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Tags: P.D. East

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December 4, 1956<br /><br />
I visited with Mr. East and with his printer, Mr. Esten King of Pascagoula, Mississippi and received the following information. Because of economic reprisals on the part of the White Citizens Council of Mississippi, Mr. East has lost most of his advertising and will probably go out of business early in January unless some help is forth coming. Following this conversation, I talked with Dr. Lee of the Department of Racial and Cultural Relations of the National Council and gave him that information and reminded him of a conversation which we had had earlier with Mr. Roy Wilkins of the NAACP, to the effect that probably some national advertising might be sought and received for Mr. East.<br /><br />
December 12, 1956<br /><br />
I received a call from Dr. Lee requesting the number of subscribers to the Petal Paper and also the advertising rate. I got this information for him, and called him back. Two days later he called me and said that it seemed impossible to get national advertising for the Petal Paper, but requested that I supply him with a hundred and fifteen names of individuals in Mississippi to whom the Petal Paper might be sent. He informed me that ten organizations were willing to buy fifteen subscriptions each, making a total of a hundred and fifteen subscriptions.<br /><br />
December 27, 1956<br /><br />
I called Mr. East and asked if he would supply me with some of these names. He replied that he preferred not to do so, that if anyone desired his paper and could not afford it, he would be glad to send them a dollar to get a nickel paper to them, but if they did not want his paper, then he would not be a party to seeing that they got one. He was of course most appreciative of this effort by the various national agencies and said that he would be happy to supply the gift subscriptions to the individuals, but preferred that we make our own list, which I agreed to do.<br />

Internal memo from Will D. Cambell documenting his work securing subscriptions to the Petal Paper and money for P.D. East to keep the newspaper afloat

National Council of the Churches of Christ <br /><br />
in the United States of America<br /><br />
Division of Christian Life and Work <br /><br />
Department of Racial and Cultural Relations<br /><br />
1716 West End Avenue, Nashville, Tennessee, TELEPHONE Alpine 5-3842 <br /><br />
<br /><br />
Rev. Eugene Carson Blake, President <br /><br />
Rev. Roy G. Ross, General Secretary<br /><br />
Rev. Roswell P. Barnes, Associate General Secretary <br /><br />
Charles E. Wilson, Treasurer <br /><br />
<br /><br />
Officers of the Department <br /><br />
Samuel. H Sweeney, Chairman <br /><br />
Ralph M. Arkush, Vice Chairman<br /><br />
Olivia Pearl Stokes, Recording Secretary <br /><br />
J. Oscar Lee, Executive Director <br /><br />
Alfred S. Kramer, Associate Executive Director<br /><br />
Will D. Campbell, Associate Executive Director <br /><br />
Geneva R Jones, Administrative Assistant<br /><br />
<br /><br />
Note:<br /><br />
On Tuesday evening, September 9, Mr. East called me (Will Campbell) and stated that he could no longer carry on the operation of the Petal Paper because of financial destitution. He inquired as to whether or not I might assist him in finding employment. His condition was such that his telephone was to be taken out the following morning. I volunteered a personal loan of $250 to meet his immediate needs.<br /><br />
On the morning of September 10, I telephoned Mr. Harold Fleming, Southern Regional Council, to discuss this situation. We agreed that he would take the matter up with Mr. Ed Lucas of the American Jewish Committee and would present it to the Executive Committee of CCD which is to meet September 17 in New York. I am to discuss it with Lanier Hunt and others when I go to New York.<br /><br />
(Signed)<br /><br />
Will D. Campbell<br /><br />
<br /><br />
Dictated September 10, 1958<br />

Internal memo, Will D. Campbell on National Council of Churches of Christ letterhead

June 2nd,1958<br /><br />
Mr. C. H. Yarrow <br /><br />
AFSC<br /><br />
20 South 12th street<br /><br />
Philadelphia 7, Pennsylvania<br /><br />
<br /><br />
Dear Mr. Yarrow, <br /><br />
<br /><br />
I assume that Harold Fleming has written you about P. D. East and the possibility of giving some assistance to him through AFSC Rights of Conscience Program. <br /><br />
<br /><br />
Because of P.D.’s conscience, our audience came on the scene after he had come out against the WCC and white supremacy. Since this, he has lost most of his advertising. It is generally assumed that he has only stayed because he never had anything to do. Actually, this is not true. He had a good and growing thing, and there is no doubt that if he had followed the pattern, he would now have a 16- to 24-page weekly. Although it is true that the paper was not large from the beginning, it is also true that he had sufficient advertising to show a sizable profit. Furthermore, he lost all the advertisement down to the faithful few remaining in a very short period of time as a collection of back issues will show.<br /><br />
<br /><br />
I have not brought this to your attention earlier because of his extreme pride and sensitivity and desire for complete independence. Because you are interested in conscience, and in kind hands of newspaper editors, I have persuaded him to let us appeal to you.<br /><br />
<br /><br />
He agreed to write to you personally. If you desire information which you do not have, I shall be glad to cooperate. Also I would suggest that you write Easton King, Pascagoula Chronicle Star, Pascagoula, Mississippi. Easton knows PD well, what he started out to do, what he is now doing, the contribution he is making, etc. He is a fine liberal who has recently been denounced in a resolution by the Mississippi legislature as a “liar and integrationist.” <br /><br />
Personal regards to you and let me know if I can help.<br /><br />
Cordially yours,<br /><br />
Will D.Campbell <br /><br />
Associate Executive <br /><br />
<br /><br />
WDC:ddw<br /><br />
Cc: Harold Fleming <br /><br />
<br /><br />
Dictated, but not read by Mr. Campbell.<br /><br />
<br />

Letter, Will D. Campbell to CH Yarrow

Telephone No. 281-3543<br /><br />
<br /><br />
Bernice L. Hannah<br /><br />
Certified Public Accountant<br /><br />
709 Boatner<br /><br />
Bastrop, Louisiana 71220<br /><br />
April 10, 1978<br /><br />
<br /><br />
Mr. Will D Campbell<br /><br />
P.O. Box 936, College Station<br /><br />
Berea, KY 40404<br /><br />
<br /><br />
Dear Mr. Campbell:<br /><br />
I have just finished reading Brother to a Dragonfly. I cannot tell you how moved I am by its beauty and its truth. Only those of us who grew up and lived in this area can attest to its truthfulness. The book recalled the past very vividly. Being from mississippi I had followed your experience and later events at Ole Miss with great interest and sympathy. I had read P.D. East’s Petal Papers, recognized his courage, but did not know its final chapter. I can’t remember what he called Jim Eastland, but it was good. <br /><br />
Your book blesses and judges the efforts of all of us, however small, during these trying decades through which we are still moving. My sister, Mary Frances Lacey, tried very hard wherever she found herself with the YWCA. She admired you greatly. Those of us in even more obscure places tried, probably not hard enough, but paid a price and reaped a reward. Thank you for putting the picture in perspective and at the same time for telling such a true story of brother’s love for brother. <br /><br />
The evolving of your religious convictions is fascinating and provokes me to search my own soul. I hope you can do as much for Presbyterians in Montreat in July-August. <br /><br />
Literacy critics, I hope, will do justice to your lovely book. More learned scholars will know better what to say than I. I can only say thank you for a job well done. I can hardly wait for my very grown children to read BROTHER TO A DRAGONFLY. <br /><br />
Sincerely, <br /><br />
Bernice Lacey Hannah<br /><br />
I truly am a better accountant than a typist. <br />

Letter, Bernice Lacey Hannah to Will D. Campbell

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