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Lobbying Congress for Civil Rights 211 211 7 Lobbying Congress for Civil Rights The American Council on Human Rights, 1948–1963 Robert L. Harris Jr. From December 27 to 31, 1952, six of the eight major black fraternities and sororities in the United States held an unprecedented joint meeting in Cleveland , Ohio, with 4,000 delegates in attendance. Members of Alpha Kappa Alpha , Delta Sigma Theta, Sigma Gamma Rho, and Zeta Phi Beta sororities and Alpha Phi Alpha and Kappa Alpha Psi fraternities scheduled their national conventions to take place at the same time. The purpose of the joint meeting was to (1) stimulate interest among their members for active support of the American Council on Human Rights (ACHR) programs, (2) demonstrate to the world the willingness and ability of the organizations to fight effectively for equality and justice for all, (3) further the principle of cooperation among the six organizations, and (4) provide an opportunity for mutual acquaintance and socialization among the members of the organizations.1 Henry Arthur Callis, one of the founders of Alpha Phi Alpha, addressed the combined meeting on the “Significance of Joint Action by Fraternities and Sororities.” He remarked that during the past forty years, the most significant result of their mutual efforts had been the U.S. government’s agreement in 1917 to appoint and train black men as commissioned officers in the U.S.Army. At that time,many members of the black fraternities and sororities had thought that there would be greater cooperation among the Greek-letter organizations. A generation passed, however, before establishment of the ACHR. Callis reminded the group that “we are representatives of a quarter million trained men and women who carry still the welfare of 15 million people on our shoulders , whether we liked it or not.” He concluded that the organizations had grown out of “faith in a people who had survived centuries of inhumanity,” that“they were conceived in the pain of the distressful plight of a people [who] were struggling for dignity, self-respect, and just rewards, both spiritual and material, for [their] labor and service.”2 brownchap07.pmd 1/11/2005, 3:58 PM 211 212 Robert L. Harris Jr. Origin and Organization of the American Council on Human Rights The ACHR had its origin in the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority’s National NonPartisan Council on PublicAffairs,formed in 1936 to monitor legislation,lobby Congress and the executive branch for civil rights, and keep the public informed about both domestic and foreign affairs. The council let the country know that African Americans “were actively and intelligently concerned about national and international questions important to all Negroes.”3 Efforts in 1940 to combine resources in a legislative project were interrupted by World War II. After the war, in 1946, the heads of the Greek-letter organizations met in Detroit to discuss greater cooperation. By January 1948, after subsequent meetings , six of the eight organizations had agreed to move forward and to make an annual financial commitment of $2,500 each to form the American Council on Human Rights. Its goal was to mobilize the influence and resources of its members in the struggle for equal justice and opportunity for all U.S. citizens. The ACHR would concentrate primarily on encouraging Congress and the federal government to pass legislation and formulate administrative policies to achieve its goals. An inaugural dinner was held in October 1948 to launch the organization, which now had a constitution and bylaws, a well-defined program, a national office, and a full-time staff of three.4 Elmer W. Henderson, a member of Kappa Alpha Psi, became executive director, and Patricia Roberts , a member of Delta Sigma Theta, became assistant director. Henderson was a graduate of Morgan College and had a master’s degree in sociology from the University of Chicago. In 1942, while working as a field representative for the Fair Employment Practices Committee, he took a train from Washington, D.C., to Birmingham, Alabama. En route, he went to the dining car for a meal. The railroad required that black diners sit at the two tables nearest the kitchen, separated by a curtain from white patrons. When Henderson entered the dining car, whites occupied those tables, and the curtain had been opened. Although there were other tables available, Henderson had not been seated by the time meals stopped being served at 9:00 P.M. Henderson decided to file suit against the Southern Railway Company and contacted Belford V...

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