PASSING GLORY is a TNT Original film premiering Sunday, February 21, at 8PM (et\pt). Set in segregation-era Louisiana in the mid-1960s, PASSING GLORY tells of Father Paul Verrett, an unorthodox young African-American priest from the North given a second chance at remaining in the Josephite order. Father Verrett becomes a history teacher at St. Augustine, an all-Black Catholic school in Louisiana and eventually takes over as coach of its undefeated basketball team. Hoping to ignite the sparks of the Civil Rights Movement in this small Louisiana town, Father Verrett and his star athlete, Travis Porter, must overcome the shared fears and prejudices of both Whites and Blacks in their community to change the rules forever. Verrett exhorts his players to challenge the town's social conventions by organizing a game between his undefeated team and a rival, undefeated all-White team. The head-to-head competition results in the possibility of discovering mutual respect which crosses racial boundaries. Based on a true story, PASSING GLORY was written by Harold Sylvester, a member of the historic 1965 St. Augustine basketball team. It is brought to TNT by executive producers Quincy Jones, David Salzman and Earvin "Magic" Johnson and by director Steve James, the award-winning producer and director of "Hoop Dreams." The film stars Emmy®-Award winner Andre Braugher, Rip Torn and Ruby Dee and up-and-coming young Hollywood talents Sean Squire and Arthur Agee.

Father Paul Verrett
A young Black Catholic priest from Baltimore, Father Verrett falls out of favor with church leaders and is given one last chance to redeem himself as a coach and spiritual leader. The historical Father Verrett did teach at St. Augustine and was instrumental in bringing about the integration of league play between the schools, though he never actually coached the team.

Father Robert Grant
Long-time White principal of the all-Black Catholic school St. Augustine. His students are some of the best and the brightest in Louisiana, and his Purple Knights basketball team is undefeated. Father Grant's character is based on the historical Father Grant, who fought to integrate the Louisiana sports leagues.

Travis Porter
Star forward for St. Augustine, he is torn between obeying his parents and fighting for justice. Travis is a composite character who was created for the film from the experiences of the screenplay's originator, Harold Sylvester, and from the experiences of other Purple Knights teammates.

Charles "Chick" Viola
Sports Editor for the Herald, he refuses to tell the full story of the Purple Knights-or of his own, racially mixed heritage. His character is a composite character. In reality, na sports writers were accused of "passing," though it was a common occurrence for a person of mixed heritage to "pass" himself off as White during this era to avoid the prejudice which Blacks faced.

Mommit Porter
Travis' supportive grandmother. She plays a blind woman, but manages to "see" where others cannot. Mommit's character is loosely based on writer Harold Sylvester's real-life grandmother.

Mike Malone, Jr.
Star player for the all-White, undefeated Jesuit Blue Jays; he struggles with his father's racist views. Malone is also a composite character, created to represent the conflict between Black and White youths at the time.

George "Nick" Connor
The coach of the Purple Knights. Will he stay with the team or choose from other options? The historical Coach Connor was Black and continued to coach his team through several more winning seasons.

Little Ricky
Former St. Augustine basketball standout. Little Ricky hopes his mistakes can help Travis avoid his own. Little Ricky is a composite character.

Separate But Equal

With the end of the Civil War in 1865, along with the legal abolition of slavery, came the 14th and 15th Amendments. The 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868, ensured equal protection under the law for the newly freed slaves, while the 15th Amendment gave Black men (at the time no women were permitted to vote) the legal right to vote. It soon became clear, however, that there was a difference between changing the laws on the books and changing the day-to-day realities of segregation. In Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896), the Supreme Court ruled that the separation of the races was constitutionally legal as long as equal accommodations were made for Blacks-the so-called "separate-but-equal" doctrine. The Plessy decision gave legal validity to the system of segregation called "Jim Crow" (supposedly named for a Black minstrel caricature). Jim Crow schools, lunch counters, water fountains and customs mandated separate facilities and practices for Whites and Blacks throughout the South and in many other places in the United States. What the court failed to recognize in Plessy vs. Ferguson was that, in practice, Jim Crow meant two separate but drastically unequal ways of life. For instance, in the same city one might find White schools made of imposing brick and stone materials and African-American schools that were little more than unheated cabins or tarpaper shacks.


Brown vs. Board of Education

The Supreme Court unanimously overturned the Plessy ruling in 1954, with the Brown vs. Board of Education decision. The Court said that in the field of public education the "separate but equal" doctrine violated the 14th Amendment and was thus unconstitutional. African-Americans saw the Court's action as a sign of hope, but they felt little cause for immediate rejoicing. They knew that no matter what the law said, a stubborn fact stood in the way: it would take years of organizing and protesting before the promise of true equality would be realized.

Following the 1954 Brown decision, African-American students throughout the South fought for their constitutional right to attend previously all-White schools. Even when local school boards allowed African-Americans to enroll in White schools, they were often met with resistance from segregationist governors such as George Wallace of Alabama and Orval Faubus of Arkansas. In Arkansas, at Little Rock Central High School, President Eisenhower was forced to intervene when Governor Faubus refused to allow nine African-American students to enter the building on the first day of school.

The confrontation in Little Rock proved that even in cases where the Supreme Court had ruled against segregation, the implementation of the law was no easy task. Repeatedly faced with discrimination by Whites, African-Americans organized boycotts and demonstrations and brought lawsuits to gain access to public and private facilities. The first major mobilization of Blacks as part of the Civil Rights Movement occurred in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955.


The Montgomery Bus Boycott

In Montgomery, and elsewhere in the South, African-American passengers were required to sit in the back of the bus and, if all of the White seats were taken, to give up their seats to any Whites left standing. On December 1, 1955, a White bus driver demanded that Rosa Parks, a 43-year-old Black woman, give up her seat to a White passenger. When she refused, she was arrested. Local activists, who had been organizing since 1946, mobilized quickly. Before the night was out, Parks' arrest had served as a catalyst: setting in motion a citywide boycott of the Montgomery bus company and a law suit brought by local Black attorneys challenging the city's bus segregation law. A little-known, 26-year-old local minister named Martin Luther King, Jr., reluctantly agreed to head the boycott. Rather than ride the local buses, African-Americans organized those volunteers who owned cars to transport people, while others simply walked. The bus company tried desperately to break the boycott, but did not succeed. Approximately one year after the boycott began, the Supreme Court ordered the Montgomery city buses desegregated.

The success of the Montgomery Bus Boycott inaugurated a strategy of nonviolent confrontation developed by the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and its leader, Martin Luther King, Jr. The idea, inspired by Indian nationalist Mahatma Gandhi, was that peaceful demonstrations would provoke both mass arrests and a violent reaction from segregationists. Civil Rights activists hoped this would draw national news coverage to the their cause. This strategy, while not always successful, did lead to major Civil Rights victories in cities such as Nashville, Tennessee (1960), where sit-ins at downtown department stores led to the end of "Whites-only" lunch counters. In Birmingham, Alabama (1963), the beatings and arrests of thousands of African-American students, some as young as seven years old, shocked the nation and pressured local White businessmen to change discriminatory practices. In Selma, Alabama (1965), a march to the state capitol led by Martin Luther King, Jr. and attended by thousands of Civil Rights supporters from across the country, put pressure on President Johnson to submit the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to Congress.


