life wt, Still *Y. ©ftEMILlUg, WMMA OFFICIAL RECORD OF HOSPITALIZED DEMONSTRATORS, JUNE 10th, 1963 — Danville, Virginia Albert Chambers Lacerations of head, fractured wrist, possible injury to back. Juanita White Multiple abrasions on legs and lacerations on knee. Barbara Graves Lacerations of scalp. Richard Coleman Lacerations of scalp. Hubert Graves Possible fracture or sprain of left wrist. Mary Graham Laceration of scalp. Eddie Bethel Lacerations of scalp. Floyd J. Stone Possible back injury. Frank Davis Laceration of scalp. Jessie Warren Lacerated scalp and possible dislocated shoulder. Charles Russell Multiple lacerations of scalp. Joe Wilson Injury to left knee. Ronald Walton Injury to left shoulder, scarum and coccyx. Frank Adams Swollen area right shoulder and complaints of hands hurting. Paul Price Laceration on right side head. Complains of dizziness and vomiting. An unknown number of persons were treated as outpatienTs by the staff of Winslow Hospital and discharged without a record being made of their injuries or injury. "Danville, Virginia Invites You to see motion pictures at the downtown Make Our City Your City — A Fine theatres unless they sit in the balcony; Place to Live and Work." (Chamber of they cannot sleep at the city's motels; Commerce Report, April, 1963)* their streets, for the most part, are A young Negro woman who will bear unpaved and poorly lighted; their gar­ the scars of a police billy stick on her bage is not collected regularly; and if face for the rest of her life — she ques­ they are ill — or beaten by white tions Danville as a "fine place to live police — they go to an ill-staffed and and work." A Negro man who was ill-equipped segregated hospital. beaten so savagely by police that he They can be unemployed, or work almost lost an eye, and was refused as maids, doormen and janitors; they medical attention in jail for three can be discriminated against, whipped, days — he has questions also. beaten, threatened, and jailed. This "fine place" erupted into racial turmoil in late May, 1963 and for its "The Library has nearly 70,000 vol­ size is running a close race with Bir­ umes, over 900 records for children, mingham for top honors in police other audio-visual material and a brutality. Genealogical Collection. There is a branch library for Negroes and a book­ "Danville's population was 46,577 in mobile which serves the outlying the official U.S. census count...Ninety- areas..." nine per cent are American-born..." Danville was affected with sit-ins The almost 15,000 Negro citizens of when the movement spread rapidly Danville, Virginia are all American- through the South in 1960, but the born. But: only 6.2% of them (in the central battle in this "enlightened, county) are registered voters; the liberal" upper South state came over schools are integrated only in a token the desegregation of the main Library. manner; they cannot have white collar Negroes and a few, very few, sym­ positions or key jobs in municipal pathetic whites waged a furious battle government; they cannot eat at most for several months to desegregate the restaurants in the city; they cannot Library. Not so ironically, the Library itself is a Confederate Memorial, where * All quotes in italics are taken from the last full cabinet meeting of the this report published by the Danville Confederacy took place before General Chamber of Commerce in April, 1963. Lee announced his surrender. After bitter wrangling, the library officials, facing a court order to deseg­ regate, closed the building altogether from September to November, 1960. The building was then reopened — on an integrated basis — but without chairs. For some months afterward, the Danville Library was one of the few free public libraries in the United States where a one-year card cost $2.50. "Often called the 'city of churches,' Danville has over 100 sanctuaries of various denominations The city maintains a high moral and spiritual Rev. Lawrence Campbell tone..." One June 22, several police officers kicked in a door in the main sanctuary of the High Street (Negro) Baptist Church and arrested three workers for the Student Nonviolent Coor­ dinating Committee. The lock on the front door had been jimmied open the night before. The three SNCC workers were charged with grand jury indict­ ments of "inciting the colored popula­ tion to acts of violence and war against the white population" and were taken to jail. This event, conducted with such "high moral and spiritual" tones, was Rev. L. W. Chase perhaps one of the most outrageous skirmishes in the battle between the "inciting or encouraging a minor to Negro community and the Danville commit a misdemeanor." Bond was city fathers. set at $5,500 each. The battle began, properly, on a hot The next day, Campbell requested shining last day