With news from Minnesota Public Radio on Greta Cunningham a senate committee has voted unanimously for hunting and fishing license fee increases most license fees would go up a dollar or two to alleviate a budget shortfall of the Department of Natural Resources a fee increases the same proposal that twice passed the Senate last year, but failed in the house dfl Senator, Jeanne krans have may Township is the Bill's author. This is a short-term fix and no one says they're going to fix all the problems centerless Arden and many others are actively pursuing a longer-term solution, which I wholeheartedly support however as important as a long-term solution is this bill today is imperative. If we don't do at least this we are in huge trouble, I think in our state a coalition of hunting and fishing group supports the increase the bill now goes to the Senate environment and natural resources committee government or pay to visit today to the chairman of the committee that will take up Commerce commissioner. Steve men's confirmation tomorrow Mentor says, he wasn't trying to influence the chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee and said he said he wantIllustrate his unwavering support for men earlier this month another senate committee overwhelmingly recommended that men not be approved for the Commerce post. La Marca said they were angry that Ventura and Men moved ahead of the merger of the Commerce and public service department without legislative permission. Ali residents might be asked to cut back on mosquito repellent pollution officials think the insect repellent known as deed may be responsible for summertime toxicity problems at Ali's wastewater treatment plant treatment plant manager Terry Jacks and says it might be easier to get people to use less bug spray and it would be to get the heat out of the Wastewater some public education and I'll try to get some people use some other product or lesser amount of pizza did not create this toxicity issue mom to see if the problem goes away when the mosquitoes do that's a news update. I'm going to Cunningham snow past 1And then to Martin almost wagging his finger in Martin Luther King's face. He said remember who pays for you King back down humbled. humiliated Good afternoon, and welcome back to a special edition of midday in Minnesota Public Radio. I'm Gary acting and today we're presenting excerpts from last week's Forum 50 years former vice president Walter mondale's lecture series at the University of Minnesota on some of the major events of his public life last week's lecture the first in the series focused on a key event in the Civil Rights struggle in America the attempt by a bi-racial delegation from Mississippi the Mississippi Freedom Democratic to replace the official all white Mississippi delegation at the 1964 Democratic National Convention in Atlantic City last I heard Mr. Mondale discuss how he broke her to compromise that helped Lyndon Johnson get elected president and mondale's Mentor Hubert Humphrey get elected vice president a compromise that has been praised was a great victory for civil rights and at the same time harshly criticized as a sell-out That's our we're going to hear from some other folks who were at last week's for him who had their own thoughts. And what happened in Atlantic City. We begin with the Reverend Edwin King white Minister and founder of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic party King remembers the Fateful meeting between Hubert Humphrey Martin Luther King jr. Not at Auto Workers president Walter Reuther and others and which they negotiated who would represent Mississippi at the Democratic Convention. Here's the Reverend Edwin King, especially thank the vice president for inviting people like me who both admire him and have a bit early criticized him and I respect courage whenever I see it Lani guinier use the phrase no two seats. As title for her 1991 Virginia law review article questioning the progress of enfranchisement and empowerment for African American citizens and suggesting radical revisions and rethinking of how we do things in America Michigan ears phrase comes, of course from the words of Fannie Lou Hamer in the great confrontation at the Atlantic City convention in 1964. When mrs. Hamer denounced the two-seat compromise saying quote we didn't come all this way for no two seats since all of us is tired, but the real reason for denouncing it was that whites were choosing who those to speak to seats would be and blacks have never been allowed to speak for themselves and had to say no to that. Another scholarly writer Theodore White in 1980 looked back over all the presidential elections. He had covered and in Life Magazine. He said that there was a historic struggle in American politics at the 1964 convention and that changed America more than the Advent of Television quote the campaign of 1964 would have been memorable enough. If only play it's illustration of televisions power but history that year was to put on another demonstration that far out did TVs impact on American politics for that one must move to the convention hall in Atlantic City and then he describes what you heard about a black woman named Fannie Lou Hamer and he describes her speech. He finally says the issue was legality and morality. The compromise was offered the black Freedom Democratic party would get two votes at this convention and beginning with the next convention in 1968. No delegation would