National States Rights Party
The National States Rights Party (NSRP) was established in 1958 in Jeffersonville, Indiana, by Edward Fields and Jesse B. Stoner, who had prior ties to the Christian Anti-Jewish Party. This organization aimed to promote white racism and anti-Semitism, distinguishing itself from other right-wing extremist groups by not opposing certain government programs, such as Medicare and Social Security. The NSRP gained prominence during the 1960s amid the Civil Rights movement, nominating segregationist candidates and publishing a newspaper called The Thunderbolt, which circulated widely for its time.
The party was linked with violent incidents, including mob attacks on civil rights demonstrators and riots in multiple southern states. Although the NSRP claimed a membership of over two thousand and operated around thirty chapters, its appeal primarily focused on lower- and working-class whites, and it struggled to maintain widespread support. In the following decades, the party's influence waned, especially after Stoner's criminal convictions and the expulsion of Fields in the early 1980s, leading to the organization's eventual dissolution. The NSRP's legacy serves as a reflection of the tensions in America during the Civil Rights era and the ongoing challenges of extremism and racism.
National States Rights Party
A white supremacist and neo-Nazi organization founded in 1958 by Edward Fields. The National States Rights Party was involved in racist and anti-Semitic activity in the South during the Civil Rights movement of the 1960’s.
Origins and History
The National States Rights Party (NSRP) was organized in 1958 in Jeffersonville, Indiana, by Edward Fields, who served as national secretary of the party. Fields was joined by Jesse B. Stoner, a lawyer and former Klan organizer. At one time, both Stoner and Fields were leaders of the Christian Anti-Jewish Party. Soon after its founding, the NSRP moved to Birmingham, Alabama, then to Augusta, Georgia, and finally to Marietta, Georgia. The NSRP differed from most right-wing extremist groups in that it did not oppose government programs such as Medicare and Social Security. The major purpose of the group was to propagate white racism and anti-Semitism. The party became associated with other neo-Nazis with similar agendas, including Matt Koehl and James Warner, both of whom once belonged to the American Nazi Party.
Activities
The National States Rights Party peaked in the 1960’s during the Civil Rights movement. The party nominated segregationist candidates for the presidency and other political offices. It also published a newspaper called The Thunderbolt, a racist and anti-Semitic publication edited by Fields and claiming to have a circulation of 125,000 in the 1960’s. The party also held rallies and was involved in violent confrontations in several southern states. In Saint Augustine, Florida, in 1964, a mob attacked civil rights demonstrators and injured forty of them. A Florida legislative investigating committee later reported that the NSRP had played a key role in the riots and that the Reverend Connie Lynch, the party’s official policy speaker, and Stoner were instrumental in causing the violence. In 1966, Lynch and four other party members were convicted on charges of inciting a riot in Baltimore. In 1968, NSRP members were involved in a confrontation near Berea, Kentucky, which left two people dead.
Impact
In 1970, Fields claimed that the NSRP had twelve full-time employees and a membership of more than two thousand. Although these figures are probably high, the organization did have about thirty chapters. In general, the NSRP appealed to lower-and working-class whites. The party received publicity because of its strident racism and anti-Semitism, but it never attracted continuous widespread support.
Subsequent Events
During the 1970’s, Stoner ran statewide for political office in Georgia five times on a racist platform. In 1980, he was convicted in Alabama in connection with the 1958 bombing of the Bethel Baptist Church in Birmingham and served three and one half years of a ten-year prison sentence. In 1983, while Stoner was in prison, dissident members expelled Fields from the NSRP. Within a year, the party was defunct.
Additional Information
John George and Laird Wilcox discuss the National States Rights Party in Nazis, Communists, Klansmen, and Others on the Fringe (1992), and information on Fields and Stoner can be obtained in a publication by the Anti-Defamation League entitled Danger: Extremism (1996).