New Issues, New Tactics

Following the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the movement's focus shifted from changing laws that discriminated against African-Americans to confronting economic issues such as employment and housing discrimination. These issues proved to be intractable, so some believed tactics had to change. In the face of continuing White resistance, many African-Americans felt nonviolence was no longer the only tool for change. The Black nationalist leader Malcolm X, for instance, had questioned the effectiveness of nonviolence for years. What many Whites saw as his confrontational approach often made it easier for White moderates and politicians to embrace Martin Luther King's movement as a "safer" alternative. Malcolm X was assassinated purportedly by Black Muslims in New York on February 21, 1965. That same year, for many African-Americans, frustration escalated that more had not been accomplished. Civil unrest in the Watts district of Los Angeles and the Harlem area of New York in the summer of 1965 were signs that the pent-up anger in America's cities could-and would-explode in violence throughout the remainder of the decade.

• Brown vs. Board of Education: Supreme Court bans school segregation.
• First "White Citizens" council forms in Mississippi in response to Supreme Court's Brown decision.
  
  

• Montgomery Bus Boycott starts when Rosa Parks refuses to give seat up to a White passenger. Boycott brings 26-year-old Martin Luther King, Jr., to national prominence.
• Emmett Till, a Chicago youth visiting relatives in the South, is murdered by Whites, who are then acquitted by an all-White jury.

• President Eisenhower sends in the National Guard to enforce integration of Little Rock's Central High School in the face of violent White opposition.
• Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) forms, with Martin Luther King, Jr., as president.

• Nashville students stage the biggest, most effective sit-in demonstrations to date and succeed in integrating lunch counters in downtown.
• Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) forms.

• SCLC, led by King, attacks Birmingham's discriminatory practices. Thousands of young students are arrested and brutalized by Birmingham police dogs and water cannons.
• Medgar Evers, Mississippi NAACP leader, is assassinated.
• President Kennedy gives first presidential address in support of Civil Rights.
• March on Washington. MLK delivers "I Have A Dream Speech."
  
  

• Freedom Summer Project brings hundreds of volunteers to Mississippi to aid in voter registration.
• Three Civil Rights volunteers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner participating in Freedom Summer are murdered by Whites.
• President Johnson signs Civil Rights Act of 1964.
• King is awarded Nobel Peace Prize.

• Game between St. Augustine and Jesuit takes place.
• The Pope appoints Harold R. Perry as the first Black Roman Catholic bishop in the United States in the 20th century. Perry replaces Civil Rights advocate, Bishop John Patrick Cody, as bishop of New Orleans.
• In Bogalusa, LA, protest marchers are subjected to police brutality and gunfire attacks from segregationists. The U.S. Department of Justice intervenes to set up peace negotiations.

• Over a three month period, Civil Rights activities intensify in Selma, Alabama. White police authorities beat and arrest demonstrators, causing national outcry. King, under federal protection, leads triumphant march from Selma to state capitol in Montgomery.
• Voting Rights Act signed into law by President Johnson. President announces on national television: "We shall overcome."
• Malcolm X assassinated at Audubon Ballroom in Harlem, NY.
• The most devastating racial uprising to date explodes in Watts area of Los Angeles, CA.

By the time the events of PASSING GLORY transpire in 1965, the integration of New Orleans was well along its way. A few years prior, in New Orleans and many other places, Black Americans had suffered at the hands of brutal mobs of Whites-sometimes including the police-as they forcefully integrated public places. And as PASSING GLORY suggests, young African-Americans were part of that history.

One such incident was in Birmingham, Alabama, just two short years prior to the events depicted in PASSING GLORY. Led by Martin Luther King, Jr., the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) came to desegregate Birmingham in 1963. After an initial surge of activity involving numerous protests and arrests, the movement stalled. The SCLC leadership decided that the best way to regain the momentum was to involve young people. This strategy would be less disruptive to Black families, since parents could continue working while young Blacks served the necessary jail time. High school, junior high and even elementary school students were recruited to march out of school and be arrested. On May 2, 1963, 959 children were arrested; the next day 1000 more children marched to protest discrimination. This same day Police Chief Bull Conner turned powerful fire hoses on the young protesters. Shown on the national news, this grisly spectacle shocked the nation. By May 6th, 2500 Blacks-2000 of them children-had been arrested. Feeling the pressure from the movement and fearful that riots would tear the city apart, most White businesses agreed to integrate their establishments.

When you read the following testimonials from people who were involved in the segregation of Birmingham when they were children, ask yourself how you would feel in their position, at their age. Try to imagine how you would feel if you were their parents. When you see the film, try to imagine how each of the characters (priests, young men, parents) would feel about involving themselves and their loved ones in a very dangerous situation.


Audrey Faye Hendricks
"The night before at a meeting, they told us we'd be arrested. I went home and told my mother that I wanted to go. She just said, 'Okay.' I was in third grade. . . . I did not go to school the day that I went on the march. I wasn't nervous or scared. We started from Sixteenth Street Church. . . . [We] marched about half a block. Then the police put us in paddy wagons, and we went to Juvenile Hall. There were lots of kids, but I think I may have been the youngest child in there. I was nine. . . . I was in jail seven days. . . . We slept in little rooms with bunk beds. There were about twelve of us in a room. . . . My parents could not get word to me for seven days."

Judy Tarver
"I didn't know when I left home for school that day that I was going to participate. . . We left school after lunch. . . I was seventeen . . . I was fortunate. I was there just one night . . . I was glad to get out. My parents didn't know when I left home that Friday that I was going to participate. Once we were arrested, we couldn't call our parents. . . . When I got out, they said that they didn't want to tell me to go, but they were glad that I went. They were proud of me."

Larry Russell
"When I got involved in the demonstrations in 1963, I was in high school. My parents supported my decision to get involved, but they were not involved. I went to a lot of mass meetings. . . . We knew about them from two radio disk jockeys [who] used to call the meetings 'a party.' . . . I was sixteen in 1963, and I expected to be arrested. I wanted to be arrested. . . . . Jail was a totally different experience. . . . We weren't treated like kids. . . . our intent was not to be bailed out. . . . the first thing I did was to call my mother. 'Don't worry about me . . . I'll be okay. . . . Whatever you do don't come and get me out.' . . . I was in for ten days."

Prejudice and discrimination are often difficult to talk about. The following are some recommendations from the Anti-Defamation League on how to hold respectful and productive discussions concerning these issues.


Things to Consider Before Using PASSING GLORY in the Classroom:

0. Clarify your own attitudes and feelings about the issues of racism and other forms of prejudice and bigotry.
   
   
1. Recognize that complex feelings, which may affect your own comfort level, are a natural part of the process of exploring racism.
   
