Edt<Cri tion". Both panel ,iiscussions were f ollowed b,y small dl.<.Cul="sion groups.

On Saturday night ther·e was a pa.nel dis­cusoion of summer orportunit:.ea followed by singing. 'The coz:ference ended with election of officers ru1d a service of \<10.:-'ship.

All in all, there were many· good i<.'!eaG rai~ed and c~rta.inly Many student~ w"hu have bf'en or who wi:J.l be ac tive on t heir campuses.

Gen€' ·:Juerrero ------------·

Travelling through Micsie::sippi Jane StP.mbridge composed "'l:he Peoples Wants F'reedom." She would like to share with you her thoughts as Jane relates them about the poor people she met and photographed.

X., About no jobs.

6~ percent of a ll the peoples in America w~o could work can't

Because there isn't any jobs for them

the reason that there i.sn 1 t any jobs for them

is because other peoplt!s runs everything

they like to . they can't let the peoples -run

themFelves because then they wouldn't have nothing to I'Ull

no pecples to run no Cadillac car

They would jus t have to run thcmselve they don't like that because they don't like themselves which takes money Ah Ha So they gets all the money t hey can ~htch me~s &orne people don't get anj And also they use the newspapers

they own and the T.V. and other devices to stir up the reoples f or uar And meanwhile they stir up the senate And house and generals and various

white western imp0rialistic and paranoid

groupe

And we go to Vietnam and the money for ~cbs

goes ':.o guns

which are made by the peoples with cadillac cars. Which means they can now buy ano the.r canillac ca:r.·

with t he money they~~~~

the srune money that coul d have ma ae jobs

Almost two million dollars a day in Vietnam

not to mentton

dead children ' •• JvTI SoMe OF ft4'(

BEST Rft'HPS A«l ••• , Copies of this po~m c=tnd others from the

collection "Th!> Peoples Want Freedan11

'lre available f ran t he .ssoc of fice, ' j Box f)IT03, Nas hvill e, Tenn~osee .

,:. .,. .,

' ... ' . . 7

March on Washington to F..nd the iinr ~~will be: Senator Ernest Gruening, Demo-in Vietnam · era t f rom Alaska, Iva Pearce, mother of

April 17 will v.ritness thousands of people lfive from the Cleveland Community pro­conv.erging on the Capitol protest inr; the lj ect,. Bob Parris, SNCC Field Secretary, Johnsein Admihistration's War in Vietnam paul Potter, president of SDS, and I.F'~ and calline for an end to th~t ,11ar. The ;stone, publisher of I.F. Stone 1 s weekly. March, \vhich was initia t ed by Students fo~ At 3:30 march .:ors will proceed down the a Democratic Society, i s designed to focu mall ~o.the Capitol Building to pres ent att ention on the undemocratic r egime in a pet~t~on t~ Coner~ss and the buses South Vie tnam and in terms of the undemo- and ~ra~ns w~ll beg~n to depart from cratic proces s es by which the decis ion to Wash~ngton at 5:00 p.m •

.. partieipa t e in that war W3.S made in this - country. In its call to march, the SDS stated: "The cur rent war in Vietnam ~ .s 1 being waged in behal! of a succes sion of WHO IS LILLIAN SMITH? cont . unpopula r South Vietnamese dicta torships,! not i n behalf of f .· e€,dom. No Am erican Anyway, the f amous ones of America r ead supported Sout h Vietnamses r egime in the us and encouraged us , and now and t hen

=past few yearG h<::ts eained the support of Mrs. ~oosevelt (and her husband) helped its people, for the slinple reason the t th us when the FBI made life shaky for us. people over v:helrningly .,.1ant peace, self We were banned at the post office in determination, and the opportunity for Atlant a once and t he ·police swooped down developnent. Am erican proc.ecution of the and got copies of "this t errible little war has deprived t hem of all t hree . , paper" and s howed it to the Mayor and the

. novernor--and we had quite a hilarious The war ~s fundamentally a £i!i1 war, time of it. It was all great fun to us waged by South Vietnames e against their we didn't scare easily · · ' government; it is not o. 11war of agres sion. 1

. • • • . . All th~s material--letters and a full

M~~~tary assis t anc7 from North Vietnam an s et of South Today--is in t he Manuscript Ch~na has been min~al; mos t guer r ill a Coll ection of the Univer s ity of Florida

