Crushed by the Coalition

In the midst of debate on the omni bus civil rights bill, Louisiana's Democratic Representative Edward Hebert gazed forlornly at the empty places about him, got up, and wondered aloud where his Southern colleagues were at such an important time.

That was an interesting point. For years past, the Southern delegations to Congress have been about as cohesive a group as exists on Capitol Hill. In the House, each state has its own whip, charged with seeing to it that members are present to vote on issues of regional interest--like civil rights. Presiding over all these state whips is Southern Whip Tom Abernathy of Mississippi.

Away in Swarms. But last week the Southerners were staying away from the House in swarms. What was wrong?

"It's not Tom's fault," said one Southern member. "They're all grown men. There's just nothing he can do with them. There's a feeling of apathy."

That apathy grew from the fact that the most sweeping civil rights measure in nearly a century was about to pass the House--and the Southerners were helpless against it.

They were confronted by a coalition of non-Dixie Democrats and Republicans headed by Minority Leader Charles Halleck and Ohio's William McCulloch, ranking G.O.P. member of the Judiciary Committee. Moreover, the Johnson Administration was making an all-out effort on behalf of the bill. President Johnson himself demanded that he be informed, name by name, of the votes on amendments; members who seemed to be straying from the straight Administration line could expect to hear from the White House pronto. Three Justice Department lawyers stood on the sidelines, ready to provide replies to opposition arguments. The liberal Democratic Study Group, an informal organization of like-minded members, had its own 21-man whip system, successfully kept some 130 Northern liberals on tap.

Shot Down. One after another, hopefully crippling amendments were shot down. Not even Virginia's Judge Howard Smith, chairman of the Rules Committee and tactical leader of the Southern group, could make any headway against the coalition. At one point, Smith proposed that the highly controversial public accommodations section of the bill be amended to read that no one could be required to "render labor or service without his consent." This, Smith said, "merely implemented" the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits slavery. Smith dared civil rights backers to vote, in effect, for slavery by opposing his amendment. "Go ahead and vote against it," he cried. "I defy you to." They did, 149 to 107.

After that, it was all but over. The bill next faces a last-ditch Democratic filibuster in the Senate. Its major clauses:

sbVOTING RIGHTS. Registrars are prohibited from applying different standards to Negro and white applicants. Literacy tests must be given in writing, and a sixth-grade education is considered presumptive proof of literacy for registration. The Attorney General is allowed to request three-judge courts to hear voter discrimination suits.

sbPUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS. Discrimination is forbidden in nearly every hotel, motel, restaurant and theater. Only boardinghouses with five rooms or less and private clubs are specifically excluded. The Attorney General can initiate court action for enforcement, except in 32 states that have public accommodations statutes, where he must first refer complaints to state officials.

sbCONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS. The Attorney General can initiate suits to desegregate schools and publicly owned, operated or managed facilities such as parks, libraries and swimming pools. He also is empowered to intervene in suits filed by individuals who charge that they have been denied the constitutional right of equal protection of law because of race, color, religion or national origin.

sbFEDERAL ASSISTANCE. The President is empowered to cut off funds from federally assisted programs where discrimination is practiced. Federal guarantee and insurance programs, however, are not included.

sbFAIR EMPLOYMENT. A national equal-employment-opportunities commission is set up to outlaw discrimination in establishments employing 25 or more persons and engaged in interstate commerce. The commission can sue for enforcement in federal courts.

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