Created by James Hooser
Description: My documentary is about the March for Freedom at ECSC (Elizabeth City State College). This March took place in September, 1963. Nine-hundred-fifty ECSC students (over half the student body) participated in the March as well as the only faculty member, Dr. Vaughan.
In the documentary, I interview Dr. R.L. “Bobby” Vaughan who was the only ECSC faculty member to participate in the March. As a whole, the faculty was supportive but in a more passive role. President Ridley personally asked Dr. Vaughan to participate to make sure the students would stay non-violent in the face of adversity, which they expected. Dr. Vaughan was a professor and chairman of student affairs, as well as a volunteer coach, whom the students liked and respected. During his early years, he was drafted in the Army to the Korean War.
The March for Freedom was to protest segregated businesses in downtown Elizabeth City. There were restaurants and shops who would not served people of color. The student body newsletter discouraged students from doing business downtown by printing, “Please do not spend money to buy segregation.”
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. visited ECSC in August of 1963 and inspired the students to participate in non-violent protests for equal rights. Golden Frinks encouraged “sit-ins” for equal rights; he was from Edenton and the field secretary for the local chapter of SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Committee). SNCC (Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee) asked all college to protest and march for Civil Rights. The March for Freedom in Elizabeth City was a culmination of this leadership.
The route used for the March is the same route used today in January on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day when the people of United States commemorate him. The students marched from the circle at Moore Hall at ECSC on Southern Avenue to City Hall on Colonial Avenue.
Over half the ECSC student population participated in the March, and the protest remained peaceful in spite of some resistance. To demonstrate equal rights after they marched into town, the students held “sit-ins” in restaurants where “whites only” signs were posted. They were greeted with spitting, objects being thrown at them, and people waving bats to intimidate them. To help counteract tension, many athletes were placed on the outside of the marching group of students to discourage the resistors and to protect the other students. During the March and “sit-ins” the students presented themselves well and acted peacefully in the face of adversity.
Two-hundred-twenty students were arrested for the sit-in. A protest of this magnitude would have been great press for the newspapers, but they were silent on the subject except for the three students who were immediately arrested for trespassing. The police had arrested 217 students without charging them of any crime. After two days, the Chief of Police was happy to let the protestors go because the police station had no room for such a large number of people.
Even though many residents outside of downtown did not know of the protest, the students had accomplished a lot, peacefully and with very minimal jail time.
Suggested Readings:
Robert Kelly-Goss, March for Freedom Daily Advance C, 6C. February 3, 2008
Elizabeth City State College Student Body Newsletter, 1963
James L. Terrell, Results of the Trial, ECSC Student Council
James Hooser interview with Dr. R. L. “Bobby” Vaughan, April 23, 2014