The University of Southern Mississippi The Aquila Digital Community Dissertations Spring 5-2011 Race and Justice in Mississippi's Central Piney Woods, 1940-2010 Patricia Michelle Buzard-Boyett University of Southern Mississippi Follow this and additional works at: https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations Part of the Cultural History Commons, Political History Commons, Social History Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Buzard-Boyett, Patricia Michelle, "Race and Justice in Mississippi's Central Piney Woods, 1940-2010" (2011). Dissertations. 740. https://aquila.usm.edu/dissertations/740 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by The Aquila Digital Community. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of The Aquila Digital Community. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The University of Southern Mississippi RACE AND JUSTICE IN MISSISSIPPI’S CENTRAL PINEY WOODS, 1940-2010 by Patricia Michelle Buzard-Boyett A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School of The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Approved: Dr. William K. Scarborough Director Dr. Bradley G. Bond Dr. Curtis Austin Dr. Andrew Wiest Dr. Louis Kyriakoudes Dr. Susan A. Siltanen Dean of the Graduate School May 2011 The University of Southern Mississippi RACE AND JUSTICE IN MISSISSIPPI’S CENTRAL PINEY WOODS, 1940-2010 by Patricia Michelle Buzard-Boyett Abstract of a Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School of The University of Southern Mississippi in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy May 2011 ABSTRACT RACE AND JUSTICE IN MISSISSIPPI’S CENTRAL PINEY WOODS, 1940-2010 by Patricia Michelle Buzard-Boyett May 2011 “Race and Justice in Mississippi’s Central Piney Woods, 1940-2010,” examines the black freedom struggle in Jones and Forrest counties. The writer concludes that more than any other region of Mississippi, the Central Piney Woods became the pivotal theater in the war for racial justice because the intensity of its racial oppression combined with its unparalleled suffrage campaign, and watershed street protests forced a federal alliance, instigated landmark court rulings, and generated black political victories that lay the foundations for a more equitable racial order. To obtain a broader perspective on the forces that transformed racial justice over time, this community study focuses on the nexus at which the civil right struggle, massive resistance, and federal intervention converged; and it expands the typical periodization of civil rights studies to examine the racial struggle from the Jim Crow era, through the Civil Rights Movement, and into the racial landscape of contemporary times. The first stage of the modern black freedom struggle began in the Central Piney Woods on the eve of World War II as blacks capitalized on the termination of American isolationism to expose racial oppression in the South. Yet the pervasive racial police state prevented the rise of a full-scale revolt until the mid-sixties. In 1964, the black freedom struggle moved into its second stage when civil rights activists launched a decade-long revolt against the racial order that forced the dismantling of the Jim Crow state. ii Determined to address inequities unresolved by the Civil Rights Movement, the freedom struggle moved into its third stage as local blacks launched a second movement to fight for political clout, economic equity, retributive justice, and the termination of discrimination in the schools, the courts, and city government. Although the struggle transformed the Central Piney Woods into the harbinger of biracial governing, economic, educational, and infrastructure disparities persisted, and the society was still largely segregated. At the least, as blacks had acquired substantial political power and as white progressivism had grown, the Central Piney Woods had an historic opportunity to address these disparities efficaciously and to seek a racially reconciled society. iii COPYRIGHT BY PATRICIA MICHELLE BUZARD-BOYETT 2011 DEDICATION For my husband, Ricky Boyett, who, with his many personal sacrifices, his brilliant and constructive critiques of my work, his technical genius in repairing broken computers, his constant encouragement, and his unwavering love, earned this degree with me. