Crisis Involving Role of Law is Seen by Rights Legal Chief

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_ PRESS RELEASE 
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NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND 
10 COLUMBUS CIRCLE « NEW YORK, N.Y. 10019 te. >R e JUdson 6-8397 

Ay DR."ALLAN KNIGHT CHALMERS. ae eJACK a CONSTANCE BAKER MOTLEY 
% Président ¥ Director-Counsel ~ ~ Associate Counsel 

Sah Ss 

ent ; 
Ae SSFOR RELEASE: MONDAY, March 9, 1964 

5 CRISIS INVOLVING ROLE OF LAW 
i IS SEEN BY'RIGHTS LEGAL CHIEF 

<s NAACP Legal Defense Fund Issues Report for 1963 fy 

¢ Ged 

NEW YORK, N.Y.--The "crisis involving the rule of law," in America 

fis analyzed by Jack Greenberg, director-counsel of the NAACP Legal 

Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. in the Fund's 1963 annual report 
released here today. f 

Director-counsel Greenberg points out that those responsible 

or resisting the "constitution and court rulings by force, deceit, 

Nby tokenism, by stalling litigation," are often, "exemplars our 

Rsociety." : 

oe The Fund, whose attorneys serve as legal arm for the en 
ivil rights movement expanded its operation in 1963 and: 

\ *Defended 10,487 citizens arrested during peaceful demons; 
ns. Legal Defense Fund lawyers carried this load in addi ic 

regular responsibilities, discussed elsewhere in th yreport, 

PRepresented Negro Americans in 30 cases presented to thevU.s. 

“ome Court. This made the Legal Defense Fund second only the 
. Justice Department in cases placed before the High Court for 

“4 *Maintained a staff of 12 lawyers, based in its New York City 
onal headquarters, who were augmented by 102 cooperating attor- 

, across the nation. y S PS 

~ *Fought 168 separate groups of legal actions iin TS: statgs 
1# of thousands of Negroes seeking basic constitutional rig 

Broad Legal Scope 

SuThese areas of litigation are dealt with specifically w. \Ehe 
age fluently written document. They include educatio 3 
dties, public accommodations, freedom of speech and 

Shortage of'Rights Lawyers 

thé report, which notes that, "There seemed to be an ey, 
““conollary: the greater an area's need for civil rights co 

: . there were to be had." 

‘e’Mr. Greenberg pointed to the distressing situation, 
, t "present, I can count the number of Southern white lawye 
fand1 ig civil rights cases on the fingers of one hand, andyhave’ 

ry 

1 Defense Fund reports that there are Pa 

a 

ys in all Southwestern Georgia; three in Mig 
assee, Florida (the state capital)--so the sad. 

net {We'sta ish ie na 
of a’grant from the Field Foundation." 

(more) 



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Crisis Involving Role of Law -2- 
Is Seen by Rights Legal Chief ¥ e 

It also assisted in establishing the Law Students Civil Rights: 
Research Council. 

Hit Capital Punishment 

In the concluding section, "New Frontiers of the Law," thes 
Fund .stressed that it "must never turn its back on the precedent 
setting role it served in years past." 

onsequently, its present activities include: 

ases that show that "infliction of capital punishme 
due cess of law when a defendant is convicted for a crime’ in 
he aid not take a life." Pe 

Meases seeking to declare unconstitutional segregation in 
pitals (the Supreme Court let stand a ruling striking down ony 
practice on March lst of this year). 

é 

*€ases "seeking to secure equal access of all persons wi 
regardito race in urban renewal projects built with federal, st 
and local aid." 

*Gases "arising out of sit-in demonstrations which seek ‘to 
guarantee the right of Negroes to be served peaceably in publig 
places." 

*Litigation "aiming to secure enforcement of Section 2 
14th Amendment. A favorable ruling would reduce the Congressi 
delegations of many Southern states which deny or abridge the ® 
of their citizens to vote. 

Financially, 1963 was an encouraging year for the Legal Det 
Eatyabich grossed $1,131,889.02 and spent almost as much in it 
fig against bigotry. The projected budget for 1964 is $1, 4007908 

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