University of Virginia Library

NAACP Plans Picket, Boycott
Against Nursing School Policy

By G. O. Purdy
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

In a Surprise move last night,
the Charlottesville chapter of the
NAACP announced that its members
would "picket and boycott
the University school of nursing
to protest its discriminatory policies."

Mrs. Flora J. Biddle, chairman
of the chapter's boycott and picket
committee, said yesterday that
her group would picket the
school "until proper action is
taken to get Negro students into
the nursing school. A casual
glance will show you that there
are no Negro faces over there."

To further point out what Mrs.
Biddle said was the "blatant discrimination
policy," the local
chapter is requesting that Negro
students refuse to apply to the
school and, if already accepted,
refuse to attend.

Boycotts Effective

"A boycott has worked quite
effectively in the past," she said,
"and I see no reason why it
could not work here."

If the picket and boycott do
not work, Mrs. Biddle said, the
chapter might organize a mass
march on McKim some time later
this month.

Administration officials and
student leaders in the nursing
school were stunned by the announcement.

No Comment

A high official in the school
spoke to a reporter last night for
nearly an hour and made several
important observations about the
NAACP's decision, but she requested
that her comments remain
off the record.

Student leaders, however, were
not silent.

Miss G. T. H. Simmons, president
of the fourth-year class, described
the planned picket and
boycott as "disgraceful."

"There has never been any discrimination
in the policies of this
school," she said. "Our school
would accept any Negro that was
qualified to enter. Although it is
true that we have never had any
Negro students, this is purely
coincidental. We are not a racist
body."

None Qualified

Apparently, there will be on
Negroes in the school next year.
An official in the admissions office,
who requested that his name
be withheld, said that two Negroes
had applied, but neither
was deemed qualified.

"Of course," he added, "we
can't really give accurate statistics
about the number of Negroes
who apply, since we do not request
that information regarding
race be given on the application
form. All we want is a picture of
the applicant and information
about her previous education."

He said that applicants are required
to take a literacy test,
however.

Miss Martha, president of the
Nursing Council, called an emergency
meeting of the entire student
body for this afternoon to
consider a resolution denouncing
the admissions policy of the
school and denying any past discrimination.

She denied allegations that the
resolution was in response to the
NAACP's threatened boycott.