March 14, 1956

STATEMENT OF VIRGIL BLOSSOM

Mrs. Bates has been the official spokesman for the liberal
group of the colored race through her position as State President 
of NAACP in every instance whether it has been official School
Board meeting or whether it has been in a limited conference with
me.  She has been present at discussions involving NAACP leaders,
Human Relations Committee leaders and Urban League leaders.  She
was present in the back of the room at Gibbs School when I, in a
pre-school conference, told our plan of integration to the colored
teachers of the Little Rock Public School System.  In each instance
she has been dissatisfied with the plan.  She has tried to hurry
integration at every opportunity .  She has tried to bring about
simultaneous integration from grades 1 to 12 in everything she has
done.  I have had a number of conferences with her trying to explain
the unreasonableness of her requests.  The only term I know to use
is a number - I would say half a dozen, but I would not want to be
pinned down.  I have talked to her in the office here by herself.
She has been present every time whether there has been a formal
request of the School Board, whether it has been jus a small com-
mittee, and she was present one time with an Interracial Committee
of the Human Relations group when both colored and whites were
there, and has, in each instance, seemed to be their chief spokesman.
That has been true before the School Board.  She says she is repre-
senting NAACP and she is the State President.  If they have a Secretary
I do not know the name.  The only two names I have heard are Mrs.
Daisy Bates, who is the President of the Arkansas Chapter, and J.C.
Crenshaw, 709 West 9th Street, who is the President of the Little Rock
branch of NAACP.
Crenshaw has been present at discussions with Mrs. Bates
I had a meeting with a committee representative at their request
representing the NAACP and the Human Relations group - that is the
interacial group - that came in here one day and asked for an
appointment to discuss the whole thing.  The people who were present