MG-309. MILTON J. SHAPP PAPERS, 1971-1979.
A pioneer in the cable television industry, Milton Jerrold Shapp (b.1912) was elected governor of Pennsylvania in 1970 and 1974. He graduated from Case Institute of Technology (now Case-Western Reserve University) in 1933 with a B.S. in electrical engineering. During the Second World War he served as a captain in the Army Signal Corps in North Africa, Italy, and Austria and subsequently founded Jerrold Electronics Corporation. During his tenure as governor, Shapp negotiated the settlement of a strike by independent truckers in February, 1974, and implemented a program of fiscal responsibility for state government and financial disclosure requirements for public officials.
Boards and Commissions, 1971-1975. Includes correspondence from Representative Sarah Anderson dealing with the commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday, Equal Rights Day, and a request for a proclamation for Negro History Week. Also present is a letter from African American state Representative James Barber inviting Governor Shapp to a dinner held by the Pennsylvania Black Legislative Caucus and also discussing the possibility of the Rev. Jesse Jackson speaking before the House of Representatives.
Recommendations. A record of appointments or nominations made by Governor Shapp to various boards and commissions. Each file generally contains press releases, notification letters from the governor, letters of acknowledgment from appointees, nomination letters to the senate, and sometimes State Police background reports and senate confirmation letters signed by the chief clerk. The recommendation files also generally contain letters of support for appointees. Recommendations for the following categories were found to relate to African Americans:
• Abortion Law Commission, 1972. Includes recommendations for the following African Americans as board members: Dr. Amanda Blount, Mrs. Jesse Clark, and Helen Wright.
• Human Relations Commission, 1971-1972. The following African Americans were recommended to serve on the board: Keith A. Bodden, Alma Speed Fox, Elizabeth Scott, and Nettie W. Taylor.
• Labor Relations Board, 1971. Charles Long, chairman of the A. Philip Randolph Institute of Pittsburgh, was appointed to the board in 1971.
• Governor’s Committee on Migratory Labor, 1972. Membership list includes Dr. F. L. Vaughn, president of the NAACP, and NAACP representative John B. Canpbell.
• Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole, 1972. Includes a letter dated October 2, 1972 from Rev. Robert Johnson Smith of Salem Baptist Church of Jenkintown recommending the reappointment of John H. Jefferson as a board member.
• State Board of Cosmetology, 1971. Janice E. Williams and Serena B. Patterson were recommended as board members by C. Delores Tucker.
• State Board of Funeral Directors, 1971. Major H. Winfield was recommended as a board member by funeral director Jacob Franklin and Secretary C. Delores Tucker.
• Cheyney State College, 1971-1974. Recommendations and appointments for the board of trustees are: Rev. Jacob L. Chatman (1971); Laverne Coleman, Marjerie Duckery, Bessie Jones, James H. Jones, Edward Lee, Theresa Ruffin, and Paul E. Waters (1973), and Carl O. Dickerson and Donald Wilson (1974).
• Lincoln University, 1973. Recommendations for Mary Baltimore, James Bodine, Fletcher L. Byron, Marjerie Duckery, Elizabeth Greenfield, Charles L. Huston III, Herbert Hutton, Alfred H. Hunt, James H. Jones, Aaron Martin, Mrs. Herbert May, Bishop Roy Nichols, Dr. Leroy Patrick, Benjamin J. Reynolds, James Rowland Sr., Richard Mellon Scaife, Judge Harvey Schmidt, the Honorable William Scranton, Richard B. Tucker, and Paul Waters.
O.K. File. A record of appointments made by Governor Shapp to various boards and commissions. Each file generally contains press releases, notification letters from the governor, letters of acknowledgment from appointees, nomination letters to the senate, and sometimes State Police background reports and senate confirmation letters signed by the chief clerk.
• Department Heads-Correspondence, 1970-1971. Includes a letter dated December 18, 1970 to Secretary of State C. Delores Tucker regarding amendments to the Solicitation of Charitable Funds Act, a letter dated January 14, 1971 from Judge A. Leon Higgenbotham expressing his pleasure at the appointment of C. Delores Tucker as secretary of state, and a letter of response from Governor Shapp. Also present is a letter dated February 16, 1971 appointing Dr. J. Finton Speller as secretary of health together with a letter of acknowledgment from Dr. Speller, and letters of congratulating Dr. Speller on his appointment.
