THE CONNERS of WACO: BLACK PROFESSIONALS in TWENTIETH CENTURY TEXAS by VIRGINIA LEE SPURLIN, B.A., M.A

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

THE CONNERS of WACO: BLACK PROFESSIONALS in TWENTIETH CENTURY TEXAS by VIRGINIA LEE SPURLIN, B.A., M.A THE CONNERS OF WACO: BLACK PROFESSIONALS IN TWENTIETH CENTURY TEXAS by VIRGINIA LEE SPURLIN, B.A., M.A. A DISSERTATION IN HISTORY Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Texas Tech University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Approved ~r·rp~(n oj the Committee li =:::::.., } ,}\ )\ •\ rJ <. I ) Accepted May, 1991 lAd ioi r2 1^^/ hJo 3? Cs-^.S- Copyright Virginia Lee Spurlin, 1991 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation is a dream turned into a reality because of the goodness and generosity of the people who aided me in its completion. I am especially grateful to the sister of Jeffie Conner, Vera Malone, and her daughter, Vivienne Mayes, for donating the Conner papers to Baylor University. Kent Keeth, Ellen Brown, William Ming, and Virginia Ming helped me immensely at the Texas Collection at Baylor. I appreciated the assistance given me by Jene Wright at the Waco Public Library. Rowena Keatts, the librarian at Paul Quinn College, deserves my plaudits for having the foresight to preserve copies of the Waco Messenger, a valuable took for historical research about blacks in Waco and McLennan County. The staff members of the Lyndon B. Johnson Library and Texas State Library in Austin along with those at the Prairie View A and M University Library gave me aid, information, and guidance for which I thank them. Kathy Haigood and Fran Thompson expended time in locating records of the McLennan County School District for me. I certainly appreciated their efforts. Much appreciation also goes to Robert H. demons, the county school superintendent. ii To Will Stanton, Veola David, G. H. Radford, Bonnie Mitchell, B. Wesley Austin, R. J. Houston, Dolly Scott, D. H. Seastrunk, Oscar Reese, Esther Thomas, Henry Arnic, M. P. Harvey, and Ruth Kennedy who provided me with helpful details, I am most indebted. For my dissertation committee members, I should like to express heartfelt thanks for giving me guidance. The membership included Professors Alwyn Barr, the chairman, Paul Carlson, Robert Hayes, Allan Kuethe, Otto Nelson, and Warren Walker. Joan Weldon helped me tremendously by typing the final draft of this dissertation in her usually impeccable style and I am grateful for her assistance. My appreciation for the history classes which inspired me to this doctoral effort is in direct proportion to the greatness of two of my former professors. In memory of David Vigness and Ernest Wallace, I can express only a profound sadness that my final work at Texas Tech University will not be judged by them. The largest debt of gratitude is to my parents, R. J. and Effie Spurlin, who always have provided me with enthusiastic encouragement and support. To them, I dedicate this dissertation. Ill TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ii PREFACE V CHAPTER I. FAMILY AND YOUTH OF GEORGE CONNER 1 II. FAMILY AND COMMUNITY LIFE IN WACO 21 III. JEFFIE ALLEN CONNER 36 IV. MEDICAL PROFESSION OF GEORGE CONNER 53 V. SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS LIFE 77 VI. CLUBS AND FRATERNAL ORGANIZATIONS 97 VII. PROFESSIONAL LIFE OF JEFFIE CONNER 113 VIII. CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVITIES OF THE CONNERS 132 IX. C0NCLUSI0N--IMP0RTANCE AS INDIVIDUALS 161 BIBLIOGRAPHY 168 IV PREFACE On August 11, 1990, blacks from the central Texas area held a seminar at Paul Quinn College to discuss the topic of "African American Males; An Endangered Species." Lester Gibson, a member of the Waco municipal council and vice president of the McLennan County chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, served as a panelist. During the discussion Gibson stressed that blacks must comprehend their role in history. Instead of adopting the history of white Americans as theirs, blacks can improve their self worth by realizing their importance in American and world history. He emphasized that black children can rediscover role models when black communities revitalize themselves through development of businesses, industries, educational facilities, and churches. 