   
2. Address more sensitive issues after laying a foundation by discussing easier topics.
   
   
3. Involve your students' families and other community members whenever possible.
   
   
4. Establish discussion guidelines that everyone can agree on and adhere to.
   
   
5. Keep in mind that fighting bigotry takes a concerted and sustained effort.
   
   
6. Use teaching methods, such as cooperative learning, proven to be effective in addressing prejudice and improving inter-group understanding among children and young adults.
   
   
7. Establish a common understanding of key concepts by introducing and discussing basic vocabulary words.

0. Explain the importance of ground rules.
   
   
1. Write "Ground Rules" on the top of the board, and along the left side the letters R-O-P-E-S.
   
   
2. Explain that the "ROPES" are a safety net, communally agreed-upon rules that everyone will follow.
   
   
3. Ask the students to provide words that begin with the letters in "ROPES." When students answer with a word, ask why they have suggested that word. Examples: "What does 'respect' mean to you?") After the students have exhausted their ideas, feel free to suggest your own.
   
   
4. Ask if everyone agrees with the ground rules. Before you can proceed, everyone must agree to abide by the "ROPES."
   
   
5. Keep the ground rules on the board during the discussion. Rewrite them before any class discussion of the video.

0. Before class prepare a Definitions Sheet with the key terms relevant to PASSING GLORY, or a broader sheet with a full list of terms.
   
   
1. Divide the class into groups of 4 to 6 students.
   
   
2. Explain the reason behind the exercise.
   
   
3. Give each student a Definitions Sheet.
   
   
4. Assign each group one word from the sheet. Have each group choose a student recorder, and then for 10-15 minutes discuss the meanings of the word and how they see it at work in society, particularly within the school itself. The recorder student should list these examples.
   
   
5. Bring the class back together and have the student recorders from each of the groups read their lists in turn. Ask the rest of the class if they have any questions or ideas they would like to add.
   
   
6. Have the student recorders post their examples around the classroom.
   
   
7. Wrap up by reaffirming the importance of a common language, and share your ideas about how to discuss these terms.

1. Explain to participants that ground rules are essential in order to create a positive and respectful environment for the workshop.
2. Write "Ground Rules" on the top of a flip chart page or chalkboard.
3. Write the letters R - O - P - E - S along the left-hand side of the sheet or chalkboard.
4. Explain that, like a safety net, the "ROPES" will serve as communally agreed-upon rules to which everyone will adhere during the workshop.
5. Elicit from participants words which begin with those letters. Ask participants to explain why they are recommending a word. (Example: "Tell us what 'respect' means to you.") In most cases, the group will come up with appropriate words. Feel free to add your own suggestions only after the group seems to have exhausted all possibilities for a particular letter.
6. Ask for general consensus about abiding by the ground rules.
7. Post the ground rules in the room where they are visible to everyone. If the group is meeting for multiple session, remember to bring the ground rules to every session and review the "ROPES" before each workshop.

1. Why is it important to have ground rules?
   
2. How and under what circumstances might you use this activity in the classroom?

1. Divide large groups into six to ten small groups. Ideally, you should have no more than four to six people in each small group.
2. Explain the rationale behind the exercise.
3. Distribute the Definitions sheet, one for each participant. Each group is assigned one word from the definitions page. Use words 1 - 8 for this exercise. In small groups, participants should read their assigned definition and discuss its meaning. Each group should select a recorder who will list examples of how the word manifests itself in society or at participants' school or place of work. (10 - 15 minutes)
4. Reconvene the group and have the reporter from each small group report to the whole group. Ask all workshop participants if they want to add anything to the examples given. Have the reporters write the examples that emerge form their group on newsprint, and post newsprint in the room.
5. Wrap up by affirming again the importance of having a common language to help guide discussions for the workshop, and to share ideas about how to discuss these terms with students.

0. Father Verrett shows interest in two boys playing together: one African-American, the other White. Why is he so interested?
   
   
1. Why does the woman get up when Father Verrett tries to sit down next to her?
   
   
2. How does the opposing team react to St. Augustine's pre-game warmup? Does this seem realistic to you? Why was this scene included?
   
   
3. How do the cab driver and Father Verrett differ in their views of the Civil Rights protesters? What can you predict might happen?

0. How would you characterize Travis' relationship with his grandmother? With his parents?
   
   
1. Why is Travis' mother concerned with his interest in sports? What does this reveal about her?
   
   
2. How do you interpret Mommit's remark that "even the slaves had a day off"?
   
   
3. Who is Little Ricky? What is your impression of him? Why does Little Ricky's friend speak poorly of Travis after he leaves? Why do you think Little Ricky defends Travis?
   
   
4. Why does Father Verrett persist in questioning his students about Christopher Columbus even after they tell him they've learned all about "1492" in grade school?

0. What does the man mean when he says that he will read the "colored paper" when it is a "colored world"? Do the other men agree with his views? How do they react to Rod from SNCC (pronounced "snick", it stands for Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee)? How do you account for their reaction?
   
   
1. Why can't Travis and his friends get food inside the diner? What is the symbolism of Mike Malone being recruited inside?
   
   
2. What does Travis' remark that Mike scored "30 [points] against Immaculate Conception" reveal about his view of Mike? How does this view seem to differ from those of his teammates?
   
   
3. What does Travis' father mean when he tells Father Verrett that "'aught' and 'is' is a long ways apart"?
   
   
4. How does the team react to Coach Connor's suggestion that they are the "best darned colored team that this state ever saw"? How do you account for this reaction?

0. Who were the Moors? What does the textbook say? How is this incomplete? Why is this scene included in the film?
   
   
1. What does Father Verrett mean when he says that while "faith is supposed to be above politics," he has learned that often it is not?
   
   
2. Why does Father Verrett make Travis play alone against a team of five?
   
   
3. Do the other Catholic principals seem to endorse racism? If they don't, what is keeping them from acting on their beliefs?

0. Why does Father Verrett remove Travis from the game? Is it simply because he made the mistake of shooting the ball rather than holding it?
   
   
1. What does Father Verrett mean when he tells the team that "When you sit in the back of the bus too long, you begin to believe that you belong there"?
   
   
2. Whose influence does Travis show when he tells Father Verrett, "We're a team . . . We can't have one man off grandstanding on his own"?
   
   
3. In a similar situation, do you think you would have acted as Father Verrett did? Or as Travis and the team did? How would you have reacted if you had been in Travis' position?

0. Why does Travis' father say that "being right" isn't enough?
   
   
1. When Travis' father tells his mother that Travis has "no idea of what's going on," she responds, "We never wanted him to." What does she mean? Are there things that you are protected from?
   
   
2. What does Mommit's story reveal about her? About Travis' father?
   
   
3. What does Mommit mean when she tells Travis that he needs to "pick [his] shots," that he "needs to make them count"? Does this lesson compliment any others he has learned that night? Explain.
   
