Political reaction to <cite>Brown</cite> in North Carolina
Giles recalls North Carolina politicians' immediate reaction to the <cite>Brown</cite> case as moderate in comparison to other southern states. He describes the Pupil Assignment Act as the prime example of the state's moderation. The Act avoided a statewide desegregation policy, calming whites' fears, but it also allowed the public to believe that they were in control of school assignments. Because the <cite>Brown</cite> case lacked the teeth to enforce desegregation on a federal level, Giles argues that states gained broad discretionary powers to preserve segregated schools.
Citing this Excerpt
Oral History Interview with Robert Giles, September 10, 1987. Interview C-0063. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007) in the Southern Oral History Program Collection, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Full Text of the Excerpt
- ROBERT GILES:
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Well, at that time William Umstead was governor, and I think North
Carolina was fortunate in having that sort of person in office at the
time. His reaction was calm and one of simply pointing out that we
don't know all of the implications of this, but we will get
along with this, and we will be doing what is sensible for North
Carolina. So even at that time I think it is correct to say, from the
state level, we had in the office of the governor an individual who was
going to set a good, calming influence rather than try to exploit the
situation. I think that characterized what I recall
as generally the attitude from the responsible state level officials.
I don't believe there was any notion or idea at the time of
exactly what to do. There was no grand scheme or anything. I think
it's correct to say that those in public office at the time,
the governor and members of the legislature, certainly did not welcome
that decision. There was no desire to see integration of the races in
the public schools whatsoever. I think, as a personal matter on most
parts, it was, "Well, this is not a good thing."
Perhaps distinguishing the attitude from that in certainly some of the
states affected, we did not have in North Carolina the bellicose type of
reaction, "Over my dead body" and so forth.
Now later, of course, in '54, November or December, Governor
Umstead died. Governor Hodges, who was then lieutenant governor, became
the governor. Even though I was not yet in Raleigh on the attorney
general's staff, my recollection at that time was, on the few
occasions when I was involved in some meetings with Governor Hodges and
others, that here was a very persuasive person, a strong personality,
and an extremely able person. I think here again his basic disposition
was here is a problem, how best to deal with it. I think his general
attitude, as well as that of the former governor, Governor Umstead, was,
"We don't want to destroy the public schools. We
want to save them and keep them because we think that's
needed by the people." That's sort of the general
atmosphere.
Now, of course, during that time, as I recall, there were various
statements and comments from people in public office, members of the
legislature, some school boards, or this or that, that reflected a much
more extreme sort of reaction. But from the state level I think it was
one of moderation. Not because they were really accepting or looking
with favor on that decision, not that at all, but that here are people
in responsible positions who just were experienced, solid, pragmatic,
and wanted to try to work out the best course possible.
- JAMES JENKINS:
-
The state leadership set a moderating example, in other words?
- ROBERT GILES:
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I think that is true.
- JAMES JENKINS:
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Then Umstead, of course, appointed Thomas J. Pearsall of Rocky Mount to
head a commission. Of course Umstead died on November 7, 1954. This
commission, as I remember, drafted the Pupil Assignment Act which was
adopted in the General Assembly of 1955. I think, among other things,
that had the purpose of telling the populace that we aren't
sitting on our hands. We're doing something. Then the General
Assembly made the Pearsall Commission a statutory body or something, as
I recall, in '55. You might just touch briefly, before we get
into the Pearsall Plan, on the Pupil Assignment Act of 1955 without
getting into particulars, just generally what it did.
- ROBERT GILES:
-
Well, my recollection—and it has been some years since I have
actually read the language and I don't know about all the
details—my recollection was that certainly the main
purpose was a legal objective. That was not to have
the State Board of Education or state level officials in the position of
seeming to be able to make decisions for every school throughout the
state so far as pupil assignments, but rather to put that at the local
level and make it clear that the state itself, from Raleigh, is not
masterminding or trying to assure a particular result. The other thing
which was recognized was that in any event this is going to be a very
serious problem for citizens generally. The matter of mixing of races in
the public schools was extremely volatile, and, after all, this really
should be handled at the local level by the people most directly
involved. A third point, I think, that was recognized is that there was
a great deal of variation throughout the state in terms of racial
composition. Many counties had a few blacks and other counties had large
numbers, approaching 50% and maybe even more. So there again I think it
was a recognition that it was desirable to get away from any state level
pattern that would be imposed upon all these diverse localities. I
don't believe there was any assumption that simply enacting
that assignment plan, there in the '55 general assembly, was
an answer or the complete answer. But keep in mind that throughout the
whole country, and particularly in the South, which was most directly
affected, that the Supreme Court decision of 1954 had little to say and
no guidance at all as to how that decision was going to be implemented.
It did have the very broad sounding phrase, "Proceed with all
deliberate speed," but it remained for other decisions by the
U. S. Supreme Court in the next few years to start
putting some flesh on the bones, so to speak. That's my
general recollection of the atmosphere.