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The Church of Jesus Christ and Black People 1969
Office for Civil Rights Study of BYU
On March 27, 1969, regional director Hollis Bach of the Denver branch of the Office for Civil Rights wrote to BYU President Ernest L. Wilkinson, "This letter is your notification from the Office for Civil Rights that, as a result of our review on your campus and your response to our report, the Brigham Young University is deemed to be in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
"Since our visit to your campus last spring, we have visited a number of institutions of higher education. We think you might like to know that we still consider Brigham Young as being one of the very finest schools we have visited."
"Since our visit to your campus last spring, we have visited a number of institutions of higher education. We think you might like to know that we still consider Brigham Young as being one of the very finest schools we have visited."
Discussion of Stephen Taggart's Essay
On September 10, 1969 Lawrence and Llewelyn McKay visited their father's apartment along with President Alvin R. Dyer, who described in his diary: "We sat in the President's office, the President seeming quite alert and roused for the discussion to follow. Lawrence explained that on the basis of his father's statement to Sterling McMurrin some time ago, that the withholding of the Priesthood from the Negro by the Church was a practice and not a doctrine. An article had been written for 'Dialogue Magazine' by a Brother Taggart, who is the son of the President of Utah State University, which had received more or less an endorsement by Llewelyn based upon the reported interview which President McKay had had with Sterling McMurrin. This article seemed, in Lawrence McKay's mind, to bring the whole Negro question regarding the right to hold the Priesthood into focus, and that if this truly was a practice and not a doctrine, as Sterling McMurrin had inferred from President McKay's statement to him, then why was this not the time to drop the practice. He asked his father if this was not perhaps the time to announce that the Negro could be given the Priesthood, which he alone could announce, and to do so now voluntarily rather than to be pressured into it later."
At this point President Dyer, though he had not read the article in question, felt that it was "my responsibility to make some comments concerning this vital matter." He reiterated the curse of Cain and other explanations for the ban, then asked for a copy of the manuscript and said "I would be pleased to study it and make a report to the President. President McKay asked that I do this. Lawrence then stood up and said, 'Perhaps, father, we had better leave this with you and you can think about it.'" In a meeting on September 24 he told his fellow Presidency counselors that he "considered it one of the most vicious, untrue articles that has ever been written about the Church" but that he would continue to study it and show "what the true facts are and give the references."
In another meeting the following week, President McKay wrote, "The brethren asked me if I wanted to make any ruling on the matter and I answered that I did not want to make any statement on the question this morning."
At this point President Dyer, though he had not read the article in question, felt that it was "my responsibility to make some comments concerning this vital matter." He reiterated the curse of Cain and other explanations for the ban, then asked for a copy of the manuscript and said "I would be pleased to study it and make a report to the President. President McKay asked that I do this. Lawrence then stood up and said, 'Perhaps, father, we had better leave this with you and you can think about it.'" In a meeting on September 24 he told his fellow Presidency counselors that he "considered it one of the most vicious, untrue articles that has ever been written about the Church" but that he would continue to study it and show "what the true facts are and give the references."
In another meeting the following week, President McKay wrote, "The brethren asked me if I wanted to make any ruling on the matter and I answered that I did not want to make any statement on the question this morning."
The Black 14
In October 1969, when the Cougars went to play against the Cowboys in Laramie, Wyoming, they were greeted with bottles being hurled at them, church services being picketed and interrupted, and demonstrators surrounding their hotel. When wives and girlfriends came to visit the team, Coach Tommy Hudspeth told them, "I wish you hadn't come."
In an interview with Mark Junge, University of Wyoming Black Student Alliance chancellor Willie S. Black recalled, "Well, so the start of that was, the preceding meeting I think we met on like a Thursday night or something [October 14], and at that meeting, I don't remember when it was, but somewhere along the line I became aware that the Mormon Church owned BYU, and I also quite accidentally became aware of their policies regarding their black membership. And for those people who don't know, at the time a black could not become a priest; a black man could not become a priest in the Mormon Church. So people, might say, you know—no. What we mean by priest is a 12-year-old. We mean a black 12-year-old. A white 12-year-old gets twelve and it's like the Jewish people have, you know -"
Junge: "Bar mitzvahs."
Black: "Well, they have a similar thing, where the 12-year-old white male is given certain rights. He passes through certain rituals and that and he becomes a priest in the church. Black kids say, well what about - no, I'm sorry. Well, why not? Well, because you're black.