   
4. Why does Father Verrett tell the team that he had wrongly drawn them into a "personal situation"?

0. Why does Little Ricky take the alcohol away from Travis? How does Little Ricky compare his own situation to Travis'? Why do you think Little Ricky's character included in the film?
   
   
1. When Mommit says that it is "awful to see a man ashamed of his own self," does she mean Chick Viola only?
   
   
2. How do you feel about what Father Verrett does to Chick Viola? In the world in which he lives, is Chick's decision to "pass" more complex than it might appear? Explain.
   
   
3. What does Father Grant mean when he says that "We shouldn't be digging tunnels-we should be pushing the walls down"? From whom does he borrow the notion of "walls"?

0. What does Travis' father reveal when he tells the story of his own youth? What insights do we gain into the generational gap during the Civil Rights struggle?
   
   
1. Why are the families so quiet when they take their seats in the gym? Why did the filmmaker make this decision?
   
   
2. Where does Chick Viola sit? Why? Why do you think he made that decision? What does he have to gain or lose?
   
   
3. After Father Verrett's "PASSING GLORY" speech, Travis hands out his basketball cards to the rest of the team. Why?
   
   
4. In a similar situation, do you think you would have done what Mike Malone did? What does he reject in his father?
   
   
5. At the very end of the game, the director cuts away from play action to show Little Ricky announcing the result on the playground court. Why?
   
   
6. The film does not end with Travis scoring the winning basket. Why?

• Fact vs. Fiction
• St. Augustine vs. Louisiana High School Athletic Association

The school, under the leadership of Principal Rev. Robert Grant, applied again in 1963 and 1964 with the same discouraging results. In 1965, St. Augustine hired Civil Rights attorney John P. Nelson to file suit against the LHSAA to gain admittance. Nelson took the position (as he had in his 1962 Civil Rights case against Tulane University) that the LHSAA was a state agency and therefore in violation of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. On this basis, he ultimately won the case. In 1967, the court ordered the desegregation of the league and the dissolution of both organizations (LHSAA and LIALO) into one.


Activity: Read the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. Why do you think John P. Nelson used this as the basis for his case? Read Nelson's closing statement in the court case of St. Augustine vs. LHSAA. What were his arguments? What evidence from PASSING GLORY could you use to support this claim? Based on what you know about the differences in what the law says and what is actually done, predict what it would have been like for the St. Augustine team in the first few years following the 1967 decision.


Web Extra
"The sad thing," said Nelson, "is that the black organization was left behind and the white organization was left in control. The year after St. Augustine won the case, the school had a fantastic football team, but within the first year they were put on probation because the LSHAA said that St. Augustine did not have the proper course requirements. There were four courses that athletes were required to take in order to maintain eligibility in the LSHAA. St. Augustine had a different name for one of these courses, so their football team wasn't allowed to play in the league that year." In this way, though the civil rights case had been won, the conflicts continued. However, by the late 60s, the New Orleans high schools had become integrated and many "white" schools began getting black athletes.

Almost a century slipped away between the passage of the 15th Amendment to the Constitution (1870) and the consideration of President Lyndon Johnson's Voting Rights Act (1965). The 15th Amendment was rooted in idealism; accepted as a binding clause only five years after the end of the Civil War, and only two years after President Lincoln freed the slaves, it extended the vote to many Black men who had only recently gained their freedom. In practice, predictably, Black Americans-- still mired in poverty, largely uneducated, and actively oppressed by laws which limited their freedoms-- did not take early advantage of their voting opportunities.

It is important to note, as well, that the Constitution is an interpretive document; while the intent of the 15th Amendment may have been to nurture the desire to vote among black men, it did not explicitly mandate that the states promote the Black franchise. Many states saw this as a convenient loophole, and in the years following its passage erected barriers to African-American participation in local, state, and national elections. Frequently, jurisdictions imposed a prohibitive "poll tax", asked that a test of basic literacy be passed, or used a "grandfather clause" to exclude older Blacks from casting votes. Campaigns of terror and intimidation-- which might end in the brutal murders of outspoken Black advocates-- added the element of mortal fear to the list of voting obstacles.

By the mid-1900's, social forces that promoted open dialogue and placed a premium on the importance of the individual had moved the controversial issue to the forefront again. The emergence of powerful and charismatic Black leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and Stokely Carmichael, to name just a few, made a showdown on voting rights inevitable.

In 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, an older Black women named Rosa Parks, in asserting her simple right to sit where she chose on a public bus, touched off a wave of protests that would spark the Civil Rights Movement. A boycott of the bus system which uprooted Ms. Parks from her seat forced the company to revise its policies and fully integrate its service. The event also catapulted an unknown Baptist minister-- Martin Luther King, Jr.,-- to the forefront of a new movement. By 1961, several organizations had taken up the cause of Black voter registration in the South: SNCC, CORE, and the SCLC all particpated in registration drives that challenged the fundamental assumptions of bigotry. They were met with severe resistance; in 1963, NAACP leader Medgar Evers of Mississippi was shot and killed. In 1964, three students who had volunteered in a Black voter registration effort disappeared and were later found buried in Philadelphia, Mississippi. The violence eventually had a fateful public airing: In 1965, an 80-mile march through Alabama-- from Selma to Montgomery-- led by Dr. King was interrupted by a local police force. On national television, the police proceeded to beat and lob tear gas at the peaceful gathering of Black protestors. The scene helped catalyze national opinion-- several months later, Congress acquiesced and passed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, later signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson. The Act succesfully closed the legal loopholes that the southern states had exploited, and secured the free vote for all African-Americans.

Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X each espoused, and passionately defended, competing visions of racial activism and social change. In recent years, much has been made of this conflict, though to a large extent the discussion of the matter has been tainted with exaggeration and inflammatory rhetoric. Unfortunately, this misinformation has bred a popular but simplistic notion that King and Malcolm X were enemies who regularly denounced each other in public venues. In fact, history tells us that the men were largely separate phenomena, and what issues existed between them were less a matter of personal rivalry than an honest difference of political philosophy.

Nonetheless, the respective careers of Dr. King and Malcom X are marked by significant differences in strategy and tone, if not in ultimate intent. Martin Luther King first made his name in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1955, as the head of a civil protest dubbed the Montgomery Bus Boycott. In attempting to secure the rights of Black people to sit freely on city buses, King developed a methodology of confrontation that rested on the principles of non-violence. He organized sit-ins, enforced boycotts, and spoke eloquently against the human indignity of racism. He was motivated by a deep moral conviction that physical force directed to the purposes of tyrrany must everywhere be met with united displays of "soul force." King's efforts peaked at the "March on Washington" in 1963. There he delivered his seminal "I Have a Dream" speech, invoking a vision of universal brotherhood and powerfully articulating his philosophy of gradual social change through peaceful means.