1 To learn more about their own history and thus to discover role models certainly would seem beneficial to blacks as well as other ethnic groups. The purpose of this dissertation, then, is to contribute to that process by presenting two black professionals, George and Jeffie Conner, who resided in Waco during the twentieth century. The Conner story will return the reader to a time of prejudice, racism, and a struggle for equal rights. As the chronicle of their lives unfolds, I hope this dissertation will do justice to the Conners' legacy and will serve as an analysis of the era in which they lived. George Sherman Conner was born before the end of the Civil War in Tennessee- His parents, who had been free blacks before the war, encouraged George to receive an education. He became a teacher, but soon changed professions and studied to be a doctor. After graduating from Flint Medical College in New Orleans, George and his wife, Mattie, established their home and his practice in Waco. I have sought to assess the influence of free black family status on George's opportunities to advance his status. At the beginning of this century, blacks in Texas found their lives little different from those in any other part of the South. Segregation of whites from blacks existed in Waco as surely as the Brazos River divided the city in half. Blacks, for the most part, settled in east Waco although a few had homes scattered throughout the southern and northern sections of the city near the business district. Some whites had homes close to the center of town also, but the majority of middle and upper class whites maintained their residences in the western part of Waco at a distance from the blacks. The development of the black middle class in VI Waco serves as a possible case study of what happened in Texas and southern towns in the twentieth century. George spent over forty years as a physician in this segregated environment. He treated such diverse diseases as the common cold, pneumonia, and high blood pressure. He delivered many babies in both the black and Hispanic communities and insured a healthy beginning for all of them. Always he maintained a professional attitude which endeared him to his patients. Because of his professionalism, his black colleagues elected him president of their county medical society. George repaid them by giving generously of his time to the society and by delivering speeches on medical topics at the local churches and schools. My effort has been to clarify both the professional career of George and the economic status which resulted from his role. David McBride's book. Integrating the City of Medicine; Blacks in Philadelphia Health Care, 1910-1965. allowed me the opportunity to draw some comparisons between northern and southern medical care. After the death of his first wife, George married Jeffie Obrea Allen. During their married life, both participated in cultural and social affairs in the black community. They attended New Hope Baptist Church and became actively involved in various fraternal organizations and clubs, such as the United Brothers of Friendship, Masons, vii and Texas Association of Women's Clubs. An understanding of these activities provides insight into the development and functions of black middle class organizations and institutions. William Muraskin's book. Middle-class Blacks in a White Society; Prince Hall Freemasonry in America, provided me with helpful conclusions about fraternal organizations. Even though the two enjoyed sharing many activities, Jeffie still maintained a separate, professional career. She had been born to educated parents in a rural community near Waco. After attending a girls' school, Mary Allen Seminary, in Crockett, Texas, she entered Prairie View State Normal and Industrial College. Jeffie received a degree and began to earn her livelihood as teacher. At the time she met and married George, she already had changed her career from teacher to that of home demonstration agent with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Several years later a promotion in her job caused her to travel throughout east Texas as a supervisor of other agents. Her career offers a better understanding of the roles which were possible for middle class black women of the period. During the time that she was away from home, George wrote her approximately three hundred letters. This correspondence gives an insightful study of black existence in Waco in the 1920s and 1930s. The letters exhibit viii examples of social, political, and economic problems which confronted George and Jeffie. Significantly, the letters reveal also the humanity of both as they faced each day's agenda. One can discern easily that the power of humor was never lost with George as he described various incidents to his wife. Business matters, funerals, church services, an unwelcome visit by George's nephew, and other subjects were explored carefully for Jeffie's benefit. By 1948 Jeffie had left her job as a home demonstration agent and secured a new position as supervisor of black schools in McLennan County. She retired in 1957 and, thereafter, became a more vocal proponent for the welfare of blacks in her community. As a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, she took an active role in the civil rights movement in central Texas. Her efforts in these fields reflect success in opening new positions for black women in a time of change. Both George and Jeffie thus served the black community in various ways. He, as a physician, and she, as an educator, gave time and effort to aid their community. In religious, cultural, social, educational, economic, or political matters, they shared a concern for black advancement. Their story is a record of challenge and achievement for themselves as well as the black community.