be seated from any state where the party process deprives citizens of the right to vote because of race or color. He said it was considered an interim compromise, but it was to change the entire character from American politics from then on somehow this band on exclusion will become and insistence on inclusion. Part of the struggle about affirmative action goes back to this time. We've now reached the point where anyone who can claim recognized group status can now demand inclusion women Latinos American Indians persons with physical handicaps and so on an 1964, Mississippi African Americans were being excluded from the process because of the color of their skin, and we're not being judged on the content of their character. Mrs. Hamer in the fdp is a said rejected the two seats because they had no voice in choosing who the two seats would be they were insulted at the meagerness of two seats, but that might have been worked through the issue was that the president of United States as mrs. Hamer described it acting like the big man in the plantation and the White House was the center of the plantation that person shows which black preacher or who were the spokespersons for blacks. We understood what was happening. The movement had won a great Victory the symbolism would end all white politics. But we also understood that from that day forth the right of blacks to sit at the table was being recognized. The new issue would be how much power the people had would quite Governors Mayors and so on control the New Black vote by naming purchasing or co-opting black leaders visibility was important the issues moved to New fronts. Mister Monday, I'll never met mrs. Hey murdering this convention. This is sad for all of us. It's symbolic of what was happening. The people on the credentials committee had heard his hammer speak but never had to deal with her in the smoke-filled rooms as Hubert Humphrey did Allard Lowenstein arranged a meeting from his hammer and me and several others with the Humphrey. He explained the vice presidential nomination depended on his settling the Mississippi question and blocking the Civil Rights Movement. He told us of all the good things he would do miss his hammer describes this meeting which she says she left in tears and Center to Humphrey was in tears as he talked about losing the vice presidency and all he wanted to do. She says I was delighted to even have a chance to talk with you with Humphrey. But here's set a little round-eyed man with his eyes full of tears as he talked about losing that job. He talked to me about the good things he would do and I was amazed and I said well, mr. Humphrey. Do you mean to tell me that your position is more important to you than 400,000 black people's lives. This was a blow to me. List of Humphrey tried to say how much good he had done and what he would do race relations poverty education Healthcare and twice in my presence. He said socialized medicine is my goal. We must have today would say universal healthcare and this was the unfinished promise of the new deal and Harry Truman and he was going to work on that and he discussed peace in Vietnam twice with me. He had to have the job is this Hammer basically said if you sell your soul, you will not be able to do good. To mr. Humphrey. She said Senator Humphrey. I know lots of people in Mississippi who have lost their jobs for trying to register to vote. I had to leave the plantation in Sunflower County know if you lose this job because you helped the Mississippi Freedom Democratic party. Everything will be alright, God will still take care of you. But if you take it the vice presidency this way you'll never be able to do any good for civil rights for poor people for peace or any of those things you talk about Senator Humphrey, I'm going to pray to Jesus for you. I was in smoke-filled rooms. I want to quickly summarize what went on and almost two hours of negotiations with Center to Humphrey by some of the leaders of our delegation. Wow system on Dale and the credentials committee were in session. Bayard Rustin phoned me and asked me to bring Aaron Henry to a meeting with byard. We assumed the purpose of the meeting was to discuss large-scale black participation in demonstrations on the boardwalk. We had asked buyer to do that for us byard. Specifically said I could not bring this is Hamer. And I could specifically not bring Allard Lowenstein but didn't bother me because they both had political tasks going around to caucuses and I thought we were going to talk about demonstrations. I said you do mean for me to bring Bob Moses and byard said no, it's just you and Aaron Moses is not an elected member of your delegation. And I said my Erin and I are not going to go anywhere without bar. So he agreed to let Bob come we enter the room and were amazed to find Hubert Humphrey Walter Reuther from the southern Christian leadership conference, Dr. Martin Luther King Ralph Abernathy and Andrew Young Lexington to Humphrey present the points of the compromise, which we were told we had to agree to there and force the delegation to accepted and mockingly. What kind of leaders are you if your people won't do what you tell them. I was stunned we had said we could only accept the Edith green compromise our traditional compromise of splitting the votes of a delegation and each faction taking a proportion. We talked over many matters. I raise specific clarifying Points about the compromise. I wish we could