To listen to an audio section of the "I Have a Dream" speech, or a segment of Malcolm X's "The Definition of Black Power," go to www.historychannel.com

In New Orleans there was segregation. We at the school were pretty strong against the policies of the city and state at the time. St. Augs was set up to do whatever they could for our kids.

The kids wanted to play basketball. In fact they used to have pick up games against each other. But our kids always believed that they were the best, and this was an opportunity to prove it.

That year - well we won the state champ that year - we were I think 34 - 1. We won the black state championship that year - won it going away (?)

Our principal Father Grant was the person that was really responsible along with the administration at Jesuit. And they got together and said let's do it - but it had to be done not for the public - they did not say that - behind closed doors, but that's what it amounted to.

(shakes head) We just wanted to play- it didn't make any difference - had something to prove. Did you prove it? (Laughs) Yes, I think we did; yes, quite convincingly.

People were disturbed. In our area disturbed. In fact - one of the radio sportsman thought that this thing was one of the worst things that could've happened - for two of the best teams in the state to be playing a game or scrimmage behind closed doors. He said that the people of the city - both black and white were being deprived of seeing two of the best teams in the state.

Looking back on it - do you feel you should've done anything differently about the game? No.

I'll always have an elated feeling about that game. We feel that a game is a game and we want to win them all. We didn't believe in losing.

Do the players now at St. Augs remember that game? I guess only from what they've been told. They don't seem to realize that St. Augs at that time was a full runner in integrating and the game at that time was a help in the right direction. I don't think some of these kids realize that.

I have many many many fond memories. We had two All Americans - one of them played in the Appalachian all-star game in Pittsburgh. In fact, we have one of the kids here tonight - Harold Sylvester is the other kid. I'll always remember with Harold in Washington - our first game up there - we used to practice dunking the ball - but you couldn't do it in the game.

And one of the reporters asked us - well, why you having the kids dunk the ball if they can't do it in the game? I said well watch what happens when the game starts - we do this to improve their jumping.

Talk about your big man - Isiah King. (Shakes his head and whistles) You had to see him to believe him. This boy was out of this world. In the (Apperdan) tournament, this boy by the name of Billy Cannon stole the ball and headed down the court - he was on the Pa. All-stars, and I looked over and saw King do that (shrugs) and I hit the guy next to me and said watch this. And when he layed the ball up, King put it in the stands - just slapped it into the stands.

And the stands just went wild. The guy sitting next to me was Press Maravich, who was the father of Maravich the basketball player - who went to LSU the following year.

Do you remember a specific play or a specific point in the game where things turned around? Well, we always liked to go "in" with the ball either to Harold or Isiah. Harold was the top rebounder - nobody realizes - everybody thought King was the top rebounder - but Harold was the top rebounder. We'd come in and feed the low men - they were hardly ever able to stop us.


Isiah King
Center, St. Augs - Honorable All-American

I had a good time - Father Grant took me under his wing and taught me many things, and I really had a good time.

It was tough - we had a lot of white friends that we played sand lot together, but we couldn't actually play organized ball together, so it was tough.

We played pick up games together - a lot of times we had 3 or 4 of us - we played as a unit.

When you play ball there's no problems with the players ... it's the outsiders when they come in and try to agitate or start heckling ya or something like that - as far as the players - we never had problems.

It was tough because you could wind up with two state champions which I don't think was actually fair - how would you decide who was the better team you know? When you'd have a white champion and black champion. So we'd always talk about that with our white friends - you know we're better than you in a jokingly way. So when they said we were going to play everyone was excited.

Talk a little about the team. We were a family and we were unstoppable. We just played - we clicked together all the guys. We always played great ball.

We were close - not only in school, but outside of school we hung out together- we played together - it was like a family. You know a bunch of guys - we played ball together, we went out together, we studied together - we did everything.

I didn't feel I was the leader because I couldn't have done it without the players. When I cored the 64 points against Connley, you know it was the team who fed me the ball - so it was more their reward than mine, because they wanted me to do this - it was my last game.

I was fantastic - you know being chosen over thousands of kids across the country and I had reached this high plateau - it was fantastic. I was elated - really elated.

He said we're going to play a game against Jesuit - we're going to play a game behind closed doors and he wanted us to be on our best behavior. Oh the guys were excited - this would decide who would be the best. It was a team thing, you know - who would be the better team. It wasn't because we wanted to play them because they were white or they wanted to play us because we were black - we wanted to know which school had the better team - that's what it was all about.

We was excited - we was excited. It was going to finally come to an end - we would know who was the best team in the state. This is what it was all about - who was going to win the game.

Coach Conners had a saying - down around the basket was my house, and anyone that comes in your house is threatening your house - so that stuck in my head - that's the way I played - your coming to take my house away (laughs).

It was just a time in life - and it was horrible. It was just a horrible time. I mean the kids today don't know how blessed they are. They can go into any school - they can go to a restaurant - any place they want to go. We couldn't do that - we were denied of that. WE played in the Knights of Columbus tournament - I'll never forget this as long as I live. On the way back from the tournament we had a breakdown in Meridian, Mississippi - our van had a flat tire and we pulled into this gas station to get it repaired - and they told us we couldn't stand in front of the gas station.

That we had to go around in back because we scared their customers away - and that hurt me to my heart. And all we were doing is trying to get home. I'll never forget it as long as I live.

That first inter-racial game, do you see that as a turning point in the state's history? I hope so, I really hope so. You don't know how that spread over the city - it really changed things. Everybody was talking about it - why we couldn't come, why we couldn't see the game. I think that's what did it - not because people were outraged of what we did - just because it was behind closed doors. People were really outraged - they would have loved to see that game. For themselves to say who was the better team, or just to see a good basketball game.


Bobby Sardie Sr.

It was exciting, we had a good school with good teachers, and the sports aspect was fine too. We had good athletic programs and the community back us very well, so did our parents.

Why don't you think that worked at the time? Because of ignorant people. It wasn't the young people, it was our parents. All we knew we learned from our parents. If they taught you the right way you went the right way. If they taught you the wrong way, you went the wrong way. You did what your parents told you.

We were a family - we went to school together, we partied together, a lot of us come up together through grammar school and everything. My self, Girarde, and Noel Foucher played in grammar school together, we got to be good friends - we never knew each other before that - but we got to be good friends and we all went to St. Augustine - and now with the exception of Lawrence, who is deceased - we're like brothers. I don't have a closer friend than Noel Foucher, and that was through playing ball and coming up through grammar school.

Coach told us one day after practice that we were going to play Jesuit. We know the type of team Jesuit had and we knew what type of team we had - we were the best team in the state - black and white. We were just elated to know that we were going to play that game. The only thing that disappointed us was that no one else could come to see it. It was going to be just behind closed doors with just the faculty and the players. That was kind of disappointing - but the main fact in all was that the game was going to be played. And it was going to determine who was the best basketball team in this state.

I didn't sleep the night before. I was up all night. I couldn't go to sleep - I was too hyped. I couldn't wait for it. Excited, you might be nervous when the ball was tipped off, but the nervous is gone. Then it's strictly all ball now.

