6tamey Dianche Denies Charge He Was an Informant for FBI 1rntibee92 5117/7/ By HOWARD S. SHAPIRO instance, and I'd say, 'Listen, Of The Imvuro, aln/J pal, don't call us with this Former civil rights fire- stuff." brand Stanley E. Branche flatly denied on Sunday allega- CODE LETTERS tions that he had been a confi- FBI code letters "POI" ap- dential informant for the FBI. pear in front of Branche's The charges were made by name in the documents, but the Citizens' Commission to are undefined. Branche said Investigate the FBI, the group he had no idea what the code distributing files allegedly meant. In the other portions stolen from an FBI office in of the document, his political Media on March 8. The Com- history is sketched. mission made the charges in a Branche was unaware that cover letter accompanying the such files were released, latest packet of files. along with the committee's Branche, of Devon, was for- charges, when he was con- merly chairman of the Chester tacted by a reporter. Committee for Freedom Now "I don't like what the and former executive director FBI's doing (in its files)," of the Philadelphia Black STANLEY BRANCHE he said. "I said many times Coalition and the Greater . . . blasts Hoover I think J. Edgar Hoover's a Chester Movement. ferent people about different senile old buzzard, and the SENT TO PAPER things pertaining to the civil Philadelphia division ('of the The alleged FBI files, sent rights ,movement," Brariche FBI), doing all this ... , is to The Inquirer and other se- said in answering the charges. worse than any demonstrator lected newspapers this week- "They would come to our civil could be. cnd and bearing a Detroit rights offices periodically and "I am really not concerned postmark, reported that ask what we had planned. So how long they've followed tne, Branche was questioned on did other agencies, like the because I have done nothing May 20, 1970, by the FBI and civil disobedience squad. to be ashamed of in the civil rights movement." "advised he did not know" a we were going to march, certain ihdividual "and he I would tell them we were JAIL RECORD could furnish no information going to march. But some- Branche countered the Citi- about him." times, they'd .call and ask, zens' Commission's charge "'The FBI would call dif- 'Do you know Joe Jones?' for that the documents help -to explain why Branche is not in jail for civil rights acti- vities. He cited his jail re- cord and said: "I've gone to jail over 100 times — but not for sticking a pistol in my pocket and saying, 'This is The movement.' I'm not ashamed of anything I've ever gone to jail for." The commission also claim- ed the documents helped ex- plain Branche's verbal attack Continued on Page 9, Column 1 Branche Is Called Informant by Group Investigating FBI

Continued from Page 1 no "black activists who for- merly worked with him," probably referring to Branche's opposition to Mu- hammed Kenyatta, of the Branche said he was pres- Black Economic Development ently unemph He re- Conference. cently sold his portion of own- Kenyatta's group has le- ership in the plush Rolls Royce manded reparations f r n in Club, a center city restaurant church groups for damages in- dnd bar. flicted on blacks throughout : Among his best friends are America's aistory. Major Coxson, flamboyant "I still don't believe in lilack entrepreuner, who was knocking on a door and LAMES GORBEY i partner with Branche in throwing the sacraments on . . backed by Branche their Rolls Royce venture. the floor," Branche said Sun- 'NO MOVEMENT' day. "That's why I was op- During the last two years, posed to the whole thing." lie has not been active with NAME IN FILES divil rights organizers. He ex- He added there was "no plained this Sunday by saying daubt in my mind" that his there is no more civil rights name is in scores of files movement, dealing with civil rights : "We don't have a concerted groups in the 1960's. "They effort to fight these problems, (the FBI agents) have trailed like housing, jobs and educa- the, followed me, tapped my tion, anymore. That stopped Sthone. But if they have me when all the Federal funds ;Clown as a paid informer, came down the tine. Some- Oey'll have to prove it." - body's going to have to come -Branche speculated that the up with a new approach, and group involved in stealing the when they do, I'll be the first FBI files were the persons "I to participate." chased out of Chester years The Citizens' Commission before. Because of what they also charged that what they have said, doesn't mean I have claimed were alleged FBI- to prove something to them. I ties showed why Branche sup- ' do not condone them and they orted former Chester Mayor do not lead me. And they James H. Gorbey for a Fed• know that (their actions) isn't eral judgeship. Gorbey had my kind of schtick." been mayor during the early 60s, when violence occasion- ally swept Chester's streets during demonstrations. • "I backed him (Gorbey) simply because he had demon- Itrated compassion as a judge in Delaware County, wherein in percent of the people who came before him were black," branche said. "I'd rather have somebody there that we know, tlian somebody we don't know." Bra nchc, who recently moved to Devon from Chester, has four children: Mark, 10; Stanley Jr., 5; Wilma, 4, and 14 19b2 wnen ne took uvei L,.. Alexander, 2. He and his wife, weak NAACP there. From his Anna, are both 37. street marches, Chester be- came a leader in northern His brother, Gilbert, is as- racial unrest. After a falling- sistant chief of county detec- out with several NAACP mem- tives. under the office of the bers, he began the now-defunct Philadelphia District Attorney. Committee for Freedom Now. DEFUNCT UNIT During the 60s, when he -- Branche, a powerful orator, in the civil lights forefr...,. became well-known in Chester Branche held seminars for la..v in 1962 when he took over the enforcers on the need for civil weak NAACP there. From his rights' activities. He was a street marches, Chester be- leader of many protests, a came a leader in northern number of them against the racial unrest, After a falling- Chester School District. out with several NAACP mem- In 1967, Branche sought bers, he began the now-defunct the Democratic candidacy in Committee for Freedom Now, Chester's mayoral race, but was knocked out of the pri- mary when a court found his petition to be fraudulent. He was a controversial di- rector of the Black Coalition, a self-help job and business organization which lasted a year during 1968-69. He re- signed from his post shortly before the debt-ridden coali- tion was dissolved. Shortly after that, he faded from the civil rights scene.