• Task Force to Eliminate Discrimination Against Women and Minority Groups in Government, 1971. Contains Executive Directive No. 2, September 2, 1971, for the Implementation of the Commitment Toward Equal Rights and a news release dated October 1, 1971 in which Governor Shapp announced the creation of this cabinet-level task force.
• Pennsylvania Abortion Law Commission, 1972. The following African American women were recommended for the board: Dr. Amanda C. Blount, Lucille F. Clark, and Helen J. Wright.
• Pennsylvania Affirmative Action Council, 1971-1972. Governor Shapp appointed Lieutenant Governor Ernest P. Kline as chairman of the Council and the members were Secretary of the Commonwealth C. Delores Tucker, Secretary of Administration Ronald G. Lench, Executive Director of the Human Relations Commission Homer G. Floyd, Executive Director of the Governor’s Council on Equal Opportunity for the Spanish-speaking Bolivar Rivera, Executive Director of the Commission on the Status of Women Arlene Lotman, representative of Affirmative Action Officers Calvin C. Edmonds, and Pat Quann and Terry Dellmuth, special assistants to the governor.
• Mercy-Douglass Hospital Task Force, 1973. After closing this Philadelphia hospital which had served the community for thirty years, a task force was created by Governor Shapp to explore ways the former hospital facility could be remodeled and reopened.
• Governor’s Committee on Migratory Labor, 1971-1972. In 1970 it was estimated that 72 percent of Pennsylvania’s migrant population consisted of African Americans who came from southern states. Names of African Americans recommended for this committee were F. L. Vaughn (1971) and John B. Campbell (1972), both members of the NAACP.
• Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board, 1974. Governor Shapp appointed James H. Jones, president of the Negro Trade Union Leadership Council, to the Labor Relations Board.
• Cheyney State College, 1974-1975. Includes letter of resignation from board of trustees member Hobson R. Reynolds, July 9, 1974; an acknowledgment from board President Wade Wilson, July 23, 1974; a letter of recommendation for Edward S. Lee from Robert N. C. Nix, September 9, 1974; and listings for the following Board members: Rev. Jacob L. Chatman (1972-74), Lois G. Peterson (1972-74), Arthur Thomas (1972-74), Edward S. Lee (1973-74), and Philip Lichtenberg (1974). Governor Shapp nominated Charles M. Porter to the board in 1975.
• Industrialized Housing Advisory Commission, 1974. Mrs. Shirley Dennis was re-appointed to the board on December 18, 1974.
• Lincoln University. Dr. Leroy Patrick and George Branch were appointed to the board of trustees and Edward B. Lee recommended the following individuals: Charles Hannah, Robert Hannah, Leo S. Holmes, and Jesse Woods.
• Pennsylvania State University, 1974. The Honorable Joseph Rhodes Jr. was appointed to the board on January 6, 1974.
• Scotland School for Veterans’ Children, 1974-1977. List of board members: Berkely R. Fogelsanger, Clay F. Henninger, Crawford M. Mackley, Abe Ruben, Eugene R. Manfrey, Marlin O. Walter, Joseph Shain, Honorable William Rayhauser, and Dr. Ruth Miller Steese.
• State College and University Directors, 1971. Percy D. Mitchell was reappointed to serve on the board on December 31, 1971.
• Temple University, 1974. Honorable William H. Hastie was reappointed on January 6, 1974 but resigned from the board on July 5, 1974. Several letters concern Hastie’s resignation.
• West Chester State College. Charles M. Porter was re-appointed to the board of directors on January 2, 1975.
End of Administration Files, 1979. Records of the final days of the administration containing both general and subject correspondence, citations, nominations sent to the Senate, and letters of recommendation for Governor’s Office employees.
General Correspondence, 1979. Includes a letter dated December 2, 1978, together with a resume, from Sylvia Dykes requesting state government employment; a letter dated January 10, 1979 from Sallie Mae Hunt of Tennessee requesting information on her son who was incarcerated in the Camp Hill Penitentiary; and a copy of the Pittsburgh Courier dated December 30, 1978 featuring an article entitled "Grandmother of the Year" honoring Dorothy Johnson at the Miller Elementary School in Pittsburgh.