all have talked to Mr. Mondale in the committee. First. I said couldn't the people with these two seats with hurts. Me and Aaron are who? Have the name Mississippi in this at large delegation and we were told no and we said but we have to represent real people even if at large is a symbol for all the American people we have to be responsible to somebody accountability responsibility is not here. Then I said where will the two seats be placed? We didn't know but it wasn't going to be anywhere close to Mississippi or Alabama. Then I asked about the unit rule Hubert Humphrey had said had to say I didn't even think about that but that I was right under the unit rule. What's the party now doesn't have if the three mississippians who stayed cast a vote out of the 68 delegates 265 who walked home their boats would still have been counted under the unit Rule and I said my God Aaron and I are going to have two votes and the three or two of whoever stays will test the entire boat. And The Stomping said you got a point but it's probably too late. We weren't in dialogue and communication. I'm confident so that we could have worked some of this out. The White House said it had to be done now. Martin Luther King had talked to the symbolism of our victory of the pride blacks would see as they watched Aaron Henry on television if he was called at large casting a vote for Lyndon Johnson for president. I asked mr. Humphrey will this happen? And Mr. Humphrey hesitated and then he said you have caused Lyndon Johnson to sacrifice one of his lifelong Ambitions. There will be no roll call because Johnson will not let Aaron Henry cast that vote. So I said nobody's ever going to see this black man pass this black boat. And Humphrey said no and Johnson wanted a roll call but has given up on it. So I said okay, I will resign my seat. This will help and go back to the delegation that way and puts them on Dale. And dr. King and byard and Walter said no. No. No, you've got to be there. It has to be at a racial. And I said, okay. I understand that. I was elected by majority black delegation to this position of national committeeman. I have a variation. Let's split our two votes into 4/2 votes and let the delegation vote and we know what will happen Aaron Henry and this is Fannie. Lou Hamer will be chosen a matter of which one is chosen first. They will be chosen the third person chosen will probably be Victoria Gray from the Gulf Coast and Hattiesburg just for geographic representation. And I said, I am very sure that mrs. Hema will nominate me to be the fourth person and our delegation believes in the symbolism of integration. And we will have it and we will have voted on it. And Mr. Humphreys said that is not possible. Mrs. Fannie. Lou Hamer cannot be your delegate and Bob was screaming you are naming the delegates. You're telling us this is freedom. You are naming our people Aaron Henry said you can't name our people and the vice president said the man to become vice president. The President Lyndon Johnson told me that illiterate woman. Must never be allowed to speak again at a democratic convention and particularly must not have for privileges to speak and then mr. Humphrey said and look at her the way she dresses her grammar. This is not the kind of person that white America needs to see representing black people. I think mr. Humphrey was quoting an alumni of the University of Minnesota. I think the president of the United States was quoting Roy Wilkins who told me the same thing even to describing. This is haemar's lack of discretion in her dress and said throughout his life quite sad thought that all blacks spoke in broken English and could not communicate and we were setting the Civil Rights Movement back by letting illiterate sharecroppers have National Television. It says Humphrey. Is this Johnson? Is this Monday? Oh It's human and understandable, but the Civil Rights Movement had moved to another level. We could not vote on our delegates. Humphrey again explained all the good things he was going to do for the country. He especially talked about the emerging war in Vietnam how we did not understand that Walter Reuther stressed all of these things emphasizing them and what we had to do Reuther joint Humphrey and saying there were problems of surveillance abuse of police power in the nation that were worse than the terrorists. We talked about in near fascist, Mississippi. they both said that freedom was more than Mississippi that there were things going on in this country in this world that we could not understand and shouldn't mess up with our parochial politics at the very freedom of America was at State and every Democratic institution we knew was at risk We got back to talking about Mississippi Martin King said that he could understand our position, but then he supported the compromise because he needed a victory and if we had a public defender blacks in the cities might Riot that would affect Lyndon Johnson's election Humphrey outlined the growth of the southern strategy brilliant ideas from Lyndon Johnson predicting what happened over the next 20 years except Johnson feared it over the next one year, but it was solidly enough in place by 1968 ironically to help defeat. Mr. Humphrey. The southern strategy the switch in the party's two things must a Monday. I was already talked about didn't come about. When Martin said that he wasn't sure what he would do if we tried to have a four-fight which we said we would do