NAACP Legal Defense Fund Wins Vital Albany, Georgia Victory

Press Release
August 5, 1963

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  • Press Releases, Volume 1. NAACP Legal Defense Fund Wins Vital Albany, Georgia Victory, 1963. b215cd7e-b492-ee11-be37-00224827e97b. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/f24600cf-add1-4382-bfc3-1502c55a79fd/naacp-legal-defense-fund-wins-vital-albany-georgia-victory. Accessed July 13, 2025.

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NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND 
TOCOLUMBUS CIRCLE + NEW YORK19,N.Y. © JUdson6-8397 

DR. ALLAN KNIGHT CHALMERS JACK GREENBERG 
President Director-Counsel 

CONSTANCE BAKER MOTLEY 
Associate Counsel 

eg 

FOR RELEASE: Monday A.M., August 5, 1963 

NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE FUND WINS 
VITAL ALBANY, GEORGIA VICTORY 

ALBANY, GA.--The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund today 

announced the first major breakthrough in the long-stymied racial 

crisis here. 

The U. S, Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, has ordered a lower 

court to issue an injunction against city officials here that will 

allow Negro citizens to enjoy many of the goals sought during months 

of peaceful demonstrations. 

Mrs. Constance Baker Motley, Legal Defense Fund Associate 

Counsel, who was chief counsel during the long proceedings, pointed 5 

out that Albany officials have been busily selling the city's swim- ‘ 

ming pool facilities to private individuals. ‘ 

“We shall have to go back to court to test the validity of these 

sales, But the decision is clear that all public facilities sought 

to be desegregated by this suit must be open to Albany's Negro citi- 

"she said. zens, 

Albany flared into the nation's headlines during the summer of 

1962. The Albany Movement was under the leadership of Dr. W. G. 

Anderson. Dr. Martin Luther King and the Southern Christian Leader- 

ship Conference also participated in the demonstrations. 

NAACP Legal Defense Fund attorneys stressed that Albany's Negro 

citizens sought: 

* the end of state enforced racial segregation in all public 

parks, libraries and city auditorium; 

* the end of city laws requiring segregation in taxicabs, 

theatres and on buses; 

“x the end of arrests for attempting to use public recreation, 

transportation, and library facilities on an integrated 

= basis. 

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on c , . 

Mrs. Motley, flanked by C, B, King of Albany and Donald L, 

Hollowell of Atlanta, pointed out that Dr. Anderson and,other leaders 

of the Albany Movement had met with the Mayor and suggested appoint- 

ment of a biracial committee to improve the situation before the 

demonstrations began. 

The Mayor never responded. 

Arguments of NAACP Legal Defense Fund attorneys were turned 

down after three hearings in the District Court on ground that the 

individual Negro plaintiffs were not segregated against personally 

while seeking use of public facilities. 

The District Court also reasoned that the named Negro plaintiffs 

were not representative of Albany Negroes in general. 

The U, S, Appeals Court disagreed and ordered the lower court to 

issue the injunction sought by the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. 

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