It was a good game - Jesuit had a good team - we had a good team. The comrodery was magnificent. There wasn't a bad play in the game - not one I can remember. We ran up and down - we played ball - the best team won.

It was very important. It set the precedent for other athletes black and white to participate among one another, and also learn how to get along with one another and forget that foolish racial thing.

It was a good feeling you know - we felt bad for the other guys cause they played hard just like we did. But it was a good feeling to know that we beat them - not because of black and white - but because we were the best basketball team. Strictly athletic - not white and black.


Billy Fitzgerald
Newman HS Basketball Coach
Basketball Player for Jesuit Blue Jays

Well it wasn't an all white school. There was integration here - and the school desegregated in my sophomore year. All though there were some pickets in the early day - I think we managed quite well through that period of adjustment. I didn't find it terribly difficult here at Jesuit.

I remember vaguely talking to my dad about the situation - that we were going to play St. Aug - and asking him what he thought about it - and he said well, so what you think is best, and that's about the only thought we gave it prior to the game - we didn't think much about it at all other than the fact that it was another basketball game.

I don't think my perspective - well ... I don't feel that it affected our decision that much. It was a decision some of these parents made for some of those players and of course they had to live with those decisions. As far as I was concerned and as far as my teammates were concerned, I don't think it affected us very much at all.

Have you changed the way you thought about that game as you've gotten older? No - a lot of people still talk about "the game" and in many ways the game was not a watershed event. Not for the players who were involved in it. The players that were here were here to play basketball - and enjoyed playing basketball against one another. It was a game to test our skills against their skills, I personally never viewed it as anything much more than that. We enjoyed playing the game - St. Augs won the game because they were a better that day. And that's pretty much how I viewed the game - though I have heard all sorts of stories from people who weren't there who say 'well, tell me about the game'... but to us it was a really good basketball game against a very good club in the city.

23:34 This game seems very mythological - the views from the people who played in the game are very different form the people who talk about the game. I think perception is a strange thing - and the kids who played in the game came to play a game of basketball and weren't concerned about much else than playing the game.

What kind of game was it? How did the two teams interact on the court? I don't remember much about the game - I do remember once again about Isiah King going up for a rebound and thinking he would never come down. I do remember Harold Sylvester - who was a teammate of mine at Tulane - getting a rebound right next to me - but much beyond that I don't remember much specifically about the game other than that the two teams went at each other and tried to win the basketball game.

Any other memories? Do you feel that one team deserves the title over another? Even today there are different classifications, different leagues - and certainly St. Augs was champion in theirs and we were champion in ours. I think it's silly to talk about which one was better because we didn't play in a game to prove that - we were in a scrimmage in a gym where nobody was allowed to come into the gym. Were we to play again, we may have enjoyed that to see really, who would have been better in the game setting. We had a phenomenal team and a phenomenal year, and I look back on that with great joy and great pride.

Is there anything you learned from that basketball year in 65' that you pass on to your teams that you coach now? When you cross the lines - you play the game to the best of your ability - no matter who your opponent is - and when you leave the game after that you leave it all behind you. That's the way it should be.


Glenn Goodier

How'd you feel about segregation? Well I was 17 years old and in high school - I guess we looked towards the grown-ups as to what was going on in our city. I don't think we were in tune to that too much because quite frankly being raised a Catholic and going to Catholic church - you know the African Americans would be in here and in church with us there and coming to Jesuit HS - I remember Jesuit HS integrating at a very early age - I don't remember if it was my freshman year or sophomore year. And also when I was in grammar school, I remember being integrated there before I came to Jesuit HS - so it really was sort of a non event for us - we just sort of got along. It wasn't a problem.

What's the first word that comes to mind when you hear Jesuit 1965? Well I guess the first thing that comes to mind when I hear that is winning the state basketball championship - that was sort of the culmination of the year. Jesuit has sort of a great academics reputation, and to go with that it also has a great athletic reputation. I was just so happy to come up - because I didn't start until my senior year. It was quite an accomplishment to play on a team with four guys who were so superior to be able to attain the state championship.

How did you find out you'd play a secret game against a segregated school? I really don't remember - My recollection is the coach called us together after practice one day and explained that we were going to scrimmage together after practice one day and explained that we were going to scrimmage St. Aug at the Jesuit gym on Saturday morning - I guess it was a Saturday. I don't remember - and that it was going to be closed for some reason, and that there weren't going to be any fans. And that we had the option of playing - and that our parents would be contacted to see if they would allow us to play. And that they'd get back to us with the particulars and that we would probably play 5 quarters and at one time there wasn't supposed to be time kept or score, I can't remember exactly.

At one time there were going to be no uniforms and no referees and at another time there were going to be referees, but you know we were getting ready for another state tournament and St. Aug was also getting ready. I guess the thought was it was going to be a tune up for both squads.

What kind of game was played? I remember it being sort of uneventful in the way of there being any tough plays or ... I mean I remember it being a very tough play, but you know - if someone fell on the floor, you know - someone would help you up - you know it was kind of a friendly pick up game between two very competitive teams. Obviously the play was hard, but the intentions were good.

What do people ask all these years later? A lot of people ask me who won the game - that's the first question I guess - and a lot of people ask me who played in the game - and what I thought about the game - did you really have a score. Some people tell me they thought there was a fight in the game - that really came up recently - there was absolutely not a fight in this game. There was a lot of handshaking before and after this game ... you know - appreciation of each other's talents. So, it's been a long time.

At one time there were going to be no uniforms and no referees and at another time there were going to be referees, but you know we were getting ready for another state tournament and St. Aug was also getting ready. I guess the thought was it was going to be a tune up for both squads.

What kind of game was played? I remember it being sort of uneventful in the way of there being any tough plays or ... I mean I remember it being a very tough play, but you know - if someone fell on the floor, you know - someone would help you up - you know it was kind of a friendly pick up game between two very competitive teams. Obviously the play was hard, but the intentions were good.

What do people ask all these years later? A lot of people ask me who won the game - that's the first question I guess - and a lot of people ask me who played in the game - and what I thought about the game - did you really have a score. Some people tell me they thought there was a fight in the game - that really came up recently - there was absolutely not a fight in this game. There was a lot of handshaking before and after this game ... you know - appreciation of each other's talents. So, it's been a long time.

Do you feel any differently about the game now than you did at that time? I really don't feel any differently about it, I knew we had some questions at the time, but the questions weren't why we scrimmaged St. Augs - they were why are we scrimmaging such a fine basketball team on out way to the state tournament. I mean we are risking injury - cause we know Isiah and we knew he was going to be tough - and we knew we'd get some lumps in this game. We wondered why we were doing this, but again, when the coach said go play, we played.


Isiah King

Every single one of them mentions your name. I'm elated - it makes me feel great. I thank each one of them. All I can think is it made a great on them. My heart is pounding, I think we're going to have a tip off. The game was about who had the better team - we enjoyed each other's company ...