Walter Reuther turned on Martin King and said there will be no full fight from you. Dr. King. We said we were going to get you a real we're going to get our delegation together. We will have a floor fight. He said I will fire Joe Rao as counsel to the UAW. If he keeps assisting you and then to Martin almost wagging his finger in Martin Luther King's face. He said remember who pays for this is one of my heroes Walter Reuther and I wasn't UAW member once even in Detroit King back down Humboldt. humiliated and Rutha outline the thousands of dollars that the UAW and other Northern liberals had put up to finance bail money in Birmingham and other campaigns And dr. King meet Lee. Shut up. Can you imagine how we felt going back to our delegation of what was its take? We didn't fully understand. And we didn't even talk about most of this stuff to our delegation. We just talked about can you accept the two seats and we didn't even tell him that mrs. Hamer was forbidden to be elected in the car going to back to our delegation was Andy on Martin King and me Bob Moses had slammed the door and said it's a Humphries space Humphrey tried to apologize. I believed then and I believe to this day send it to Humphrey was sincere. Moses said you have deceived us to trick. I think he did not know that the credentials committee was finishing its work and a burst into the room and announced it. Well I said let's go Aaron was apologizing more to Humphrey. I said we better get to the delegation almost as fast as Bob Moses. So we chased him we saw his care and here's Martin and me and Andy Martin is in the middle on the backseat. Andy is on the right literally pulling doctor came to the right and I'm on the left literally pulling doctor came to the left. And Andy says you have to do what the White House wants. The Civil Rights Movement is dependent on Northern money on Northern liberals. The King. This is the way the system works. We can't keep going without their money. I wanted to say are blacks still for sale. That's what I talk to. Dr. King about was Grassroots people's democracy. Our freedom struggle and obeying his conscience when I had heard was his hammer preach to Hubert Humphrey. I preached to Martin Luther King and Martin agreement on a promise to me, but you kept he said I have to publicly support the compromise in any sort of said, but I'll be a hypocrite. He said if I were a Mississippian in your delegation, I would vote against this compromise and I'm confident you will and I promise never to use my oratory to try to influence your people. He said but publicly I've got to do what Andy says And he kept his promise and did not and he said this compromise is good for black people all over America. It's not good for Mississippi, but there is good in it and it's the best we can get. We came away from that we came away from that with many people bitter disillusioned saying like the freedom song which side are you on you're either Freedom Fighter or an enemy that it was no longer Mississippi that it was the enemy but it was the American system the traditional way of doing things the traditional powers and it was no place for real freedom and democracy until America saved itself. Some said there's no point in that they went into black militancy black separatism abandoned it some of the young whites went into radicalism of crazy sorts, but others kept the faith and kept going The movement against the war in Vietnam. Started out of Freedom Summer and particularly out of the experience at Atlantic City where American students said We can question the government. Mrs. Hanger Merced a question America. It is our duty as Citizens and back in Berkeley Mario Savio fulfilled a promise. He had made in my living room at tougaloo College at the end of the summer when he left and Hollis Watkins. He said all you volunteers can go back and now you've left it with us and Mario said it won't be race and civil rights that's always the center of American politics, but the struggle for Freedom exists everywhere and you will hear for us because we will resist oppression whether it's police or bureaucracy or the system everywhere and his famous speech that began the Berkeley movement started out with Summer in Mississippi the struggle for freedom but today in California. We continue to struggle one of his hammer songs was they say that freedom is a constant struggle. It is hallelujah. How was the Reverend Edwin King a white Minister and a founding member of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic party. He was one of the panelist who participated in the Mondeo lectures and public service held at the University of Minnesota on Friday today during this extended edition of midday. We are presenting excerpts from that an inaugural for him a living history. If you will have a key moment in the Civil Rights struggle. Next week we're going to hear from is Taylor branch, which branch is the Pulitzer prize-winning author of parting the waters a book about the Civil Rights movement in the 50s and 60s Branch said he became interested in civil rights during college and kept a journal that later became a Chronicle of the movement Taylor Branch says that to keep the spirit of the Freedom Movement alive Americans must remember the history of the past 35 years. He was author Taylor Branch speaking at last week's Mondale lecture to follow a preacher. But I'm just as happy because these are in many respects my heroes because I think that