Arizona Sun

City Commissioners Block Further Sit-In Demonstrations

TALLADEGA, Ala. - The City Commissioners have passed a law to block further sit-in demonstrations, marches, and picketing here. It provides fines and jail terms up to six months for violators.

The ordinance is one of the harshest yet seen in the South. The effect is virtually the same as martial law, in that it places strict bans on assembly of three or more persons.

One section of the law is aimed specially at students who protested against segregation here last spring. This action was led by Negro and white students from Talladega College and included high-school pupils.

The new law appears to have been passed in preparation for a hearing here October 8 on a court order issued against students and others on April 28. In asking for the order, State Attorney General MacDonald Gallion told the State Circuit Court that "remedy by law is inadequate."

Those named in the order challenged the injunction on the ground that it violates their rights under the First and 14th Amendments to the U. S. Constitution. The first Amendment guarantees freedom of speech, press, assembly, and petition, such as picketing and marching.

The city ordinance states that it is designed to "regulate the size of crowds upon the public streets, sidewalks, ways, public parks and public-school property." It is intended to "prevent unlawful assemblies, riots, disorderly conduct, disturbances of the peace, and conduct calculated to cause same."

This is similar to the wording in the injunction issued by Judge William C. Sullivan. However, his order did not apply to white hoodlums who attacked students taking part in peaceful demonstrations.

Several students were struck by the hoodlums, four were teargassed, and some others were beaten by police who stopped a march the day before the court order was issued.

The ordinance makes it unlawful "for any person to congregate with one or more other persons upon the public streets, sidewalks or other public property and to refuse and fail to move on at the request or direction of a police officer or other duly constituted law officer."

It also forbids "any person or combination of persons to stand, walk or march in a group or near to each other on any sidewalk street, or crossing so as to obstruct free passage of other pedestrians or vehicles thereon."

The ordinance says further: "Whenever the police or other lawful officers have reasonable cause to believe that an assemblage of persons of three or more in number on any sidewalk, in any place of business to which the public is invited, or upon any public property, is likely to cause a riot, disturbance or breach of the peace, such officer shall order such assemblage to disperse."

This is virtually the same as Judge Sullivan's injunction, which at this point is temporary. The hearing on Oct. 8 is to determine whether the order shall be made permanent.

At least two of the persons enjoined in the order have said they will not be stopped from their work for integration by such an order. One is Bob Zellner, a native of Alabama and a field secretary for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), Atlanta. Another is Carl Braden, a field secretary and editor for the Southern Conference Educational Fund (SCEF) in New Orleans.

Violation of the injunction could result in fines and jail terms for contempt.