"Well. They could dress it up any way they liked. When I discovered that, I said, I just said, that seems like an affront to the human dignity of many blacks. I don't even know why a black would want to be in such an organization - and blacks were members! They've always been in the Mormon church. In fact, they've been in the Mormon Church since the Mormons came west."
Junge: "Yeah, you were saying - tell me about that, a little bit.
Black: "I began to read about the Mormons, and in my research it came out that Joseph Smith had started the Mormon church somewhere like around 1831. He'd had a vision and these plates were supposed to be sacred and only he knew about the plates. He, of course, became the first leader of that religion. That was in New York. So they moved from New York to Illinois, a place called Nauvoo. They named the town. In Nauvoo they thrived until the local residents, incensed about their supposed policies of polygamy and all those things, decided to attack them. Now, you know, people do things for a lot of reasons. They might have been doing it to take the people's land, lot of reasons. But that was the effect of it 'cause they ran 'em out of town, and they killed Joseph Smith. They propped him up against a well and used him for target practice. He was lynched in the sense, in the truest sense. So they got their belongings and in handcarts they walked - with their animals and that - from Illinois across the United States until they ended in the Great Salt Lake Valley. This is the story of the Mormon people. I didn't know this. I gained a lot of respect for them as a people, and I sympathize with the assassination of Joseph Smith and all those things. Now I said blacks were with them. At least one black was responsible for accounting for the number of miles they traveled each day. He just counted the revolutions of the tires."
Junge: "He devised an odometer of some sort."
Black: "That's my point. Not a lot of people are aware that his rigging of something to count that and tick off things was the first crude odometer in the history of America.
"So a 12-year-old black couldn't do that. And we were playin' Brigham Young comin' up. I said, 'My goodness!' So I talked to the guys, I told - actually it was a meeting of the organization, at the meeting I said, 'You may be aware of this, you may not be aware of it. Brigham Young University is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And the church has the policy -' and I told 'em what the policy was, and I said, 'This seems like an affront and I think they should be protested. They should not be allowed to come up in here and students go out and play in a game like they were just an ordinary 'nother team.' And I told the students that the BSA will protest them coming. But the football players, you have a special situation. You have to go on and make your own peace, which they did. And they voted to protest. But they thought about it, had second thoughts, and thought they should go to the coach and at least afford him the opportunity to sanction it. They felt that surely he would agree with their feelings about this. They put on black armbands and they all went to see him together."
Black wrote a letter to University President William D. Carlson and Head Football Coach Lloyd Eaton, demanding that:
"(a) University officials at the University of Wyoming, as well as other member institutions in the Western Athletic Conference, not use student monies and university facilities to play host to and thereby in part sanction alleged inhuman racist policies of the Mormon Church.
"(b) That athletic directors in the Western Athletic Conference refuse to schedule and play games with BYU so long as the Mormon Church continues such alleged policies.
"(c) That black athletes in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) protest in some way any contest with BYU so long as the Mormon Church continued such alleged policies, and
"(d) That all white people of good will, athletes included, protest with their black fellows a policy allegedly clearly inhuman and racist and that the symbol of protest be the black armband worn throughout any contest involving BYU."
On October 16, black tri-captain Joe Williams met with Coach Eaton to inform them of the planned protest. Eaton informed him that protesting against a religious group violated university policy and that they should vent their frustration on the field during the game instead. The players decided to wear black armbands anyway and met with him the following morning, the day before the game, to try to change his mind. Melvin Hamilton recalled, "He told us how most of us were on welfare and didn't have fathers, how he fed us and took us off the streets. It was just the worst way you can talk to a person." One player remarked that he was planning to join the Church, to which Eaton responded, "Isn't that something? You plan to join that church and abide by its beliefs for the rest of your life but you plan to demonstrate against it tomorrow." He expelled them all from the team. Although the Cowboys defeated the Cougars forty to seven, the team was decimated for years to come and its winning streak was ended by the loss of the players.
