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Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. White House Staff Files of Harris Wofford
JFKWHSFHW-011-014
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. White House Central Subject Files
JFKWHCSF-0360-003
Materials in this folder include memoranda, correspondence concerning racial discrimination in the military and segregation in educational institutions, and a report from the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights entitled “Proposals for Executive Action to End Federally Supported Segregation and Other Forms of Racial Discrimination” written by Roy Wilkins, Executive Secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and Arnold Aronson, Director of Program Planning and Evaluation for the National Community Relations Advisory Council. The report proposes measures to eliminate racial segregation and discrimination, with specific emphasis on health services, housing programs, employment practices, and segregation in educational institutions and the military.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-108-002
Sound recording of a meeting held on August 28, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy and Civil Rights Leaders: Roy Wilkins, A. Philip Randolph, Walter Reuther, Whitney Young, Floyd McKissick, Eugene Carson Blake, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., John Lewis, and other unidentified participants. Wilkins, Randolph, and the other civil rights leaders initially report to President Kennedy on the March on Washington, but then turn the conversation to the pending civil rights legislation in Congress and the need for action to ensure equality. President Kennedy reviews a head count of votes in Congress on the administration's bill and legislative strategy. Martin Luther King speaks briefly. Randolph calls for a crusade with President Kennedy as its leader. Vice President Johnson explains the realities of political power in relation to Congress--how to craft a coalition of support, pressure on business leaders, approaches to former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, etc. There is also a discussion of the right of African Americans in the military to demonstrate. At the end of the meeting, there is a coordination of statements on the completion of the meeting and President Kennedy reads the statement he intends to release. Please note that this Civil Rights Meeting recording was opened to research use in July of 1984. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 108, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding and following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 108 in its entirety.