Page Slit
Civil Rights to 1968

SCARLET AND BLACK

Fridly. Fibrurry ii. rm

 

The White Students’ Bag

By BRUCE BESSE

Tire civil rights movement on the
Grilinell College campus has iollowed
a pattern which seems comparable to
that of most of the educational insti-
tutions throughout the United States. The
spring of 1964 marked the inauguration
of an organization by the college chap-
lain, Mr. Roger Eldridge, and was sim-
ply referred to as the Civil Rights Group.
its membership consisted primarily or
white students. Gradually, more and
more black students became actively
involved in the various movements on
Campus, and today nearly all, it not all.
of mu black students of Grinnell are
,very much involved with civil rights.

This writer spent a most enjoyable
afternoon sometime ago looking through
back issues of the Sid! in an attempt to
draw out some of the interesting high-
lights and activities involving civil rights
on Campus in the four years preceding
1968, Probably the most important thing
to be noted from this article is the dates
oi a lot or these happenings. This will
tell as much as the accounts themselves.

The Gr-innell Civil Rights Group
'(C.R.G.) was concerned pr arily with
three areas for its activ es. It re-
searched and studied social problems.
planned lectures and discussrons, and
interested students in the Des Moines
slums. This last project was by iar its
most productive. It sponsored numerous
trips to the Des Moines bottoms and
printed several pictures in the 5&1! do»

picting the poverty or Des Molnes. The

group altllloted itseli with SNCC in the
spring or 1965, at which time it also re-
jected the proposal that it join the
NAACP, A major determining factor in
the group's rejection or NAACP aliilia.
tion was lack oi tunds to pay the mem-
bership fee; SNCC membership was tree.

By the time Mr Eldridge had lelt the
College in the summer of 1965, the C.R.G.
had pretty much passed into oblivion.
It had been replaced by the Des Moines-
Preject group. headed by Bonnie Tinker
and Ian Smith. Ian was the iirst black
student to become actively involved in
a Grinnell College civil rights movement
through an administrative position. This
group, as the name implies, carried on
the work in Des Moines which had been
started by the C.R.G, This group like
its forerunner had financial troubles, and
despite much enthusiasm among its
leaders, it tailed to generate much sup—
port from the student body.

By January of 1957 interest in the Des

Moines Project had waned. A 5111le
group or students then became active
in another project in Des Moines — the
Southeast Bottoms Project. However,
this movement on campus drew even
less support from the student body; few-
er than a dozen students gathered in
the South Lounge to hear the head of
this preject explain his group’s goals.

As the white students' interest in civil
rights movements on campus diminished,
more and more black students started
voicing their concerns in December oi
1966, the sun published a letter to the
editor written by Louis Kelley and Roy
Walker, in which they accused the white
liberals on campus ot not being so lib»
eral and tree or prejudice as they
claimed to be. Not only had the con-
cerned white students failed to generate
widespread enthusiasm, but also the in-
tensity of their convictions was now be
ing questioned. This letter served as an
invitation to other black students to
start raking the initiative in the civil
rights movement 0“ campus.

The fall oi 1967 found black students no
longer remaining silent. Stories of ha~
rassment and violence that had gone
untold for years were being exposed ior
the lrrst time by the black population on
campus. The blacks formulated a list of
grievances and presented it to President
Leggett, Dean Thompson and the comr
munlty belora they left for Christmas
vacation. Soon alter the spring semester
started, everyone associated with the
college became aware of a change in the
role Grinnell College was to play in the
area of Civil rights. it was to become
more active than it had ever been, but
it was to achieve this and through the
leadership and initiative of the black
students. The transition can be seen quite
clearly in a statement made by one of
the white leaders of the civil rights
movement on campus. Max Heligott was
quoted in the February 2, 1963 issue oi
the 5&3 as saying, “But it should not
be up to me to take leadership which I
am obviously not in a position to take
up now.” Civil rights had become the
black students bag.

Editors Note:

The 5&8 asked Ernest Weston, pres. of
CBS to provide an article explaining the
Black Student's positan at Grinnell. A
similar article is being written lor the
“Brotherhood" and will not appear in
this paper. An official policy statement
by Mr. Leggett concerning this posltton
will appear in the near luture.

VERY 5PElIlill ANNOUNCEMENT:

Beginning this Sunday. Feb. 23,
JD‘: Restaurant will be open

no... Noon till lb p.m. ever
Sunday. Y

.5 We Resiuuroni

) Hearing
Continued from Page 1

appear at yesterday’s hearing mingled
with reporters in the fire station which
adjoins the Courtroom as they waited to
be called. They were allowed to watch
a color television set, talk with each
other. play Cards, read, and Climb on
old fire trucks.
investigation led to Charges

Charges were filed against the deiend«
ants by Poweshiek County Attorney Mic‘
hael Enich earlier this week, following an
investigation by the Iowa Attomcy Gen-
eral's Office, the Poweshiek County Ah
toriley and the Grinnell Police Depart-
ment, Summonses issued by Justice of
the Peace Edwin Lincoln ordering the
five students to appear at the prelimi-
nary heanng were served on Tuesday by
officers of the Police Department.