In an interview with Mark Junge, University of Wyoming Black Student Alliance chancellor Willie S. Black recalled, "Well, so the start of that was, the preceding meeting I think we met on like a Thursday night or something [October 14], and at that meeting, I don't remember when it was, but somewhere along the line I became aware that the Mormon Church owned BYU, and I also quite accidentally became aware of their policies regarding their black membership. And for those people who don't know, at the time a black could not become a priest; a black man could not become a priest in the Mormon Church. So people, might say, you know—no. What we mean by priest is a 12-year-old. We mean a black 12-year-old. A white 12-year-old gets twelve and it's like the Jewish people have, you know -"
Junge: "Bar mitzvahs."
Black: "Well, they have a similar thing, where the 12-year-old white male is given certain rights. He passes through certain rituals and that and he becomes a priest in the church. Black kids say, well what about - no, I'm sorry. Well, why not? Well, because you're black.
"Well. They could dress it up any way they liked. When I discovered that, I said, I just said, that seems like an affront to the human dignity of many blacks. I don't even know why a black would want to be in such an organization - and blacks were members! They've always been in the Mormon church. In fact, they've been in the Mormon Church since the Mormons came west."
Junge: "Yeah, you were saying - tell me about that, a little bit.
Black: "I began to read about the Mormons, and in my research it came out that Joseph Smith had started the Mormon church somewhere like around 1831. He'd had a vision and these plates were supposed to be sacred and only he knew about the plates. He, of course, became the first leader of that religion. That was in New York. So they moved from New York to Illinois, a place called Nauvoo. They named the town. In Nauvoo they thrived until the local residents, incensed about their supposed policies of polygamy and all those things, decided to attack them. Now, you know, people do things for a lot of reasons. They might have been doing it to take the people's land, lot of reasons. But that was the effect of it 'cause they ran 'em out of town, and they killed Joseph Smith. They propped him up against a well and used him for target practice. He was lynched in the sense, in the truest sense. So they got their belongings and in handcarts they walked - with their animals and that - from Illinois across the United States until they ended in the Great Salt Lake Valley. This is the story of the Mormon people. I didn't know this. I gained a lot of respect for them as a people, and I sympathize with the assassination of Joseph Smith and all those things. Now I said blacks were with them. At least one black was responsible for accounting for the number of miles they traveled each day. He just counted the revolutions of the tires."
Junge: "He devised an odometer of some sort."
Black: "That's my point. Not a lot of people are aware that his rigging of something to count that and tick off things was the first crude odometer in the history of America.
"So a 12-year-old black couldn't do that. And we were playin' Brigham Young comin' up. I said, 'My goodness!' So I talked to the guys, I told - actually it was a meeting of the organization, at the meeting I said, 'You may be aware of this, you may not be aware of it. Brigham Young University is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. And the church has the policy -' and I told 'em what the policy was, and I said, 'This seems like an affront and I think they should be protested. They should not be allowed to come up in here and students go out and play in a game like they were just an ordinary 'nother team.' And I told the students that the BSA will protest them coming. But the football players, you have a special situation. You have to go on and make your own peace, which they did. And they voted to protest. But they thought about it, had second thoughts, and thought they should go to the coach and at least afford him the opportunity to sanction it. They felt that surely he would agree with their feelings about this. They put on black armbands and they all went to see him together."
Black wrote a letter to University President William D. Carlson and Head Football Coach Lloyd Eaton, demanding that:
"(a) University officials at the University of Wyoming, as well as other member institutions in the Western Athletic Conference, not use student monies and university facilities to play host to and thereby in part sanction alleged inhuman racist policies of the Mormon Church.
"(b) That athletic directors in the Western Athletic Conference refuse to schedule and play games with BYU so long as the Mormon Church continues such alleged policies.
"(c) That black athletes in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) protest in some way any contest with BYU so long as the Mormon Church continued such alleged policies, and
"(d) That all white people of good will, athletes included, protest with their black fellows a policy allegedly clearly inhuman and racist and that the symbol of protest be the black armband worn throughout any contest involving BYU."
On October 16, black tri-captain Joe Williams met with Coach Eaton to inform them of the planned protest. Eaton informed him that protesting against a religious group violated university policy and that they should vent their frustration on the field during the game instead. The players decided to wear black armbands anyway and met with him the following morning, the day before the game, to try to change his mind. Melvin Hamilton recalled, "He told us how most of us were on welfare and didn't have fathers, how he fed us and took us off the streets. It was just the worst way you can talk to a person." One player remarked that he was planning to join the Church, to which Eaton responded, "Isn't that something? You plan to join that church and abide by its beliefs for the rest of your life but you plan to demonstrate against it tomorrow." He expelled them all from the team. Although the Cowboys defeated the Cougars forty to seven, the team was decimated for years to come and its winning streak was ended by the loss of the players.