- weap~ns ar e home~mede or ar e captured s o when the two white boys burned Lilli~n kner~~an arms. The a reas of s tronges t Smith's house and s tudy in 1955 thes e guerr~la control are not the areas adjac were not destroyed a lthough el even thou­cent to North Vietnam. And t he people sand l etters wer e ~urned and four or five could not and cannot be isolated from the manuscripts, and her house and her gue: r i llas by f orced settlement in ;'s tra- paint ings and her prized b~oks wer e teg~c haml ets" ; again and agai n Govern- los t ment military a ttacks f il because the • people t i p off the guerrill as; the people l But life goes on, on the mountain, and and the querrillas a r e inseparable. Each although Mi ss Lil has canc 0r, she doesn't r epr essive Government policy, each napalm turn away a s tudent who wants to come · bomb, each inGt anc e of tortur e , cr eat es to see her, unless she is i n one of her mor e guerrillas . Further, \vhat f orei gn crises ; she has sai d , "Tell them t o keep · weapons the guerri l l as have obt ained are i n touch ; I hope t hey are finding l ife small arms , and are no match for t he as adventurous as we di d--and as sat is-bo b d h l . t fying ." m ers an e ~cop ers oper a ted by t he Am ericans. The U. S . government i s t he only f orei gn government t ha.t ha s sent .. B~cause,she is inter es t ed i n you, in ma jor weapons to Vie tnam •••• The facts !your s earch for excellenc e , because _of th~ war .,hay ~n-systerna tica l ly ccvn- she hopes you 'tlill not s top unti l you ceal ed by the r . s . government for years , i find the Orphic truth about yoursel ves , making it a}pear as if thos e expenditur es ,.. ·your South , t he human condition , she is have been haiping the Vietnamese peopl e . g~v~ng part of her profi ts from Our Fac es, These f actor s erode the honesty and Our Words to you. decency of Am er i can pol i tica l l i fe , and make democracy a t home i mpossible . ~ve

ar e out r aged tha t ~2 million a day is ex­pendAd for war on the poor in Vi e tnam , while government f inancing is eo desrer­a t ely needed to abol ish poverty a t home . What kind of Am erica is i t whose r espons e t o poverty and oppr ession in South Vic::t­nam i s napa lm and defolia tion, whose reeponse t o poverty and oppression in Missi ssi ppi is • • •• · silence?

Lillian Smith has offer ed to donate 10% of the proceeds from her new book , ~ Faces,~ Words , t o the Souther n Student Organizi ng Committee (SSOC).

. (Publ i sher: W. W. Norton Company, !New York , New York ). See review in 'the February News l etter .

--- ---·- ·-· - --- --···---- ---- ----CHJ.NGE OF ADDRESS? Participant s of the March wi ll assembl e

at the \fuit e Hous e a t 10 : 00 a .m. and will form a picket line until 1 : 30 p .m. At The SSOC Newsl etter will not be 2 :00 they vd l l march to the Sy .L\' o r" Th e::d .c<. puhJished during the s umm er months . for a r ally . 'l'he s 1,<:n l r< ·1: s :'I t thA :J. olly PJ ease l e t us know now if you will be

' changing Rc1dresses next f all , and if possible , s end i n your new address .

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Af'SC PLANS SUMMER

TUTORIAL PROJECTS

A new kind of tutorial proj ect has been initiated by the Southeastern reeion of the American Friends Service Committee (AF'SC). The program is designed to prepare Negro school chil­dren for a smooth transition into desegregated school situations in the f all. Volunteers will be assi@ned to communities in Southside Virginia, North and South Carolina for six to eight weeks. In addition to tutoring himself, the volunteer may also super­vise a program involving local volun-

:: t eer tutors.

The summer project is jointly sponsored by the College Program and the School Desegregati.on Program of th_e South­eastern regional office. Staff from the regional office will orr anize the orientation session to provide hel~ with specific tutoring materials and techniques and will visit participants in the field once a week.

For additiona l information write to the AFSC, P.O. Box 1307, High Point, North Carolina .

SDS AT WESTERN KENTVGKY

PUSHES FOR STUDENT GOVERNMENT

~ . '

Do you have your constitutionally guaranteed rights of freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of the press, and freedom from search without a warrant at Western? This question and others challen~in~ the administration policies have been raised by the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) chapter ~t Weater~ Kentucky State College in Bawling Green, Kentucky. In a leaflet distributed recently at the Western campus, the SDS posed such questions as "The administra­tion thinks it has the right to "police" students. Both dorms and off campus

'housing they believe, are subject to search without a warrant. Call it ~room inspection' or a 'dean's raid', it is

- thee same thing,- a degrading scorn of your constitutional right to freedom from search without a warrant. v/hat can be

• done about this sad state of affairs? A strong student government would be a step."

The brochure then listed time and place for a meeting to discuss a student government. Could this be the beginning of another campus political party?

The SOUTHERN STUDD~T ORGANIZING COMMITTEE is a group of southern students who have united to work for a democratic South. When students work together instead of in isola tion, effective change can be brought about. The SSOC believes in the New South. We believe that the South has a unique opportunity to prove tha t men can live together free from hate, want, and fear.

If you wish to subscribe to the SSOC Newsletter, please return this form.

NAME SCHOOL --------------------------MAILING ADDRESS ---------------------PHONE ______ _

I am enclosing $ ______ contribution..,.for. the Newsletter.

Please return to:

Southern Student Organizing Committee Box 6403 Nashville, Tennessee 37212

Richard Haley CORE Southern Office 2209 Dryades Street New Urleans ,

-~-- I..cul.:La .. :i ~ __ 7_QJ ..l_3_

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