Oil Tuesday subpoenas were served on
former Grinnell students Henry Wilhelm
and Krystyna Neuman. presently associ—
ated with the East Street Gallery of
Photography, ordering them to appear at
the hearing to testify. Also subpoenaed
on Tuesday was Dean of Students Alice
low. who was ordered to appear at the
hearing with any pertinent information
she might have as “an official of the
College.” Dean LOW last week relused to
provide state investigators with what she
called “confidential information” unless
she was subpoenaed.

On Wednesday subpoenas were served
on eleven additional Grinnell students. ac-
cording to Justice of the Peace Lincoln.
Most of the students subpoenaed were
present at the dismbing incident.

According to legal advisors consulted
by the 5&3 the purposes or a preliminary
hearing ore to Clarify charges against
the deiendant and to provide the prose-
cution with an opportunity to present sui-
ficient evidence to show that a trial in
warranted. Until sufficient evidence sup-
porting a complaint is provided, a Court
cannot require that the defendant post
bond or be jailed.

Waive oi Hearing Sougth

On Thursday the attorney tor the ac-
cused students decided that the delend<
nuts should waive their rights to a pre—
liminary hearing, in which event the
case would proceed directly to trial. The
defense felt that such a preliminary heap
ing would not be necessary because pro-
secutors probably had sulflcient evidence
to Show Cause [or trial, (although not
enough to Convict), because the hearing
lug might result in adverse publicity re-
garding the defendants, and because a
waiver would provide the delense with
more time to prepare lor crosscxarni—
nation of witnesses. However, under
lowa law, the prosecution may elect to
hold a llearlng ln older to interrogate
persons subpoenaed.

According to County Attorney Enich,
the preliminary hearing is the “first
stage” in prosecution proceedings. The
next stage will be arraignment oi the
defendants in the District Court oi Powe-
shlek County. in Montezuma. The direc-
tion in which the trial will then proceed

will depend upon whether or not the de-
fendants decide to change their plea.
Under lowa law “indecent exposule" is
an “indictable misdemeanor" and the
defendants could have been indicted by
a grand jury who would send the case
to district court. An indictable misde-
meanor carrres a heavier penalty than
a regular misdemeanor, which has a
maximum penlaty or thirty days in jail
or a one hundred dollar finer

Chapter 125.1 of the Town Code says
“It any man or woman . s guilty of
open and gross lewdness, and designedly
makes an open and indecent or obscene
exposure or his or her person, or oi the
person of another, every such person
shall be imprisoned in the county jail not
exceeding six months, or be lined not
exceeding two hundred dollars."

Only Five Charged

The SM! has been unable to determine
why only five of the alleged demonstra-
tors have been charged in the incident.
Early this week Asst, Attorney Larry
Seckington. who has been involved in
the investigation, Said that the Attorney
General’s Office had “positive identifi‘
cation" of nine or the persons involved.
Asst. Attorney General Douglas Carlson,
who was on campus again this week, re-
fused to clearly explain why only live
persons are being prosecuted. “It‘s all
a matter of due process," he said. Carl-
son pointed out that testimony at yester-
day’s hearing is public lecord. and may
be used by investigators in prosecuting
other demonstrators.

Carlson refused to comment on wheth-
er the investigation by the Attorney Gen-
eral’s Office is concerned only with the
dismbing incident. There has been wide
speculation on campus and in the press
that Pterodactyi, the campus under-
ground paper, is also being investigated.
The 5&3 has learned that investigators
from the Bureau of Criminal Investiga-
tion have been making inquiries about
Ptero at a printing shop where the paper
was printed last year. investigators on
campus have been observed reading back
issues of the paper, and have reportedly
questioned students about the publica-
tion. Carlson remarked that the state inr
vesuguiors “might be around (Grinnell)
for awhile.”

Charges Attomey’s Duty

Earlier this week there had been con-
troversy about who would file charges
against the alleged demonstrators. The
County Attorney and the Attorney Gen-
eral have concurrent jurisdiction in the
matter. According to Carlson, the deci-
sion to have County Attorney Enicll tile
charges was "by mutual request."

Enlcll told the 5&3 he brought charges
because it was his “duty," and because
there had been complaints from town
residents and people throughout the
state.

The Board oi the Iowa Civil Liberties
Union informally decided to withhold its
aid in the case, but leferred the defend—
ants [D Attorney Johnston. Should the
Case reach a higher court, the lCLU
could conceivably reverse its decision
and offer its aid to the students.

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