One of the goals of the Pope Center and the North Carolina History Project is to bring to campuses ideas and information that have been neglected. That happened in November when the organizations sponsored a lecture by University of Alabama history professor David Beito. He spoke at St. Augustine’s College, North Carolina Central, N.C. State, and Campbell University.
Beito’s talk was titled “Black Fraternal Societies, Mutual Aid, and Civil Rights.” It was based on his book From Mutual Aid to the Welfare State. He discussed how black Americans in the Deep South formed voluntary societies for their betterment.
Despite the fact that they were denied the right to vote and faced a host of obstacles supported by discriminatory state laws, blacks succeeded in many occupations and businesses. They used their wealth and property to good advantage in providing insurance, hospitals, banks, and other services to members of their community, often through fraternal societies.
Beito told a story of politically oppressed people advancing in spite of widespread bigotry and governmental barriers against them. Following are a few examples from Beito’s presentation:
* Maggie Walker was a black woman living in Richmond, Va. She founded the Independent Order of St. Luke, a group dedicated to mutual aid that encouraged black entrepreneurship. Walker herself founded a department store, a newspaper, and a bank. She helped to lead a rising black middle class during the late 19th century.
There were two “Odd Fellows” orders, one white and one black. The Odd Fellows were working-class people who joined together for mutual benefit, particularly insurance. Members would pay a percentage of their earnings and were entitled to sick benefits if they could not work. The society carefully evaluated claims to deter malingering. The society also provides death benefits—an early form of life insurance. The Odd Fellows had half a million black members around the turn of the century.
* Another important group was the Knights and Daughters of Tabor, founded by ex-slaves in the late 19th century. Among other accomplishments, the group established a hospital that opened in Mound Bayou, Miss., in 1942. The doctors and staff were black. They provided good medical care for people who would not be admitted at other hospitals. Taborian members could purchase medical insurance for $8 per year in 1942, entitling them to up to 30 days of hospital care.
The chief surgeon at the Taborian hospital was Dr. T. R. M. Howard, who was not only an accomplished doctor, but also a successful businessman. In 1951 Howard formed the Regional Council of Negro Leadership with the goal of promoting thrift, entrepreneurship, equal treatment under the law, and voting rights.
Howard’s group held a large rally each summer, drawing thousands of supporters. The rallies were in rural areas of Mississippi where violence by the Klan would certainly have been possible. There never was any, however, because Howard posted armed guards. Howard himself usually went around armed, and his home was an arsenal. Two crucial elements in Howard’s success: the freedom to acquire and profitably use property, and the right to defend himself.
One of the Regional Council’s projects was to use the economic power of the black populace to bring about change. Specifically, it organized a boycott of gas stations where blacks were not allowed to use the restrooms. The boycott was successful. The national gasoline distributors did not want to lose business and told local station owners to provide restrooms for blacks as well as whites.
What most American students hear from their history professors is that political action is the path for minority groups desiring upward mobility. Beito’s research shows that American blacks, using their private property and economic freedom to the extent that they had it, made great strides in the era before they had any political influence at all.
When college professors challenge conventional wisdom with facts, they are truly encouraging their students to do some “critical thinking.”
George C. Leef is a contributor to Carolina Journal.