Bernard Griffith
St. Aug Current Basketball Coach
Assistant Principal

I heard about the game from Harold Sylvester form just about the time he was writing it. He was telling me they played a game before integration and he was telling me just how big a game it was to them to be able to participate in a game like that. Because at that time no one was allowed to do it. And at that time you had two state champions - you had a black state champion and a white champion. So Harold was all excited about writing this play - this movie, so he could tell - he could enlighten - the community of New Orleans as to just what happened and how big it was to participate in such an event.

The students at St. Augs know about it because of the movie that's being made. As to how they feel about it as to what it does to enhance their thoughts about what went on, it's a different time. They don't know anything about segregation. They've always lived in an integrated society. They've lived through the success of St. Augs athletics and academics, so it's just another day in their lives. But, just like a lot of things taking place in society, we don't really see the value of them until we get older. So - they've been exposed to it, but won't really know the value of it until they get older.

What I saw took place here tonight is what in all athletic programs have always said - there's no color. It's always participation and competition. The ability to demonstrate one's prowess and capacity to be equal - one you cross those lines, everything winds up being equal - it's your ability. And that's what everyone in society thinks you should be based on - your ability. Not the color of your skin, but your ability and the skill that you can demonstrate and exert. You know, are you qualified to do the job?

And where society has taken great turns - just to be able to look back - it's always great to be able to look back and see where you've come from - the direction that you're moving, and just what you have to do to excel in the future. So what we've got here is a historical perspective. It's not everyday you get to sit down and listen to a historical perspective and be able to evaluate - and hopeful be able to pass on some valuable information to the young men that we deal with everyday. When you cross those white lines, it's your responsibility to come prepared - to do the things that are positive in life and not worry about the color of your skin. And to demonstrate that you are qualified to exist or co-exist and we can all get along - and that's where we are and that's what's unique for me - cause I'm a history major and it's always great to be able to touch on the past and if you can experience it, it's even greater. That way you can pass on what you've seen with some enthusiasm. That's what usually sells things - the ability to be enthusiastic.

The state of Louisiana officially recognizes two athletic associations, namely, the LIALO, which is allowed by the State to direct, control and supervise interscholastic athletic activities among negro schools, and the LHSAA, its counterpart, who performs a similar function, as outlined above, for the white schools. (Tr. pp. 263, 264).

At the time St. Augustine applied for membership in the LHSSA41 , in June of 1964, the white and negro public senior high schools were completely segregated.42 This situation had not changed when the LHSAA refused to consider St. Augustine's application during the February 1965 general assembly meeting. This was St. Augustine's first time at bat - before one pitch was thrown, the game was called off.

In February 1966, when St. Augustine's application was presented for a vote at a general meeting of the LHSAA, there were only twelve negroes in the State's white senior high school system. (Tr. p. 94). In addition, the white senior high schools in Jefferson Parish desegregated in September 1965, but the number of negroes who attended, initially, is not known. (Tr. p. 240).

As of the time of the court hearing (January 1967), there were 1,309 negroes attending formerly all-white public senior high schools whose attendance totaled 131,812. There were no white students attending the negro senior high schools. The total attendance in negro senior high schools was 73,188.43

There is in Louisiana a de facto segregated negro school system (Tr. p. 266). There had never been an athletic contest between a negro and white public school and it was unlikely that there would be one in the foreseeable future. In fact, there is testimony that such a contest would not be encouraged by public authorities. (Tr. p. 404)

The fact of the matter is that the LHSAA recognizes two systems44 , the State Department of Education recognizes two systems45 , and each principal and school board recognizes two systems.46 One system is 100% negro; the other system is one percent negro. It is the 100% negro school that is being systematically excluded from the "mainstream of Louisiana high school athletics." (Tr. p. 555)

Under the facts of this case, the State is not a mere spectator to this deprivation of a constitutional right. It is standing side by side with the LHSAA, forming an impenetrable line through which an all-negro school will never run. Both the State and "all-stater" LHSAA are equally responsible for the excellent job done to date in holding their opponents to "no yards gained."

And now, let's see what defensive plays are called when an all-negro school attempts to penetrate territory held by the State and the LHSAA. St. Augustine applies for membership, and THE RULES ARE CHANGED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE GAME

When St. Augustine's man-in-motion, Father Grant, began his play by applying for membership, the defense called for a democratic solution - let everybody vote. This was a new defensive play to meet a new challenge. For forty-five years only ten men voted on such matters. Now, coinciding with the first all-negro application, the rules were changed to let everybody vote - the whole 405 members - if they cared to show up for the vote. As an additional safeguard, a safety measure, the new applicant needed a two-thirds favorable vote. Incidentally, there was one other feature to this newly rigged defense: when all the white folks came in to vote on whether they wanted an all-negro school in their organization, they had to stand up and vote - and be counted.

The defensive call was a good one. Only 11 out of 185 stood up for St. Augustine. St. Augustine was shut out - on hits, on runs. There was one error, however. It was committed by the defense. The error was in relying on the belief that constitutional rights could be denied by a popular vote.

Now, let's analyze the defense in a little more detail. In 1962, the "white only" restriction was taken out of the LHSAA's constitution. (Tr. p. 331) During the summer of 1964, St. Augustine, an all-negro high school47 , applied for membership in the LHSAA. This marked one first time in the history of the Association that a negro school make such an application (Tr. p. 331). At the time St. Augustine first applied, its application should have been handled in accordance with Article III, Section 9 of the Constitution of the LHSSA.48 Under this provision, St. Augustine needed six out of ten votes of the Executive Committee. Following St. Augustine's application, the requirements for membership changed.49 The change required that St. Augustine and all other schools secure two-thirds majority vote of all member schools in their respective districts and, if successful there, they then needed two-thirds majority vote of the member schools attending the annual general meeting.50 The membership requirements were tightened considerably. Why were they changed at this particular time? I suggest that Mr. Waters gave the answer in a press conference with a sports writer of a Baton Rouge newspaper, where he is reported to have said, that the change in membership requirements was "not to just possibly block the entry of St. Augustine."51

St. Augustine followed this new procedure, receiving the required number of favorable votes in the district52 , but failed to receive the two-thirds favorable vote of the member schools attending the annual meeting53 which was held in February of 1966. This was the first time in the history of the LHSAA54 that the state approved school was denied membership by a vote (Tr. p. 347) of either the executive committee or the general membership.

Following this vote, there were some loose ends that had to be tightened. It must be remembered that St. Augustine got through District 5AAA - the district in which it would have played. Through another strange coincidence, the three schools that voted against St. Augustine were taken out of District 5 and placed in another district (Tr. p. 592), leaving in District 5 only the non-public schools who voted in favor of St. Augustine. This was all done shortly after the vote.