Subject Correspondence, 1979. Contains a letter of acceptance dated December 8, 1978 to Stanley A. Culbreth, president of the Philadelphia Chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, confirming Governor Shapp’s attendance at a mock bill signing for House Bill 163, which created Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a state holiday. Also present is a letter dated December 15, 1978 inviting Governor Shapp to attend the Third Birthday Celebration on January 3, 1979 sponsored by Operation PUSH/Philadelphia, a letter dated September 18, 1978 from Alfred L. Morris, president of the Philadelphia Tribune, and other correspondence regarding George Washington Carver Day, January 5, 1979, and a letter from Barton A. Fields dated January 6, 1979 submitting his resignation as secretary of the Commonwealth.
Files of the Special Assistant of Human Services, 1971-1979. Arranged alphabetically by subject. Correspondence, reports, and minutes of the special assistant to the governor for human services. The following represent a sampling of the files relevant to African Americans:
Affirmative Action Council, 1971-1977. Contains Executive Order for the Affirmative Action Plan, membership list, minutes of meetings, and a December 1974 position paper on affirmative action authored by Terry Dellmuth. Materials are also present on the topics of labor and industry, insurance, Civil Service Commission, State Police, and the Departments of Trans[portation] and Welfare.
Cheyney State College, 1977-78. Including letters opposing state budget cuts for Cheyney from: Pamela Rainey Lawler, Cheyney-Temple Cluster Industry representative; William M. McCormick, vice president of the Franklin Mint; Andrea D. Sullivan, director of Crime Prevention Project of the National Urban League; Thomas Cooper, vice president of Girard Bank; and a petition from the Friends of Cheyney College containing over one hundred signatures. Also present is a letter dated December 1, 1977 from E. Sonny Harris containing a resolution passed by the faculty executive committee of Cheyney asking for a right to have a voice in the selection of a new college president.
Human Relations Commission. Contains correspondence to and from the NAACP concerning the deteriorating authority of the commission and repeated attempts by Senator Nolan to abolish or weaken the commission through House Bills 653 and 1306. A memo entitled "Desegregation of Schools" concerns Superintendent Dr. David H. Porter of the Harrisburg School District and Superintendent Harry R. Faulk of the McKeesport School District, who gave testimony concerning school segregation and a report issued by the commission entitled Problems and Progress of Blacks, Hispanics, and Females in Pennsylvania Higher Education. The file also contains appointments to the commission and the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors to ensure fair housing practices, invitations to commission luncheons and banquets, a summary of the commission’s response to general complaints, correspondence with Representative K. Leroy Irvis, reports on sickle cell anemia, Irvis’s case of discrimination against a Moose Lodge in Harrisburg, and Irvis’s difficulty in finding depositors for an African American owned and operated savings and loan company in Pittsburgh.
Human Service Integration Project, 1974-1975. Contains information on this national project that was funded by the United States Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, whereby many agencies providing human services would consolidate to better integrate delivery of services. Present is a letter from Governor Shapp thanking Regional 3 Director Gorham L. Black Jr. of the Pennsylvania Department of Health, Education and Welfare for his efforts in preparing the Partnership Grant for the Human Services Integration Project.
Lincoln University, 1977-1978. Contains population data on higher education in Pennsylvania including college enrollments by racial and ethnic categories and materials relating to problems arising at Lincoln University among faculty and students during the presidency of Dr. Herman Branson.
Files of Larry Hochendoner, Special Assistant to the Governor, 1977. Arranged alphabetically by subject, these consist of correspondence, minutes, and reports of the governor’s special assistant for planning and economic development.
Bethune-Douglass, Williamsport, 1977. Included is a letter dated July 13, 1977 from Hochendoner to Bertha P. Fischer regarding omission of Bethune’s project to the Commonwealth.
Chester Group, 1977. Contains "Progress Report No. 6" dated July 15, 1977 addressing the goals of the Chester Group’s progress in economic development for both the public and private sectors. The Chester Group was created in 1976 with the goal of retaining and expanding businesses and creating a more positive business climate in the Chester area.
General File. Arranged alphabetically by name of person or organization, subject, or title. Within each category the papers are arranged chronologically. The following items pertain to African Americans:
First Term, 1971-1975.