there is a peculiar timeliness to this event and I want to thank Mr. Mondale and all the people here in Minnesota for having it in for including the range of opinion here and including the heroes for the movement. Because I think there's some very significant history at stake here. And that we are at a particularly opportune time in our history to realize it. Now first thing I want to say is that The unique thing about America is that race is always been a tissue when we decide what American Freedom really means and has been for many centuries. That's America's only story is what does freedom mean but the peculiar thing about our history is that that very history the racial part of it is perishable. Meaning the history doesn't last very well unless you have a very good efforts and strong and conscious efforts to preserve it. On one of the tapes and the Kennedy Library unlike the Johnson Library you hear President Kennedy in the midst of the Ole Miss crisis when he was sending 23000 soldiers to get one black student into the University of Mississippi. He said he felt very ill-used by Governor Barnett in the Mississippi politicians. He said this makes me wonder if everything I learned at Harvard about reconstruction and how the white people needed the clan to end. Their suffering is really true. The history of reconstruction perished and was Rewritten and made into a myth. We don't want to have the same thing happen about the history of the last 35 years. We have to capture this history or there's a lot of intensity here. But I think that it's not on. Fair to say that history in 1964 was turning on a dime. in three respects and they're not all good. I think this is there's a lot of stuff to turn up here. First of all, the Democratic party was turning on a dime from the party of segregation, which is where you got all those Southern committee chairman into the party of today into the party of civil rights. And that was a conscious Choice by Lyndon Johnson, but it also terrified not just for the 64 election, but for elections, he couldn't figure out how Democrats could get elected president without the solid South but the solid Democratic South rested on segregation. So, how do you how do you deal with that? And this Atlantic City convention is the Democratic party turning on a dime. Far less known but equally significant the Republican party was turning on a dime in the very same year. There will not be any sessions like this about the fact that the 1964 Republican convention in San Francisco that it occurred only a month earlier seated an all-white delegation from the state not a Mississippi but of, California. The largest state in the Union and that was a conscious that was the product of a conscious many year effort on behalf of the Goldwater operatives to throw out the old black and tan to it been in the Republican party for a hundred years. This occurred the same month that the Civil Rights bill was signed of 1964 that was supported by over 80% of the Congress of the Republicans in both the house and the Senate so the party of Lincoln votes for the Civil Rights bill and then nominates Goldwater who's against it at a convention that throws out all of its black delegates. If this is not turning on a dime, I don't know what is and in the south of course that I grew up and we didn't even have any Republicans Republicans didn't run. I put in parting the Waters of the 1962. The Republican state chairman in North Carolina was discovered to have a second wife and family in Virginia. But the position of Republican party chairman was so low profile in the South. Nobody had noticed for 15 years. There was not a single Republican member of Congress between George Bush in Houston, Texas and the Atlantic Ocean. Not one not one in the states that Goldwater carry, but all of a sudden they rushed to run in 1964. So the Republican party was turning on a dime the Democratic party with turning on a dime in the office that direction and the third one and I think the hardest one for us to see is that nonviolence was also turning on a dime. The most signal part of the movement was the first part to become passe. Not only within the movement but in America at large and this is the hard part for us to accept because non-violence and these Heroes brought about all of this forward momentum in our history and it had been going ever for 10 years by the time it got to 1964 but very shortly non-violence broke down the movement broke down. Bob Moses left. A lot of people left people were tired people were beginning to quarrel over internally over who was Radical and who was militant and who was right and who was not in the freedom party convention was part of that. And I think in a way you can look at it from two different directions, I think. All of this we were so distant from one another that a lot of people really thought caution segregation and the race problem will be solved when we shake hands once when we meet one another there was a lot of naivete there was a lot of pain. It was a lot of hurt. Certainly, I don't think if if I had a criticism of the democratic party and of mr. Mondale subcommittee. It was I don't think there was any appreciation of the enormous strain that the nonviolent movement had gone through in Mississippi. Not just in 64 but in 60 and 61 and 62 when people were killed these are people who came desperate out of Mississippi not wondering if they're going to live or not. There was strain over having