Recommended publications
  • Southern Slave Vs. Military Laborer: Black Ambivalence Toward Joining the Union Army Lisa Clark
    Southern Adventist University KnowledgeExchange@Southern Senior Research Projects Southern Scholars 1996 Southern Slave vs. Military Laborer: Black Ambivalence Toward Joining the Union Army Lisa Clark Follow this and additional works at: https://knowledge.e.southern.edu/senior_research Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Clark, Lisa, "Southern Slave vs. Military Laborer: Black Ambivalence Toward Joining the Union Army" (1996). Senior Research Projects. 119. https://knowledge.e.southern.edu/senior_research/119 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Southern Scholars at KnowledgeExchange@Southern. It has been accepted for inclusion in Senior Research Projects by an authorized administrator of KnowledgeExchange@Southern. For more information, please contact jspears@southern.edu. Southern Slave vs. Military Laborer: Black Ambivalence Toward Joining the Union Army by Usa Clark Aprfi 17, 1996 2 Fort Sumter was under fire! The war was on! The news flashed through the cotton fields and tobacco plantations of the South. For most slaves, the commencement of the Civil War brought hope. Enslaved, oppressed, denied education and self-determination, the southern black looked with eagerness to his emancipation. In many cases, the negro slave desired to help fight his former owners, to bring down the institution of slavery. Imagine his surprise, then, upon greeting the northern army with open arms, only to be forced to serve the white officers, cook for and clean up after the troops, and perform hard, manual labor for the military. There was D~glory on the battlefield. Promises made for equal pay were broken so many times they became meaningless. The mixed emotions engendered by this reality resulted in confusion and contradiction.
    [Show full text]
  • Lyman Trumbull: Author of the Thirteenth Amendment, Author of the Civil Rights Act, and the First Second Amendment Lawyer
    KOPEL (1117–1192).DOCX (DO NOT DELETE) 5/2/16 4:20 PM Lyman Trumbull: Author of the Thirteenth Amendment, Author of the Civil Rights Act, and the First Second Amendment Lawyer David B. Kopel* This Article provides the first legal biography of lawyer and Senator Lyman Trumbull, one of the most important lawyers and politicians of the nineteenth century. Early in his career, as the leading anti-slavery lawyer in Illinois in the 1830s, he won the cases constricting and then abolishing slavery in that state; six decades later, Trumbull represented imprisoned labor leader Eugene Debs in the Supreme Court, and wrote the Populist Party platform. In between, Trumbull helped found the Republican Party, and served three U.S. Senate terms, chairing the judiciary committee. One of the greatest leaders of America’s “Second Founding,” Trumbull wrote the Thirteenth Amendment, the Civil Rights Act, and the Freedmen’s Bureau Act. The latter two were expressly intended to protect the Second Amendment rights of former slaves. Another Trumbull law, the Second Confiscation Act, was the first federal statute to providing for arming freedmen. After leaving the Senate, Trumbull continued his fight for arms rights for workingmen, bringing Presser v. Illinois to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1886, and Dunne v. Illinois to the Illinois Supreme Court in 1879. His 1894 Populist Party platform was a fiery affirmation of Second Amendment principles. In the decades following the end of President James Madison’s Administration in 1817, no American lawyer or legislator did as much as Trumbull in defense of Second Amendment.
    [Show full text]
  • African-American Parents' Experiences in a Predominantly White School
    Syracuse University SURFACE Dissertations - ALL SURFACE June 2017 Opportunity, but at what cost? African-American parents' experiences in a predominantly white school Peter Smith Smith Syracuse University Follow this and additional works at: https://surface.syr.edu/etd Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Smith, Peter Smith, "Opportunity, but at what cost? African-American parents' experiences in a predominantly white school" (2017). Dissertations - ALL. 667. https://surface.syr.edu/etd/667 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the SURFACE at SURFACE. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations - ALL by an authorized administrator of SURFACE. For more information, please contact surface@syr.edu. Abstract National measures of student achievement, such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), provide evidence of the gap in success between African- American and white students. Despite national calls for increased school accountability and focus on achievement gaps, many African-American children continue to struggle in school academically, as compared to their white peers. Ladson-Billings (2006) argues that a deeper understanding of the legacy of disparity in funding for schools serving primarily African- American students, shutting out African-American parents from civic participation, and unfair treatment of African-Americans despite their contributions to the United States is necessary to complicate the discourse about African-American student performance. The deficit model that uses student snapshots of achievement such as the NAEP and other national assessments to explain the achievement gap suggests that there is something wrong with African-American children. As Cowen Pitre (2104) explains, however, “the deficit model theory blames the victim without acknowledging the unequal educational and social structures that deny African- American students access to a quality education (2014, pg.