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS While working on my doctoral degree, I received extensive guidance and resources. I was fortunate to have the steadfast support of Dr. Bradley Bond, an exemplary scholar and patient mentor. He allowed me great freedom of academic exploration, which he tempered by challenging me always to support my vision with robust rationale, to defend each argument, to define each detail, and to write with conviction and purpose. I am also in debt to Dr. William Scarborough because he assumed with great vigor all the administrative and scholarly duties that he incurred as my official chair and because he shared with me his perspective of the racial struggle in Mississippi. His candor as an evaluator and as a subject of my dissertation proved invaluable. In addition, I wish to thank Dr. Neil McMillen as he guided me through my M. A. and because his impressive scholarship inspired me to become a historian. I am grateful to The University of Southern Mississippi and RAND for providing me with grants and fellowships and to the many enthusiastic professors, archivists, and staff members who offered their aid and support. Drs. Curtis Austin, Louis Kyriakoudes, and Andrew Wiest have read through the latter drafts of my dissertation, and I appreciate their brilliant insights and guidance. Dr. Wiest, my first professor in my graduate career, has been a constant source of encouragement. Dr. Austin and Dr. Kyriakoudes, as well as Linda VanZandt and Stephanie Scull-DeArmey, helped me mine through a treasure trove of oral histories housed at the Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage, and they provided me with equipment, contacts, and wise advice when I conducted my own interviews. I also extend my appreciation to the Chair of the History Department, Phyllis Jestice, and the Graduate Director, Kyle Zelner, for their support and to the amazing Shelia Smith as she manages the department and aids students with impressive adroitness v and enthusiasm. Many archivists and staff members provided me exceptional assistance, particularly Yvonne Arnold, Jennifer Brannock, Diane Ross, Danielle Bishop, Peggy Price, and student workers who located collections housed in McCain Library and Archives and copied numerous documents so I could continue my research after business hours. Many city, county, and state employees also graciously aided me in my research, especially Gwen Wilks and Debbie Benardo. I am deeply grateful to the men and women who participated in my oral history project and allowed me to intrude upon their lives as they shared with me their experiences in Mississippi’s racial struggles. My family and friends were a constant source of unwavering support as I pursued a most circuitous career path. Donnie and Becky Boyett, Mike Highlander, Grant Kiehl, Annette Scuderi, Diane Sheehan, Julia Walsh, Kari Kruesi, and Whitney Daley extended fellowship and encouragement. I was blessed with magnificent parents, Bonnie and Robert Buzard, who cultivated my aspirations with a wellspring of wisdom and love. My mom inculcated in me a reverence for language, narrative, and human struggles by coloring my childhood with literature and theater; and my dad taught me to seek truth, honor ethics, and to exhibit tenacity in the face of adversity. I was blessed also with amazing sisters, Cindy Kiehl and Jenny Highlander, both exemplary educators. Cindy helped me ignore the ubiquitous naysayer; Jenny listened endlessly to my ideas; and both of them inspired in me a devotion to education. I wish also to thank my nana, Teresa Temple, because she believed in dreams, and she never doubted mine. I am eternally grateful to my husband, Ricky Boyett, as he listened to every thesis and narrative development of my work, repaired my technical disasters, and endured with uncommon patience the long hours and the long years I devoted to my dissertation. Without his extraordinary love, I would have never completed this journey. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... ii DEDICATION……………………………………………………………………………iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................................................................................v INTRODUCTION: THE RIGHT TO REVOLT .............................................................. ix PART I: WHITE LEVIATHAN: STATE OF TYRANNY, 1940-1963 ............................1 CHAPTER I. HERESIES: WORLD WAR II AND THE DOUBLE “V” CAMPAIGN ..2 II. INQUISITIONS: COLD WAR REVOLTS IN THE POLICE STATE ....76 III. REFORMATION: PRELUDE TO THE MOVEMENT ..........................175 PART II: BLACK REVOLT: STATE OF WAR, 1964-1974 ........................................248 CHAPTER IV. REVOLUTIONS: FREEDOM DAYS AND WHITE KNIGHTS ...........249 V. INVASION: FREEDOM SUMMER........................................................316 VI. DECOLONIZATION: LOCAL WAR OF ATTRITION.........................387 VII. INFILTRATION: THE FBI WAR ON THE KLAN ...............................457 VIII. INSURRECTION: BETRAYALS, BOMBS, AND BOYCOTTS..........523 IX. MUTINY: THE TRIALS OF THE