Title: Oral History Interview with Harold Fleming, January 24, 1990. Interview A-0363.
Identifier: A-0363
Interviewer: Egerton, John
Interviewee: Fleming, Harold
Subjects: Civil rights--Georgia    Southern Regional Council    School integration--Georgia--Atlanta    
Extent: 02:05:55
Abstract:  Harold Fleming worked with the Southern Regional Council (SRC) in Georgia from 1947 through the late 1950s. He recalls some of the opposition that group faced, particularly accusations of Communist connections. He links the Red Scare to a general fear of changing race relations throughout the South, which he started recognizing while commanding black troops in Japan during World War II. Journalist Ralph McGill helped Fleming get involved with the SRC, but McGill, like several others, could not get involved with the organization himself for fear of losing his job. Fleming compares how several of the SRC leaders, such as Charles Johnson and Lillian Smith, approached the work, and he commends President Harry Truman for taking an early stance against segregation.