    [Show full text]
  • The First Confiscation Act (August 6, 1861) Freedmen & Southern Society Project
    Maria Ward’s primary document project (designed with 8th graders in mind) Student objectives: ~ The student will analyze historical documents and use this knowledge to better understand Lincoln’s actions during the Civil War. ~The student will find evidence to support Lincoln’s belief that emancipation is for the purpose of saving the Union, and that it must be done in a constitutional manner. Documents: ~Abraham Lincoln’s Letter to Horace Greeley August 22, 1862 Teaching American History Ashbrook Center for Public Affairs at Ashland University http://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?subcategory=4 ~The First Confiscation Act (August 6, 1861) Freedmen & Southern Society Project http://www.history.umd.edu/Freedmen/conact1.htm ~Excerpt from the Proclamation Revoking General Hunter’s Order of Military Emancipation of May 9, 1862 Freedmen & Southern Society Project http://www.history.umd.edu/Freedmen/hunter.htm Narrative: Students will analyze Abraham Lincoln’s letter to Horace Greeley, August 22, 1862, the (first) Confiscation Act of 1861 and an excerpt from Lincoln’s the Proclamation Revoking General Hunter’s Order of Military Emancipation of May 9, 1862 to explain and support Lincoln’s belief that the purpose of the war is to save the Union, and that any action regarding the emancipation of enslaved persons should be carried out in a constitutional manner. Narrative that is more like a lesson plan: Students will first analyze Abraham Lincoln’s letter to Horace Greeley, August 22, 1862. This letter is in response to Greeley’s open letter titled, “The Prayer of Twenty Millions” in which Greeley urges Lincoln to free the slaves.
    [Show full text]
  • Appendix B. Scoping Report
    Appendix B. Scoping Report VALERO CRUDE BY RAIL PROJECT Scoping Report Prepared for November 2013 City of Benicia VALERO CRUDE BY RAIL PROJECT Scoping Report Prepared for November 2013 City of Benicia 550 Kearny Street Suite 800 San Francisco, CA 94104 415.896.5900 www.esassoc.com Los Angeles Oakland Olympia Petaluma Portland Sacramento San Diego Seattle Tampa Woodland Hills 202115.01 TABLE OF CONTENTS Valero Crude By Rail Project Scoping Report Page 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 1 2. Description of the Project ........................................................................................... 2 Project Summary ........................................................................................................... 2 3. Opportunities for Public Comment ............................................................................ 2 Notification ..................................................................................................................... 2 Public Scoping Meeting ................................................................................................. 3 4. Summary of Scoping Comments ................................................................................ 3 Commenting Parties ...................................................................................................... 3 Comments Received During the Scoping Process ........................................................ 4 Appendices
    [Show full text]
  • 37Th Congress
    Thirty-Seventh Congress July 4, 1861-Mar. 3, 1863 First Administration of Abraham Lincoln Historical Background ............................................................................................................. 1 War or Peace? ............................................................................................................................. 2 Economic Trends and Conditions ....................................................................................... 4 1861 Events ................................................................................................................................. 5 1862 Events ................................................................................................................................. 6 Major Acts ..................................................................................................................................... 9 President Abraham Historical Background Lincoln By early June 1861, ten additional slave States had followed South Carolina into secession, and a convention of seceding States met in Montgomery, Alabama, to form a new government, the Confederate States of America. House Senate Although compromises continued to be proposed, neither the North nor the Majority Majority South really believed that they could agree to any further modification of Party: Party: their principles. President Abraham Lincoln insisted in his inaugural address Republican Republican (108 Seats) (31 seats) on March 4, 1861, that the Union was older than the Constitution,
    [Show full text]
  • Academic Search Complete
    Academic Search Complete Pavadinimas Prenumerata nuo Prenumerata iki Metai nuo Metai iki 1 Technology times 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20140601 20210327 2 Organization Development Review 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20190101 3 PRESENCE: Virtual & Augmented Reality 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20180101 4 Television Week 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20030310 20090601 5 Virginia Declaration of Rights and Cardinal Bellarmine 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 6 U.S. News & World Report: The Report 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20200124 7 Education Journal Review 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20180101 8 BioCycle CONNECT 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20200108 9 High Power Computing 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20191001 10 Economic Review (Uzbekistan) 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20130801 11 Civil Disobedience 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 12 Appeal to the Coloured Citizens of the World 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 13 IUP Journal of Environmental & Healthcare Law 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 14 View of the Revolution (Through Indian Eyes) 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 