Freedom Summer over issues such as is it fair to these white volunteers to bring them down here and use them as scapegoats to subpoena the conscience of the country. These people were on their moral strain physical strain terrorist rain in many different directions, and I do think that a greater appreciation of that had we been closer to the Mississippi situation might have resulted in addressing some of the issues that Reverend King mentioned such as can't they at least represent, Mississippi. How can they at least vote on who their two delegates are because the right to vote was a matter of life and death and and and and to be able to vote on and rep cast a vote for Mississippi. The people who have been denied the right to vote was something that was impossible to give up at the same time. I don't think people in the movement appreciated the strain on Johnson Johnson had a mental breakdown really in the midst of this. He he went to bed. Tapes will change history. There is a human miserable suffering Lyndon Johnson in these tapes Santa what good am I as president I come from the South if I can't help my party in the South and in the border states, that's what he was worried that Kentucky in Oklahoma and everything that he lose all of them not just him but in the next election, I'm no good in the south. If I'm no good for civil rights and the north either what am I doing in the White House? He was saved by the fact that most of the country care a little about Mississippi, but wanted to get on with the convention and that was hard for the people in the Mississippi Freedom Democratic party to accept because the issues were so intense. They were such a matter of life and death. It was hard to get to Atlantic City and see people in all the way with LBJ hat blaring down the boardwalk talking about, you know, getting a damn Highway in Idaho. They were worried about other issues and that was hard but what happened was See what happened Cesar. The reason that this history is so important to us. Now. Is that both the Republicans who turned against government with Goldwater? And said government is bad big government is telling us what to do not respectable to say segregation is good, but it is respectable to say those pointy-headed bureaucrats like George Wallace or are telling us what to do and big government tax and spend liberals and government is bad that idea was planted in 1964. It has become the dominant idea of politics for the last thirty-five years similar leave the movement in its woundedness. Yes. We were badly treated. They're not politely 3DS. The political choices were wrong yesterday Johnson may have done something else. And seated us but the movement turned against the promise of the government itself liberals became bad first in the movement, then they became bad in the Republican party and in National politics from the right to the point that liberalism yet. You never even knew they are extinct almost it's an epithet across-the-board in politics. So this is a very strong thing it to remember the whole premise of the movement of non-violence was to get the whole people in the country to answer. The Injustice is in the South. It was an expression of faith in the national government and when I was lost and not just because of Atlantic City, but I think that was one want one thing then comes Vietnam then comes Watergate then comes a whole series of scandals tell the government has bad has seeped into our very culture on the left and the right. At the same time but in reality the great objective reality set Loose by this movement and to some degree ratified by this government, cuz the witness of the non-violent people mattered with the civil rights law and the Voting Rights Act that counted two at the same time that these great steps for Freedom are being realized our national discourse lost sight of it. We turned against the promise of our national government on the left and the right. And that's happened for a long time. I now believe. That government is bad has run its course. And I think that we are in a position now to re-evaluate and recapture our history and what we've been able to do as a whole people in spite of the fact that our discourse has been paralyzed. That's why I think it's important that we come together in a year like this to look with the clarity of history back on this time on the contributions of all people to send this thing going and the contributions are greater even than we realized here because The liberation's that were set in motion by the Freedom Movement and embraced finally and not perfectly but embraced by the government affected more than Mississippi effective more than white people affected more than opening up and finally ending to be blunt about it. There was a national debate about whether black people were fully human in. This. That is gone. I mean, we have to remember that things did change a lot of stuff changed and it wasn't just opening up freedom for black people. It was opening up freedom for for me a white Southerner for all women including Women here in Minnesota because the Civil Rights Act didn't just end racial discrimination in the South. It ended racial discrimination official racial discrimination is prohibited in employment and in Minnesota. There were a lot of jobs that were bought block to a lot of minorities and it ended it for women as an accident of the Civil Rights Act. And then of the Voting Rights Act, it ended discrimination