• Correspondence from Representative Sarah Anderson concerning commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, Equal Rights Day, and a request for proclamation of a Negro History Day.
• Letter from Representative James Barber inviting Governor Shapp to a banquet at the Pennsylvania Black Legislative Caucus and the possibility of the Rev. Jesse Jackson addressing the House of Representatives.
• A file labeled "Black" contains extensive materials on the closing of the Black Action Drug Center in Pittsburgh, a Black American Film Festival, Black applicants to the Altoona Bureau of Employment Security, a Black Artist Exhibit, the Black Athletes’ Foundation for Research in Sickle-Cell Disease, the Pennsylvania Conference on Black Basic Education, the Black Businessmen’s Association of Harrisburg, the Black Christian Fellowship, efforts to develop a Black Cowboy Museum, an open house at the Black Cultural Center in Erie, the status of Black employees at the State Bureau of Investigation, Black History Month, Black History Week Proclamation, and similar items relating to the African American experience in Pennsylvania.
• A folder labeled "Gorham L. Black Jr." contains over thirty items dealing with management problems encountered by the Shapp campaign in Philadelphia’s African American community and includes a letter from Representative Lucien Blackwell.
• H. A. Bledsoe, an African American, wrote a letter concerning the arrest of his son in Cumberland County for a speeding violation on June 11, 1972.
• Cheyney State College correspondence concerning a project called "Overcome the Odds-1970-1971," including requests by Cheyney President Wilson Wade for Governor Shapp to attend his first press conference at Cheyney in 1970, and to deliver the Cheyney commencement address in 1972, and materials concerning increasing SEPTA service to Cheyney from Philadelphia.
• Christian Charities Inc. Contains letters to Governor Shapp from President-Director Rev. Horace W. Gillison Jr. requesting a proclamation of a day of prayer for the repentance and forgiveness of former President Richard M. Nixon with regard to the Watergate affair. Governor Shapp did not honor the request.
• Human Relations Commission. Correspondence addressed to Governor Shapp concerning legislative efforts to abolish or reduce the power of the commission.
• K. Leroy Irvis. Correspondence and other documentation concerning the closing of a state store located at 1718 Fifth Avenue in Pittsburgh within one block of a school in an African American community. Also legislative recommendations for the Human Relations Commission, reports on Sickle-Cell Disease, Irvis’s discrimination suit against a Harrisburg Moose Lodge, and periodic legislative reports issued by Irvis’s office.
• Rev. Jesse Jackson. Contains an article entitled "Jackson Demands Black Action" that appeared in the Pittsburgh Press on May 5, 1972, in which Jackson urged his audience at the Civic Arena to "grow into a more powerful socio-economic force by expanding their minds."
• Lincoln University, 1971-74. Includes announcement of a vote by the board of trustees on August 19, 1972 that the name of the institution be changed to Lincoln University of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education, an invitation to the inauguration of Dr. Herman Branson as president, and a 1974 report of the auditing team of the adjutant general.
• National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Contains letter congratulating Governor Shapp on his election and for appointing C. Delores Tucker as secretary of state.
• "Negro" file, 1971-72. Includes citations for achievement in the field of aviation for the Negro Airman International organization, and for the Negro Civic Organization, the Negro Cultural Center, Negro History Week, and the Negro Trade Union Leadership Council.
• Representative Joseph Rhodes, 1971-73. Correspondence from Representative Rhodes concerning the World Hunger Coalition, Rhodes’s support of Shapp’s position on the death penalty, Rhodes’s involvement in the Youth Treatment Centers, and a proposed drug program for the state.
• C. Delores Tucker. News releases concerning Tucker’s appointment as secretary of the Commonwealth, a letter from a "Tired Taxpayer" requesting that her office be investigated, and Tucker’s addresses to various seminars, the NAACP, the Organization of Concerned Youth, and the National Catholic Conference on Interracial Justice. Also present are materials relating to Tucker’s investigations of charitable organizations, correspondence concerning the Black Political Pageant, a speech on "Black Capitalism" and Black economic development, her participation in Martin Luther King Jr. International Freedom Games, and letters of respect and gratitude from a Pennsylvania NAACP branch.
