Read Online When Harlem Nearly Killed King by Hugh Pearson - Free Book Online
Authors: Hugh Pearson
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any aspiring Negro leader or ally of Negroes, just as right around the corner from the Hotel Teresa, the Apollo Theater was the toughest nut for any Negro to crack in the entertainment industry. If you could win a crowd over in Harlem, you could win one over anywhere.
Friday evening of September 19th arrived, and King prepared to win over an even bigger slice of Harlem to his activist point of view. Governor Harriman and his phalanx of aides arrived first and mounted the stage. Later came Rockefeller and his entourage. Both made their way through the throng, hopeful that they would convince enough voters of the rightness of their respective messages; hopeful that their third visit to Harlem in a week would pay off as listeners tried to decide which one of them had been the better friend of Negroes.
Shortly after they took their places on stage, King and his aides made their entrance. They were flanked by Manhattan Borough President Hulan Jack, baseball great Jackie Robinson, A. Phillip Randolph, and Reverend Gardner Taylor. Duke Ellington stood at the base of the dais and prepared to conduct his band. Soon the music began, and afterward the introductions were made.Robinson spoke first. Referring to the upcoming election, the dashingly handsome dark-skinned slugger intoned, “We are the balance of power.” Gesturing behind himself toward Harriman and Rockefeller, to the thunderous applause of the audience he continued, “We can put Governor Harriman back in office or we can put Mr. Rockefeller in. I’m sure these two gentlemen realize the tremendous potential of you and me.” Next came the words of Randolph, who criticized the civil rights record of President Eisenhower, accusing him of going slow on integration and emphasizing the cautious manner in which he had handled the school desegregation quagmire in Little Rock. In a fiery follow-up to Randolph’s words, Gardner Taylor leveled the same criticism. Then it was time for the next speaker.
Though Governor Harriman had arrived before him, Rockefeller spoke before Harriman. Cognizant of the fact that he was compelled to show at least some degree of party loyalty, he decided that he had no alternative but to defend Eisenhower, who only a week earlier, after the Supreme Court issued its ruling ordering the integration of Little Rock schools, released a statement that merely called upon the citizens of the city to obey the decision. Plenty of people took this to mean that Eisenhower was lukewarm on the issue of integration (which, indeed, he was).
“This business about [Eisenhower] going slow on integration,” Rockefeller asserted in the raconteurish manner that would become his trademark over the years. “I know the man! I worked with him.… Who sent the troops to Little Rock? That takes courage in this country.”
Then he tried to steer attention away from the national Republican party and back to his own more liberal attitude. “We cannot rewrite the laws in Arkansas,” he intoned. “But we can embark on a bold program to solve the problems in our own state. We have a proud record of combating prejudice based on race, creed, and color.”
As Rockefeller continued, there was one heckler in particular making herself a nuisance. Izola Curry appeared behind the stage in a nice dress and her trademark expensive eyewear. While listening to Rockefeller, she voiced her hatred of Caucasians. William Rowe, an assistant to Borough President Hulan Jack who served as King’s escort while in the city, did his best to calm her down. And Frederick Weaver, a platform guest, motioned for police officers to make her stop. But the police were reluctant to get tough with her, fearing that to do so might start an incident among the throng of five thousand Harlemites that could escalate into a larger racial disturbance. Rockefeller finished his speech, declaring to great applause, “Let’s take civil rights out of the talk stage and put it in the active stage!”
Now it was
Friday evening of September 19th arrived, and King prepared to win over an even bigger slice of Harlem to his activist point of view. Governor Harriman and his phalanx of aides arrived first and mounted the stage. Later came Rockefeller and his entourage. Both made their way through the throng, hopeful that they would convince enough voters of the rightness of their respective messages; hopeful that their third visit to Harlem in a week would pay off as listeners tried to decide which one of them had been the better friend of Negroes.
Shortly after they took their places on stage, King and his aides made their entrance. They were flanked by Manhattan Borough President Hulan Jack, baseball great Jackie Robinson, A. Phillip Randolph, and Reverend Gardner Taylor. Duke Ellington stood at the base of the dais and prepared to conduct his band. Soon the music began, and afterward the introductions were made.Robinson spoke first. Referring to the upcoming election, the dashingly handsome dark-skinned slugger intoned, “We are the balance of power.” Gesturing behind himself toward Harriman and Rockefeller, to the thunderous applause of the audience he continued, “We can put Governor Harriman back in office or we can put Mr. Rockefeller in. I’m sure these two gentlemen realize the tremendous potential of you and me.” Next came the words of Randolph, who criticized the civil rights record of President Eisenhower, accusing him of going slow on integration and emphasizing the cautious manner in which he had handled the school desegregation quagmire in Little Rock. In a fiery follow-up to Randolph’s words, Gardner Taylor leveled the same criticism. Then it was time for the next speaker.
Though Governor Harriman had arrived before him, Rockefeller spoke before Harriman. Cognizant of the fact that he was compelled to show at least some degree of party loyalty, he decided that he had no alternative but to defend Eisenhower, who only a week earlier, after the Supreme Court issued its ruling ordering the integration of Little Rock schools, released a statement that merely called upon the citizens of the city to obey the decision. Plenty of people took this to mean that Eisenhower was lukewarm on the issue of integration (which, indeed, he was).
“This business about [Eisenhower] going slow on integration,” Rockefeller asserted in the raconteurish manner that would become his trademark over the years. “I know the man! I worked with him.… Who sent the troops to Little Rock? That takes courage in this country.”
Then he tried to steer attention away from the national Republican party and back to his own more liberal attitude. “We cannot rewrite the laws in Arkansas,” he intoned. “But we can embark on a bold program to solve the problems in our own state. We have a proud record of combating prejudice based on race, creed, and color.”
As Rockefeller continued, there was one heckler in particular making herself a nuisance. Izola Curry appeared behind the stage in a nice dress and her trademark expensive eyewear. While listening to Rockefeller, she voiced her hatred of Caucasians. William Rowe, an assistant to Borough President Hulan Jack who served as King’s escort while in the city, did his best to calm her down. And Frederick Weaver, a platform guest, motioned for police officers to make her stop. But the police were reluctant to get tough with her, fearing that to do so might start an incident among the throng of five thousand Harlemites that could escalate into a larger racial disturbance. Rockefeller finished his speech, declaring to great applause, “Let’s take civil rights out of the talk stage and put it in the active stage!”
Now it was
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