against all women white women black women all kinds of women, you know, it was put in as an accident to ban discrimination in employment in the 1964 election. It was a last-gasp effort by the southerners to sync the Civil Rights bill by adding sex discrimination to the prohibition thinking that people wouldn't want to vote against such a manifest for such a manifestly ridiculous thing that would require us to have only one bathroom in public airports. That's what they see what they said or have made even female airline pilots and they all laughed about it and Lyndon Johnson and one of his great. Said the southerners outsmarted themselves cuz they tried to kill the bill with equal rights for women and all they did was get about 20 million of ladybirds friends behind our bill. So that we are all standing on the shoulders you and your daughters. Who's remember the one I had back then or help wanted white Help Wanted colored in the South but they're help wanted male help wanted female everywhere. And this Liberation has rolled forward in fact, so that I argue that even that Fannie Lou Hamer Freedom even Trent Lott. Because the south is prominent and Wealthy as as Mister Mondale acknowledged but you never would have a stigmatized southerner as majority leader of the Senate but Trent Lott would die before he would have knowledge that and we've got to make him acknowledge that we got to make people see that this Freedom went everywhere and that it has come forward and I sense a yo. I sense a touch on my elbow. All I want to say is that I think now that we're in a position to realize that the the freedom that has rolled forward through South Africa and through the end of the Cold War and through the right for women's campaign in the history. That is Vindicated. Our national government should put us in a position now to have our votes matter the government matters non-violence was the ultimate expression of faith in the people that there are things that we are willing to die for but not to kill for an expression of faith in this government and brings us back really to James Madison who never limited the belief for what that was and Madison said in the Federalist and I will close on this. That the spirit of belief in the people animate every votary of freedom to rest all our political experiments on the unlimited capacity of mankind for self-government. That's what is lifted this also. We should salute the flag. We should salute the patriots who pushed it forward in the politicians. We going through a lot of a lot of a long time where we've lost sight in our in our dialogue of the freedoms that we set free and of the benefits and we need to recover that in our discourse so that we can we can get back to the language of the people that you have heard here and and and make it inform our politics again. I thank you very much for having me. I think this is a very timely event. Pulitzer prize-winning author Taylor Branch speaking about the importance of remembering the history of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic party. He was one of the guest panelists at former vice president for Minnesota. Senator Walter mondale's first lecture on public service the Mondale for Angel last week at the University of Minnesota focused on the integration of the democratic party and the Atlantic City Democratic Convention of 1964. Final panelists at The Forum was William Winter a longtime civil rights Advocate and the governor of Mississippi from 1980 to 1984. Currently he serves on President Clinton's advisory Commission on Ray. He told the Forum that the freedom Democrat should be thanked for helping free all people black and white from racism and segregation in the Deep South erspamer, Mississippi Governor William with thank you very much. Let me think first of all my good friend Fritz Mondale and his colleagues for affording me the opportunity to be here. Address to buy a present for a lost key artist. I reminded me why we should have Lexi brother 1984. I don't deserve to be sitting at this table. I looked down then I see all these. the street fighters of the night of the 1960s and I was hunkered down in a bunker afraid to stick my head up. Very far, but I would say to them that I am here today and I became Governor, Mississippi. Monster because of what they did they and their colleagues are in Henry and Fannie Lou Hamer knows all those other nameless Heroes of that era. And I would say to them. As I said, the money ever was one evening at the governor's mansion in Jackson. When we had a dinner in Toronto. I said Miss Alva's. We white folks down here in the south. Oh your modern husband as great a debt. as black folks do because he freed us to Freedom Democratic Party help free us all in the Deep South from the shackles that had enslaved Us in terms of the positions that we were able to take in politics. I followed that 1964 convention, Atlantic City. And I must say to you. I think the Prelude to that convention. Was established some in in 19 in 1948? some 16 years before when a man named Hubert Humphrey stood in the convention hall in Philadelphia. And said to that delegates to that convention including delegates from Mississippi. Let us move from the shadow of states rights end of the sunshine of Human Rights. As a result of that speech which was celebrated here the 50th anniversary of which was celebrated here. Just two years ago. I asked you. Result of that speech was to cause that convention. to declare