LOUISIANA: Block Those Kids!

While running for Governor at the turn of the year, Louisiana’s ballad-singing, guitar-plunking Jimmie (You Are My Sunshine) Davis vowed that he would rather go to jail than see Negro children admitted to the state’s white schools. He might not be heading for jail, but Davis tangled with a federal court last week to head off an approaching platoon of Negro first-graders.

Last May the federal district court in New Orleans ordered public schools in Orleans Parish—New Orleans and vicini ty—to integrate their first grades this fall. To get around the ruling, Davis’ legislature passed laws vesting in itself the sole authority to reclassify the state’s white and Negro schools, and empowering the Governor to seize schools to prevent any court-directed integration. Under those provisions, Davis last week, by executive order, took personal control of Orleans Parish schools and authorized Su perintendent James F. Redmond, as the Governor’s “agent,” to open schools in

September with a policy of segregation as usual.

Lawyers for the N.A.A.C.P. quickly secured a federal court order summoning Governor Davis to defend his action in a hearing this week. Just as quickly, the Governor decided to go catfishing, well out of subpoena range. Unable to track him down, U.S. deputy marshals lamely delivered three summonses: two left at Davis’ office and one dropped at the feet of a state trooper who answered the door at the Governor’s mansion.

N.A.A.C.P. lawyers promised that, no matter whether Davis accepts his summons or not, Negro first-graders will show up at white schools on opening day, Sept. 7. Even some convinced segregationists felt that, at best, Davis’ maneuvers would only stall the inevitable a little. Lloyd Rittiner, president of the Orleans Parish school board, had three little words for Davis’ catfish caper: “It won’t work.”