Collection:LPB

Genre: Newsmagazine

Place Covered: Louisiana

Copyright Holder: Louisiana Educational Television Authority

Date Issued: 1983-01-23

Duration: 00:26:51

Subjects: Jackson, Jesse, 1941- | Hooks, Benjamin L. (Benjamin Lawson), 1925-2010 | RICHARDSON, RUPERT FLORENCE | Civil Rights | African Americans | Bogalusa Civil Rights March, 1967 | National Association for the Advancement of Colored People | School integration. | Elections, 1983 | Louisiana gubernatorial election, 1983

Contributors:

• Hinton, Rob Host
• Stewart, Genevieve Host
• Douglas, Emmitt Speaker
• Treen, Dave Speaker
• Jackson, Jesse Interviewee
• Hooks, Benjamin Interviewee
• Richardson, Rupert Interviewee

This episode of the series “Folks” from January 23, 1983, focuses on the Civil Rights Movement in Louisiana. Rob Hinton first reports on some of the major civil rights marches in the state: the 1967 Bogalusa Civil Rights March; the 1980 Survival Day Rally at the State Capitol; and the 1982 voter registration march from Shreveport to Baton Rouge. Next, Genevieve Stewart interviews Reverend Jesse Jackson of Operation PUSH and Benjamin Hooks, the executive director of the NAACP. Lastly, Hinton and Stewart conduct an in-studio interview with Rupert Richardson, the state president of the NAACP in Louisiana and a member of the national board of directors. She discusses: her view that the civil rights movement is gaining momentum in Louisiana; their membership numbers; their issue-oriented coalitions; their efforts to get more participation in the NAACP; the ongoing issue of school desegregation; her view that 1982 was a year of setbacks for African Americans under the Reagan Administration; the role of the NAACP in the upcoming 1983 gubernatorial election; and the importance of the NAACP speaking with one voice.