St. Augustine is a school that would be a credit to any organization. Its athletic accomplishments can best be understood when we read Father Grant's testimony:

"... the football team ... has won three State championships in the last four years, and the other year in which it did not win, was in the semi-finals of the state. They were state champions in basketball last year, and maybe two or three years before that running. ... I think we have won the district championship in which we were in maybe the last four or five years." (Tr. pp. 534, 535)

Seventy-five to eighty percent of the graduates of St. Augustine High School go to college each year. They are represented in Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Amhurst and other Ivy League schools. (Tr. p. 537) A few years back, when the first Louisiana scholar was chosen under the Presidential Scholar Program, he was a St. Augustine student. (Tr. p. 537) Here is an outstanding senior high school, state approved, with an excellent athletic and scholastic tradition, that applied for membership in an organization who holds itself out to the world as being "vitally interested in the welfare of every boy and girl participating in the athletic contest."55 The school is denied admission. Why? I will suggest an answer: It is a negro school.

The admission requirements were tightened to face the eventuality of the negro school application. It was a foregone conclusion under the guise of the democratic ... ...is assigned to cover all LIALO games. This we learned from the testimony of John Jolly, Sports Director for the Times-Picayune (Tr. pp. 428-501-509).

Member schools in LIALO lose money at their state tournaments, whereas member schools of the LHSAA make money. (Tr. pp. 565-566) This is quite understandable when we realize the LIALO has no paid staff to plan, publicize and conduct such a tournament.

The Associated Press regularly publicizes the Top Ten Teams of the LHSAA. It has never publicized the Top Ten Teams of the LIALO (Tr. p. 506).

The Sports Writers' Association of Louisiana chooses each year an "All-State" team that is widely publicized in the newspapers throughout the State of Louisiana. The members of this team chosen by Sports Writers are limited to athletes who attend member schools of the LHSAA. The Sports Writers have never included on their All-State team a player form a member school of the LIALO (Tr. p. 506).

Athletes attending all-negro schools are systematically excluded from participating in the annual All-Star football game sponsored by the Louisiana High School Coaches Association.57

Athletes attending all-negro schools are systematically excluded from participating in the annual All-Star basketball game sponsored by the Louisiana High School Coaches Association.58

All-negro schools are systematically excluded from participating in the basketball tournament sponsored by the LHSAA.59

Athletes attending all-negro schools are systematically excluded from being selected by the Louisiana High School Coaches Association to the All-Star teams in football and basketball.60

On February 20, 1967, the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights issues a report entitled: "Racial Isolation in the Public Schools."61 The central truth which emerges from this report and from all of the Commission's investigations is simply this: "Negro children suffer serious harm when their education takes place in public schools which are racially segregated, whatever the source of such segregation may be.

"Negro children who attend predominantly Negro schools do not achieve as well as other children, Negro and white. Their aspirations are more restricted than those of other children and they do not have as much confidence that they can influence their own futures. When they become adults, they are less likely to participate in the mainstream of American society, and more likely to fear, dislike, and avoid white Americans. The conclusion drawn by the U.S. Supreme Court about the impact upon children of segregation compelled by law - that it 'affects their hearts and minds in ways unlikely ever to be undone' - applies to segregation not compelled by law.

"The major source of the harm which racial isolation inflicts upon Negro children is not difficult to discover. It lies in the attitudes which such segregation generates n children and the effect these attitudes have upon motivation to learn and achievement. Negro children believe that their schools are stigmatized and regarded as inferior shared by their parents and by their teachers. And their belief is founded in fact.

"Isolation of Negroes in the school has a significance different from the meaning that religious or ethnic separation may have had for other minority groups because the history of Negroes in the United States has been different from the history of all other minority groups.

"Negroes in this country were first enslaved, later segregared by law, and now are segregated and discriminated against by a combination of governmental and private action. They do not reside today in ghettos as the result of an exercise of free choice and the attendance of their children in racially isolated schools is not an accident of fate wholly unconnected with deliberate segregation and other forms of discrimination. In the light of the history, the feelings of stigma generated in Negro children by attendance at racially isolated schools are realistic and cannot easily be overcome.

To know this is to know why Father Grant and the Faculty at St. Augustine, together with the other plaintiffs in this cause, want the relief requested. No one can better describe the reasons than that found in Father Grant's testimony, beginning on page 556 of the transcript:

"... Well, I think this is a simple principal of life, that is, that anyone that wants to go anywhere, or, more people want to go to the places that are sort of more first-class. This is true if the boy is an athlete, he would prefer to play with a winning team, rather than join up with a losing team, generally speaking. And, if the boy is a scholar, he would rather go to Harvard University, I think, as a rule, than go to some of the state universities. As a rule, how, I am talking about, and the general feeling is that this is a better place.

"And, therefore, I think too that the way LHSAA is run, with their finances, and with their staff and the administrative - well, the administration is set up in their organization, is a very fine organization, well-organized, and it is first-class. It does a lot of things for the teams that belong to it, and, therefore, you become more first-class by being in this organization, and your program becomes more first-class..."

TNT Learning promotes using the power of cable television both to generate meaningful discussion and engage students in the process of learning. This home viewing guide is intended to bring that same excitement for learning into the home. We encourage you to watch PASSING GLORY with your children and use the discussion questions listed below to further the experience of learning together as a family.


About the film PASSING GLORY
Set in 1960s segregation-era Louisiana, PASSING GLORY tells of an unorthodox African-American priest, who coaches an all-Black high school basketball team. He exhorts his players to challenge the social conventions of a segregationist town by organizing a game between his undefeated team and a rival undefeated White team. The head-to-head competition results in an inspiring story of the discovery of mutual respect, which crosses racial boundaries. Inspired by a true story, PASSING GLORY is produced by Earvin "Magic" Johnson and Quincy Jones.


Discussion Questions

1. Discuss the meaning of Civil Rights with your child. Share your memories of the Civil Rights Movement. Where were you living at the time? Have your child list some of the key Civil Rights events from the historical background and timeline resources. Do you remember any of these events? Were you actively for or against the Civil Rights Movement? What were the factors influencing your viewpoint(s)? As you watch PASSING GLORY with your child, discuss the various perspectives presented on the Civil Rights Movement. How much have things changed? How much have they remained the same?

2. One of the key themes in PASSING GLORY is the conflict between the generations. Travis' parents are hesitant to expose Travis to the issues of racism and discrimination and are themselves hesitant to participate in Civil Rights activism. Mike Malone and his father disagree on Mike's right to play in the basketball game. As you watch PASSING GLORY, discuss these conflicts. Do you and your child disagree on any major issues-music, dress, curfew, friends? Are there any issues for which your child fights that you just can't understand? Why is it so natural that different generations come into conflict over societal changes?

3. Another key theme in PASSING GLORY is the rite of passage. When Travis leads the basketball team into the diner and again when he challenges the Jesuits to a basketball game, he is demonstrating his own personal growth. His leadership role on and off the court and his choice not to be like Little Ricky are his rites of passage into becoming a young man. Has your child had any challenges, or expect any challenges in the near future, that will be a real turning point on the way to becoming a young adult?