itself in favor of a strong civil rights plant And as a result of the Devourer of the adoption of that plant. The delegation from my state of Mississippi and from and most of the delegation from Alabama except for one Bella get a one or two delegates including a fella named George Wallace who stayed in the convention. Those delegation walked out. Adam based on a fiery speech made earlier in the spring in Jackson. Buy man from South Carolina who was in the governor of South Carolina Strom, Thurmond. Mississippi, South Carolina Alabama and Louisiana voted for the states rights ticket of Thurman and right in the fall of 1948 the first departure from the Democratic party since the Civil War. 87% how the vote in Mississippi went to that states rights dixiecrat party in November. It is no coincidence. Madden 19 a 1964 after the Atlantic City Convention 87% how the Mississippi vote went to Barry Goldwater Based on the same on the same idea. That we will oppose civil rights and civil rights position. He was no secret in Mississippi with the delegates to the Atlantic City Convention. We're going to vote before Goldwater. It was an Open Secret that the delay convention. This is a State Convention that was recessed until after the Atlantic City Convention. Was for the purpose of allowing the convention to swing to Goldwater. and delegates open divorce themselves during recess and prior to the convention mean call to order the Jackson Convention as favorite kind of chips out of the bag or the only three members of the Mississippi delegation Atlantic City Convention that we're not going to vote for Barry Goldwater, even if they went And so we find a basis for the failure to see. The Mississippi delegation right there in that on record. I went through a lot of turmoil after that and it was not until 1976. That the party the Democratic party in Mississippi on a bi-racial base has finally came back together finding that common interest. Voting for Jimmy Carter first time that Mississippi supported a winning Democratic candidate since Franklin Roosevelt in 1944. But that 84 to the 64 convention. I was a candidate for governor in Mississippi 1967 my point in the second Democratic primary. Was a militant fire reading segregation is Congressman named John Bell Williams. He had introduced Goldwater in the fall of 1964 in that campaign and it led the campaign for Goldwater in Mississippi with a democratic Congress. He was later than I had his his seniority for the Democratic caucus denied the championship committee that he was supposed to to move up to and then dining the clock of martyrdom came back to Mississippi 1967 RAM for governor. P and I ran that second primary off together. I let him in the first primary. He defeated me II. Asserting that I was not allow your Democrat because I have not voted for Barry Goldwater. And passed out and passed out flyers showing me speaking to a integrated audience and saying away quite Mississippi vote against William. What up negro domination of Mississippi future where Mississippi did that and it took me it took me 12 years to be elected governor. I was elected governor because of the early work that these These Old Crusaders I had had done. Now we still have a long way to go. We have now the largest number of African Americans in the Mississippi legislative in the state in the country and we have outstanding public officials who African-American some mail my home City majority of the city council African American African American African American will come a long way. But I'm scared you. We still have a long way to go not just in Mississippi, but in this country, I had the privilege of serving on the present to buy the board on race. Dr. John hope Franklin and others. We went all over the United States looking at the status of race relations in this country. And I was telling you I'm encouraged but we're worried about how far how far we've come. But I'm discouraged about how far we still have to go and I found this I found this Universal position everywhere. We went regardless of the of the group that we will we will meeting with regard to the racial makeup goddess of where we were but everybody agreed on five basic things. They want a decent education for that children. They wanted access to jobs that would support their families. They want to live in a decent house on safe Street. They would have acted have access to adequate Healthcare and above all else. They want to be treated with dignity and respect and what's wrong with that fracking will compass that why can't we celebrate? Why can't we celebrate in this great country of ours this element of the song enrich my life. And make it a basis for my strength celebrate our common Humanity. And make real the promise that the freedom Democrats at Atlantic City in 1964 had in mind. Thank you very much. I was former Mississippi governor and civil rights leader. William Winter. He credits the Mississippi Freedom Democratic party with helping to give blacks and whites a greater voice in politics. He spoke at the first in a series of lectures on public service given by former vice president former Minnesota. Senator Walter Mondale last week's formed by the way was titled Atlantic City Revisited Mississippi's Freedom Democrats, and the integration of the democratic party. Next Monday or form is going to be held in June. And of course we'll be providing coverage here on Minnesota Public. Radio will be rebroadcasting today's program.