Summit Meeting of National Negro Leaders
The Summit Meeting of National Negro Leaders took place in June 1958 and marked a significant event in the civil rights movement in the United States. Convened by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, this meeting included prominent African American figures such as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, and Lester B. Granger. The primary goal of the summit was to discuss strategies for addressing the impending school integration mandated by the courts, as well as to voice concerns regarding the Eisenhower administration's perceived lack of support for civil rights initiatives.
This meeting was notable as it represented Eisenhower's first engagement with Black leaders during his presidency, highlighting the growing pressure from civil rights activists for governmental action. While the meeting itself was brief and lacked significant outcomes, the leaders presented a statement advocating for increased federal involvement in civil rights issues and criticized the president's earlier call for "patience." Ultimately, the summit did not result in further meetings during Eisenhower's term, underscoring the challenges that civil rights leaders faced in their advocacy efforts. This event remains a historical touchpoint in the ongoing struggle for racial equality in America.
Summit Meeting of National Negro Leaders
After five years in office and repeated requests from civil rights activists for an audience, US president Dwight D. Eisenhower held a “summit meeting” in June 1958 with four African American leaders: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.;A. Philip Randolph; Roy Wilkins of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People; and Lester B. Granger of the National Urban League. The purpose of the summit was to address strategies for dealing with the approaching wave of school integration and to express concerns over the reluctance of the Eisenhower administration to support civil rights and enforce court orders mandating desegregated public schools; yet the significance of the summit lay in the fact that it was Eisenhower’s first such meeting with black leaders.
The meeting itself was by all accounts brief and uneventful. The leaders presented Eisenhower with a carefully worded statement calling for increased federal visibility and involvement in advancing civil rights causes and tactfully criticized the president for his previous statement urging them to “be patient” about civil rights. Eisenhower promised the leaders that he would take their statement under consideration but responded evasively to their requests for a national conference on civil rights. The 1958 summit would be the only White House conference of black leaders during the Eisenhower administration; subsequent requests for additional meetings were denied.
Bibliography
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Goldfield, David. “Border Men: Truman, Eisenhower, Johnson, and Civil Rights.” Journal of Southern History 1 (2014): 7. Print.
Kirk, John A. Martin Luther King And The Civil Rights Movement. London: Routledge, 2013. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 18 May 2015.
Levy, Peter B. The Civil Rights Movement in America : From Black Nationalism to the Women’s Political Council. Santa Barbara: Greenwood, 2015. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 18 May 2015.
“‘Summit’ Conference of Negro Leaders.” Ebony 13.9 (1958): 125. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 18 May 2015.