Records collected by the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission between November 1965 and January 1966 relating to the publication of an editorial titled "False witness" written by the Sovereignty Commission and published in newspapers around the country. The editorial responds to charges of Jackson, Mississippi police brutality during demonstrations in June 1965. According to the editorial, demonstrators were arrested after an event "for parading without permit and refusing to disperse when so ordered." The author asserts that members of the Justice Department, civil rights lawyers, and national news media at the event witnessed the demonstration and the arrest and did not report police violence. After the arrest, a three-man committee from the National Council of Churches spoke with the arrested demonstrators for two hours and later presented charges of police brutality to a group of United States congressmen. The Justice Department completed an investigation and did not bring any charges against the police department. The editorial expresses frustration that national news media widely reported the National Council of Churches claim of police violence but have not reported on the decision of the Justice Department. The editorial also chastises the members of the National Council of Churches for not apologizing for bearing false witness against the police in Jackson. The editorial was distributed to newspapers across the country through the U.S. Press Association and published in at least twenty-seven newspapers.

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from False Witness, Sovereignty Commission records, Mississippi Department of Archives and History

The Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission Records are state government records made available to the public pursuant to American Civil Liberties Union v. Fordice, 969 F.Supp. 403 (S.D.Miss.1994). The web-enabled version of the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission Records is intended for public use in research, teaching, and private study in accordance with the provisions of the Fair Use clause of the United States Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). MDAH makes no warranty or assurances that materials contained in this collection are free from U.S. copyright claims or other restrictions on free use and display. It is the user's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions when publishing or distributing materials found in this collection. MDAH requests that prior to publication of Sov. Com. images the user submit an MDAH Broadcast/Publication Permission form for approval by the Department. This form must be accompanied by documentation which proves that copyright requirements have been satisfied. Contact MDAH Reference Staff for details on how to obtain and complete the B/PP form: (601) 576 6876 or refdesk@mdah.state.ms.us. There are no MDAH Use Fees associated with use of Sov. Com. images. MDAH asks that each image used in a presentation, display, or publication be accompanied by a credit line, which at a minimum includes the name of this collection, the unique resource identifier for each image, the name of this institution, and URL. ; Cite images according to the following structure: Original Creator, "Title", Original creation date (if known), Unique Resource Identifier, Series Number and Title, Archival Repository, date of last web page revision, image location/URL, (image viewed on date).

Forms part of Series 2515 : Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission Records Online, 1994-2006