15 Narrative of Her Life: Mary Jemison 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 16 Follette's Platform of 1924 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 17 Dred Scott, Plaintiff in Error, v. John F. A. Sanford 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 18 U.S. News - The Civic Report 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20180928 20200117 19 Supreme Court Cases: The Twenty-first Century (2000 - Present) 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 20 Geophysical Report 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 21 Adult Literacy 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 2000 22 Report on In-Class Variables: Fall 1987 & Fall 1992 2021-04-01 2021-12-31 2000 23 Report of investigation : the Aldrich Ames espionage case / Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence,2021-04-01 U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • MUS 379K Spring 2018 Syllabus Draft 1
    The American Musical MUS 379K (Unique Number: 21340) T D 357T (Unique Number: 25425) Spring 2018 T/Th, 2:00-3:30pm MRH 2.610 Professor: Hannah Lewis Office: MRH 3.738 E-mail: hlewis@austin.utexas.edu Office Hours: Thurs. 9:30-10:30 (please notify me in advance), or by appointment COURSE DESCRIPTION: For much of the 20th century, musicals stood at the center of American culture, producing tunes and tales that became the hits of their day. They commented on the ever-shifting social and political landscape, while pushing musical, dramatic, and choreographic boundaries, all within the confines of a commercial industry. This course explores the musical artistry and cultural resonances of several iconic shows, as rendered on stage and screen. Focusing on seven musicals – Show Boat (1927), Oklahoma (1943), Singin’ in the Rain (1952), West Side Story (1957), A Chorus Line (1975), Into the Woods (1987), and Hamilton (2015) – we will examine musical styles alongside broad cultural themes associated with the musical, including artistic collaboration, race and representation, gender, immigration, the role of dance, and adaptation or translation across media. We will additionally take advantage of UT’s resources on campus, by attending the touring Broadway production of School of Rock at Texas Performing Arts and meeting with company members, and by exploring the archival collections at the Harry Ransom Center on two separate occasions. This course is not intended to be a comprehensive survey, but rather a window into the musical’s power to reflect and shape any given historical moment and to push artistic boundaries.
    [Show full text]
  • Private Schools for Blacks in Early Twentieth Century Richmond, Virginia
    W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 2016 Private Schools for Blacks in Early Twentieth Century Richmond, Virginia Sharron Smith College of William and Mary, sjsmi2@email.wm.edu Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the History Commons Recommended Citation Smith, Sharron, "Private Schools for Blacks in Early Twentieth Century Richmond, Virginia" (2016). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1477068460. http://doi.org/10.21220/S2D30T This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact scholarworks@wm.edu. Private Schools for Blacks in Early Twentieth Century Richmond, Virginia Sharron Renee Smith Richmond, Virginia Master of Liberal Arts, University of Richmond, 2004 Bachelor of Arts, Mary Baldwin College, 1989 A Thesis presented to the Graduate Faculty of the College of William and Mary in Candidacy for the Degree of Master of Arts Department of History The College of William and Mary August, 2016 © Copyright by Sharron R. Smith ABSTRACT The Virginia State Constitution of 1869 mandated that public school education be open to both black and white students on a segregated basis. In the city of Richmond, Virginia the public school system indeed offered separate school houses for blacks and whites, but public schools for blacks were conducted in small, overcrowded, poorly equipped and unclean facilities. At the beginning of the twentieth century, public schools for black students in the city of Richmond did not change and would not for many decades.
    [Show full text]
  • Curriculum Vitae
    Curriculum Vita ROSETTA E. ROSS, Ph.D. Spelman College 350 Spelman Lane, SW Atlanta, GA 30314 (404) 270-5527/270-5523 (fax) Education 1995 Ph.D., Religion (Religious Ethics), concentration in Christian Ethics with a focus on religion and Civil Rights activism, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. 1989 M.Div., Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. 1979 M.A., English (American Literature), with a focus on the fiction of American author Joseph Heller, Howard University, Washington, District of Columbia. 1975 B.A., English, The College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina Teaching Posts 2003-present Professor of Religion, Spelman College. Associate Professor of Religion, Spelman College (2003-2011). 1999-2003 McVay Associate Professor of Ethics, United Theological Seminary. 1994-1999 Assistant Professor of Ethics, Interdenominational Theological Center. Other Experience 2008-2009 Interim Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, Howard University Divinity School. Spring, 2006 Visiting Scholar, Africa University, Mutare, Zimbabwe. Fall, 2002 Exchange Faculty, Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota. 1996-1997 Acting Director, Black Church Studies, Candler School of Theology, Emory University. Scholarly Foci Disciplinary Studies: Religious Studies, Christian Ethics. Sub-disciplinary Topics: Ethics and Social Justice The Civil Rights Movement; Religion and Black Women’s Activism; Womanist Religious Thought; Black Women Civil Rights Activists. Black Religions and Identity Religion and African American Identity; Continental and Diasporan African Women’s Religious Identities and Engagement. Religious Studies The Academic Study of Religions; Theory and Methods in Religious Studies. Research and Publications Books and Monographs Academic African American Women in the NAACP: Religion, Social Advocacy, and Self-Regard, in preparation. Black Women and Religious Cultures, New Journal Founder and Editor, first issue, Volume 1, Issue 1, November 2020, hosted by Manifold at the University of Minnesota Press.