• United Negro College Fund. Letter dated May 2, 1972 from Philadelphia Chairman Charles K. Cox requesting the governor to sponsor the fall campaign in Philadelphia and a January 15, 1874 memo from C. Delores Tucker informing Governor Shapp that Clarence M. Payne was requesting the governor’s support in the statewide campaign.
• United Neighborhood Services of Lackawanna County. Letters to Pennsylvania Department of Health dated March 12, 1974 offering their facility as a sickle-cell anemia testing center.
Second Term, 1975-1979.
• Contains correspondence from Representative James Barber, including a survey on African American employment, various invitations to Governor Shapp, and a letter thanking Governor Shapp for appointing Barber to the board of trustees of Lincoln University.
• A file marked "Black" contains invitations to a Black Arts Festival, a proclamation for the Black Athletes’ Foundation, a charity request from the Black Athletes’ Hall of Fame, an invitation to a meeting of the Black Coalition on Human Rights, an invitation to the Black College Presidents Workshop luncheon, an invitation to the Black Conference on Higher Education, correspondence from the Black Construction Coalition concerned with problems facing minority contractors, a list of African American employees serving under Governor Shapp in management positions, citations for outstanding achievements in Black Enterprise, materials relating to the Black Heritage Exhibit at the William Penn Memorial Museum, an invitation to the dedication of Black History Month, transcripts of interviews from the television program "Black Perspective on the News," an invitation to a dinner held by the Black Political Forum, a history on "The Black Press in America" and a request for a proclamation to honor the press’s one hundred fiftieth anniversary, a charity request for the Black Solidarity Fair, a proclamation for Black Solidarity Week, a request for a proclamation for a Black Veterans Day, a request from the Black Women’s Association for a citation honoring Dr. Selma H. Burke, materials relating to the Black Women’s Caucus of Harrisburg, a citation for an award winner of Black Youth of the Year, and materials relating to the "Blacks in the Revolution" Contest for the Bicentennial Celebration.
• A file on the Human Relations Commission contains letters of appointment, letters of recommendation, minutes, news releases, annual reports, transcripts of speeches, and pamphlets relating to African Americans. Also includes materials on equal employment opportunity, letters from Representative K. Leroy Irvis concerned with the Black Construction Coalition, the Governor’s Justice Commission, summer employment opportunities for minorities, the Pennsylvania Black Democratic Committee, and the Miss African Heritage Competition. A letter from Muhammad Kenyatta requests Governor Shapp’s support in Kenyatta’s candidacy for mayor of Philadelphia in 1975.
• A file on Lincoln University contains correspondence, newsletters, reports, invitations, and a history of the university.
• A file on the National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs, Inc. contains information concerning African American business and professional women’s activities and the Negro Trade Union Leadership Council, invitations, grant and proclamation requests, monthly and annual reports, and transcripts of speeches concerning the Opportunities Industrialization Center. There are also letters from Joseph Rhodes dealing with his role on the Subcommittee on Crime and Corrections of the House Judiciary Committee, Rhodes’s campaign for auditor general, and materials relating to the controversy concerning the use of "dum-dum" bullets. Also present are letters from Representative David Richardson concerning Richardson’s appointment to the Tuskegee Alumni Association and on the subjects of prison and child abuse.
• C. Delores Tucker correspondence with the NAACP concerning the position of African Americans in Pennsylvania politics, the controversy surrounding Tucker’s dismissal, African American reaction to Tucker’s dismissal, and materials relation to public support for Tucker.
• K. Leroy Irvis file contains materials relating to the Black Construction Coalition, the Governor’s Justice Commission, summer employment for minorities, the Pennsylvania Black Democratic Committee, and the Miss African Heritage Competition.
• The file on Secretary of Health Milton Berkes, 1975-79, contains materials on the Human Relations Commission including complaints, reports, and amendments to the Human Relations Act. Also present are reports on minorities in higher education, racially imbalanced local governing units, school desegregation, transcripts of discrimination case hearings, materials relating to the reorganization of the Human Relations Commission, news releases, news articles, and materials concerning the possible absorption of the Commission into the Civil Rights Commission.
Legislative File, 1973-1979. The following pieces of legislation relate to African Americans:
First Term, 1971-1975.