of May, when two that the Student Nonviolent Coor­ ministers, who had long agitated in dinating Committee send field secre­ their parishes for equality, led a pro­ taries into the city to aid the leadership, test march to city hall. Rev. Lawrence now being picked off and under heavy Campbell and Rev. A. I. Dunlap walked bond. The first SNCC field secretary almost every day from May 31 to June arrived on Sunday, June 8. At one 5 to the city hall, demanding equality time or another, 15 SNCC workers in municipal employment. They aided the local movement in Danville. wanted, as Negroes, to be employed Three— Avon Rollins, a SNCC exec­ as firemen, policemen, city clerks, utive committee member, Robert meter readers and typists. Zellner, a field secretary, and Daniel On June 5 the two clergymen, along Foss, a summer volunteer for SNCC — with several students, tried to see hardly ever left. Mayor Julian Stinson. Mayor Stinson Monday afternoon, June 10, 38 per­ was not available. The students and sons — including Rollins and Foss — ministers demanded to be heard, how­ were arrested as they marched to the ever, and when Mayor Stinson was not city hall, still pressing publicly for forthcoming, they replied calmly that their demands. Police turned fire hoses they would wait, and sat down on the on them, and beat them with clubs. floor. That evening, the following scene Police rushed them, pushed Dunlap took place: down a flight of stairs, and choked a A group of 65 Negroes (and one young Negro girl, who, not properly white woman, a SNCC office worker) schooled in non-violence, responded walked five abreast from Rev. Camp­ abruptly and swung at a policeman bell's church to the city jail. SNCCer with her pocketbook. She and the two Zellner was along, photographing the ministers were jailed. march. Mrs. Campbell was at the head Campbell and Dunlap, both leaders of the line. The group, led by Rev. H. G. of the Danville Christian Progressive McGhee, sang hymns and circled the Association, were indicted by the jail once, passing several policemen grand jury for "inciting to riot" and who stood there watching. As they began the second trip around, hall to protest the police brutality of police halted them. Chief of Police E. G. the night before and to again assert McCain snatched a camera from Zell- the need for equal employment. Many ner's hands, smashed it on the ground, of those who paced slowly up and down and had him hauled into jail. McCain in front of the city hall wore bandages told Rev. McGhee to stop singing and on their heads and arms, and one young disperse the group. Instead, Rev. man walked with a crutch. Mayor McGhee broke into a loud prayer and Stinson was not available to see them. asked forgiveness for the police "who Three days later, June 13, Rev. Chase know not what they do." again led about 250 Negroes to the city Chief McCain bellowed, "Let 'em hall to speak to the Mayor. The crowd have it" and firemen turned hoses on waited on the steps as Rev. Chase and the people, many of them women and five others — all victims of the attack teen-agers. Nightstick-wielding police June 10 — tried vainly to get into the and deputized garbage collectors city hall. The doors were locked, and smashed into the group, clubbing sullen white faces peered at them Negroes who were bunched for safety unblinking as Chase called, "We want against parked cars. Some were washed to see the Mayor." under the cars; others were clubbed Rejected, Chase and his group re­ after the water knocked them down. joined the crowd on the steps and Bodies lay on the street, drenched everyone decided to stay all night, if and bloody. Police and garbage col­ necessary, to see the Mayor. lectors chased those demonstrators They stayed nine hours. who were able to walk for two blocks. Women from the High Street church At the Bible Way Church, pastored and other ladies from the community by Rev. Campbell, bloody men and brought several hundred sandwiches women came in by twos and threes and and several hundred cokes for the were shuttled to the hospital. demonstrators. The young and old Of 65 demonstrators, 40 were hurt. people sang Freedom songs, talked, The next day, the two Danville news­ occasionally danced, heard a lecture papers, the Register and the Bee, on Negro history by James Forman, mentioned casually that "demonstra­ SNCC executive secretary, and waited. tors were dispersed with the use of At 11 p.m., when some of the dem­ hoses and nightsticks." onstrators had stretched out on the The next day, Rev. L. W. Chase, narrow stairs prepared to sleep, if pastor of the High Street Baptist possible, a sudden huddle took place Church and President of the DCPA, among the police, who had previously led a group of 200 Negroes to the city blocked off the area for four blocks around.