    [Show full text]
  • African-Americans, American Jews, and the Church-State Relationship
    Catholic University Law Review Volume 43 Issue 1 Fall 1993 Article 4 1993 Ironic Encounter: African-Americans, American Jews, and the Church-State Relationship Dena S. Davis Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.law.edu/lawreview Recommended Citation Dena S. Davis, Ironic Encounter: African-Americans, American Jews, and the Church-State Relationship, 43 Cath. U. L. Rev. 109 (1994). Available at: https://scholarship.law.edu/lawreview/vol43/iss1/4 This Essay is brought to you for free and open access by CUA Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Catholic University Law Review by an authorized editor of CUA Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact edinger@law.edu. IRONIC ENCOUNTER: AFRICAN-AMERICANS, AMERICAN JEWS, AND THE CHURCH- STATE RELATIONSHIP Dena S. Davis* I. INTRODUCTION This Essay examines a paradox in contemporary American society. Jewish voters are overwhelmingly liberal and much more likely than non- Jewish white voters to support an African-American candidate., Jewish voters also staunchly support the greatest possible separation of church * Assistant Professor, Cleveland-Marshall College of Law. For critical readings of earlier drafts of this Essay, the author is indebted to Erwin Chemerinsky, Stephen W. Gard, Roger D. Hatch, Stephan Landsman, and Peter Paris. For assistance with resources, the author obtained invaluable help from Michelle Ainish at the Blaustein Library of the American Jewish Committee, Joyce Baugh, Steven Cohen, Roger D. Hatch, and especially her research assistant, Christopher Janezic. This work was supported by a grant from the Cleveland-Marshall Fund. 1. In the 1982 California gubernatorial election, Jewish voters gave the African- American candidate, Tom Bradley, 75% of their vote; Jews were second only to African- Americans in their support for Bradley, exceeding even Hispanics, while the majority of the white vote went for the white Republican candidate, George Deukmejian.
    [Show full text]
  • National Implications: Historical View of Black School Board Members of the State of Texas Until 1985
    NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL VOLUME 23, NUMBER 4, 2006 National Implications: Historical View of Black School Board Members of the State of Texas Until 1985 Dr. James E. Ginn Dr. J D Gregory, Jr. Texas Southern University Prairie View A&M University Dr. Henry North Dr. Leola Robinson Scott Texas Southern University Southern University ABSTRACT This study is an examination of the historical, social, economic, and political profile of the state of Texas and their opinions concerning the educational issues of school integration, segregation or desegregation, staff assignment and the overall participation of Black School Board members on their perspective school boards. It indicates an enhanced growth of board members and their concerns of all students comprising the school district. Introduction lacks experienced the horrors of slavery, the war between the states of the United States to preserve the Union and the abolishment of slavery, the Reconstruction BEra, the dismantling of Reconstruction and the introduction of “Jim Crowism”, the dismantling of the “Separate but Equal” doctrine, and the emergence of Blacks into she political arena. The Black electorate, however, experienced appreciable political activity prior to the Reconstruction Era. 1 The advent of the Reconstruction Era facilitated the awareness of the Black freedmen and provided a support system which ensured the inclusion of Blacks in the political process of Texas and other southern states. 2,3 During this period, many Blacks were elected to numerous political positions and held significant positions in the Republican Party. 4 Democrats, on the other hand, made numerous 1 NATIONAL FORUM OF EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION AND SUPERVISION JOURNAL 2___________________________________________________________________________________ attempts to destroy the Republican Party and the accompanying political influence of Black Texans during Reconstruction and the subsequent years.
    [Show full text]