Following the color line : $b An account of Negro citizenship in the American democracy — John Shaqi
Following the color line : $b An account of Negro citizenship in the American democracy
History
Following the color line : $b An account of Negro citizenship in the American democracy
African Americans; United States -- Race relations
Out of this beginning grew the Atlanta Civic League. Knowing that race
prejudice was strong, Mr. Hopkins sent out 2,000 cards, inviting the most
prominent men in the city to become members. To his surprise 1,500
immediately accepted, only two refused, and those anonymously; 500 men not
formally invited were also taken as members. The league thus had the great
body of the best citizens of Atlanta behind it. At the same time Mr.
Proctor and his committee of Negroes had organised a Coloured Co-operative
Civic League, which secured a membership of 1,500 of the best coloured men
in the city. A small committee of Negroes met a small committee of the
white league.
Fear was expressed that there would be another riotous outbreak during the
Christmas holidays, and the league proceeded with vigour to prevent it.
New policemen were put on, and the committee worked with Judge Broyles and
Judge Roan in issuing statements warning the people against lawlessness.
They secured an agreement among the newspapers not to publish sensational
news; the sheriff agreed, if necessary, to swear in some of the best men
in town as extra deputies; they asked that saloons be closed at four
o'clock on Christmas Eve; and through the Negro committee, they brought
influence to bear to keep all coloured people off the streets. When two
county police got drunk at Brownsville and threatened Mrs. Fambro, the
wife of one of the Negroes killed in the riot, a member of the committee,
Mr. Seeley, publisher of the _Georgian_, informed the sheriff and sent
his automobile to Brownsville, where the policemen were arrested and
afterward discharged from the force. As a result, it was the quietest
Christmas Atlanta had had in years.
But the most important of all the work done, because of the spectacular
interest it aroused, was the defence of a Negro charged with an assault
upon a white woman. It is an extraordinary and dramatic story.
_Does a Riot Prevent Further Crime?_
Although many people said that the riot would prevent any more Negro
crime, several attacks on white women occurred within a few weeks
afterward. On November 13th Mrs. J. D. Camp, living in the suburbs of
Atlanta, was attacked in broad daylight in her home and brutally assaulted
by a Negro, who afterward robbed the house and escaped. Though the crime
was treated with great moderation by the newspapers, public feeling was
intense. A Negro was arrested, charged with the crime. Mr. Hopkins and his
associates believed that the best way to secure justice and prevent
lynchings was to have a prompt trial. Accordingly, they held a conference
with Judge Roan, as a result of which three lawyers in the city, Mr.
Hopkins, L. Z. Rosser, and J. E. McClelland, were appointed to defend the
accused Negro, serving without pay. A trial-jury, composed of twelve
citizens, among the most prominent in Atlanta, was called--one of the
ablest juries ever drawn in Georgia. There was a determination to have
immediate and complete justice.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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