• 1971-72 Session (Inactive): H.B. 796, Lincoln University; H.B. 965, Welfare Reform; H.B. 969, PHEAA Scholarships; H.B. 980, Unemployment Compensation Benefits; H.B. 1029, Mentally Retarded Children; H.B. 1446, Charitable Solicitation; H.B. 1464, 1473, 1494, 1499, 1501, 1514, 1517, 1520, Landlord Act; H.B. 2160, Senior Citizen Property Tax Assistance Act; H.B. 2373, 2422, 2447, Civil Disturbances
• First Special Session of 1972: Senate Bills 4 and 10, Civil Disturbances; Senate Resolution Number 2, Bussing; Senate Bill 253, Low Income Housing; Senate Bill 498, Personal Property Tax; Senate Bill 943, School Bussing; Senate Bill 1236, Judicial Procedure; Senate Bill 1370, 1379, Equal Rights Amendment; Senate Bill 1407, Pennsylvania Housing Agency; Senate Bill 1669, Exceptional Children; H.B. 23, 26, 27, Senior Citizen Day; H.B. 86, Drug Cases; H.B. 96, Pennsylvania Human Relations Act; H.B. 924, Senior Citizen Property Tax Assistance Act; H.B. 1302 (and others), Landlord Tenant Act.
Second Term, 1975-1979.
• 1975-1976 Session (Inactive): H.B. 116, Nursing Home Medical Payments; H.B. 496, Anti-bussing; H.B. 163, Martin Luther King Day; Act 148, Child Care Facilities, 1976.
• 1977-1978 Session (Inactive): General correspondence from the following: C. Delores Tucker, secretary of state; James N. Wade, secretary of administration; Representatives James D. Barber, Lucien E. Blackwell, Aljia Dumas, K. Leroy Irvis, Joel J. Johnson, Joseph Rhodes Jr., David P. Richardson, and John F. White Jr.; and Senators Herbert Arlene, Freeman Hankins, and Paul McKinney.
Subject File, 1971-1979.
First Term, 1971-1975.
• Abortion Law Commission. Letter of recommendation from C. Delores Tucker dated November 1, 1977 containing names for appointment to the commission and a letter dated June 29, 1971 from Charles F. Mebus recommending Eleanor Duffan Adams to the commission.
• Biography-Cynthia Delores Tucker. A biography written before Tucker’s appointment as secretary of state.
• Charity Requests, 1971. Includes requests from Aliquippa, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and York, with a special emphasis on Darby where gasoline incendiary bombs were thrown against the Bunting Friendship House, an African American community center, in 1971. There are also materials on Monessen where a white tavern owner firebombed the Monessen Junior High School.
• Education-Racial Imbalance, 1970-1971. Contains several letters from the Department of Education concerning racial unrest in various school districts across the state.
• Mansion Function-Martin Luther King Luncheon, March 25, 1974. Includes an announcement for the function, a proclamation, and letters of thanks for the invitations.
• Mansion Function-Jesse L. Jackson Luncheon, April 16, 1974. In addition to letters of invitation and acknowledgments, there is also a letter from James D. Barber, chairman of the Black Caucus, thanking Governor Shapp for his contributions to the country.
Second Term, 1975-1979.
• Education-Cheyney, 1979. Contains copy of a formal complaint filed by the student body on February 19, 1977 entitled "Assembly Resolution to Cite College Administration and State of the Charges." In letter responding to the complaints, Governor Shapp asserted that "improvements in the functioning of the governing system is the responsibility of the student body."
• Lincoln University, 1977. Contains a letter dated May 4, 1977 from Argentine Deigh (Green) Robinson from Jefferson Medical College to Governor Shapp regarding a "crisis at Lincoln University." She recommended that a team of qualified, impartial educators be appointed to investigate.
• Personnel-Dismissal, C. Delores Tucker, 1977. A large file containing letters, memoranda, news releases, newspaper articles, and telegrams concerning the dismissal of C. Delores Tucker by Governor Shapp on September 20, 1977. Some of the African Americans who sent letters include: Representatives James D. Barber and Henry M. Kearney; Gary, Indiana Mayor Richard G. Hatcher; Black Political Forum President Wilson Goode; George W. Sellers of the NAACP; Pennsylvania Baptist State Convention President Rev. Dr. William J. Shaw; NAACP Executive Director Gloster B. Currant; and Evelyn Brooks of the Negro Women’s Clubs.