Front center: Earl Lee. Second row: John Griffin and Guillermo (Willie) Hysaw. Third row: Don Meadows and Ivie Moore. Fourth row: Tony Gibson, Jerry Berry and Joe Williams. Fifth row: Mel Hamilton and Jim Isaac. Not shown: Tony McGee, Ted Williams, Lionel Grimes and Ron Hill.
Kathy Stephenson and David Noyce later reported in the Salt Lake Tribune, "Larry Echo Hawk - an emeritus general authority Seventy for the church - was a senior at BYU and the team’s free safety in 1969.
"As [a] recent convert to the LDS Church and one of the few minorities on the Cougar team, he remembers the protests, taunts and charges of racism that greeted the football players (and all the school’s athletic teams) in the late 1960s.
"The previous year in San Jose, he said, a bomb threat was called in to their hotel, and the Cougars played the game in a nearly empty stadium, except for a few family members and hundreds of heavily armed guards.
"Echo Hawk said when BYU visited Tempe to play Arizona State - before the Wyoming game - a large protest blocked the team bus from entering the stadium.
"It was a confusing time for Echo Hawk, who, along with his family, members of the Pawnee Nation, had also experienced racism.
'I had respect for [the Wyoming players] for standing up for what they believed in,' Echo Hawk told The Tribune. 'And it was difficult to understand why a university would dismiss them for that.'
"At the same time, he said, 'I had good feelings about the church because it had blessed my life so much.'
"Those internal conflicts 'were a lot for a 20-year-old,' he said. 'My opinions weren’t fully developed and it was difficult for me.'
"While he may have wanted to speak out about racial issues, he remained silent. 'I don’t think I had teammates who were feeling the same way I was.'
On October 23, Joe Watts wrote in his column "Watts Cookin'" for the Provo Daily Herald, "Here are a whole list of questions worth contemplating that have developed around the WAC racial crisis. When you try to write a column about one of the questions the other questions are always popping on the scene and pretty soon the column is long enough to fill the whole newspaper.
"So here goes - just a list of questions for the reader to think about.
"Is the BYU athletic program in jeopardy?
"What can be done about it?
"Would recruiting Negro athletes be any salvation for the BYU athletic program?
"Does the university have any obligation to its own community?
"Would the townspeople object to recruiting Negro athletes when there is only about one Negro family in the entire valley?
"Would the students object to recruiting Negro athletes?
"Because the Church does not allow the Negro to hold the priesthood, and because it frowns on inter-racial marriage, should BYU stay away from recruiting Negro athletes?
"In a recent Sports Illustrated expose of the Negro athlete their biggest complaint around the nation was that they felt they were 'being used.'
"Would it be 'using or exploiting' the Negro to try to urge him and even pay him to come to BYU?
"Would recruiting married Negro athletes be a compromise in the situation? Would that be good? Would it solve any problems?
"Would a Negro athlete come to BYU?
"Wouldn't he be ostercized [sic] from the Negro society as an Uncle Tom?
"If BYU had Negro athletes on its teams would demonstrations still be held against BYU?
"Is the real argument whether BYU discriminates or whether the LDS Church doctrine discriminates or either?
"Is BYU and the LDS Church guilty of discrimination because some group marches around with pickets declaring that it is so?
"Is there such a thing as a fair trial in cases like this?
"Can a university hope to judge whether another school discriminates? Should one WAC university withdraw from the conference because it assumes another school discriminates even when its own skirts aren't clean?
"If BYU were to withdraw from the WAC would that solve the Negro problems within the WAC?
"What about other schools with racial problems that have no connection with BYU?
"If BYU were not in the WAC would the Negroes at those schools find another target, such as fraterniites, sleeping assignment, or etc.?
"When a school invites another school to engage in a friendly athletic contest, does it have an obligation to treat the visiting school as a guest?
"When an administration agrees to play BYU should it see that its coach is willing to play BYU? If he isn't willing should he protest or quit?
"Should the administration find out whether its athletes want to play the school? Should the athletes determine which schools they will play and which schools they won't play? Should they protest or quit if they disagree?
"Should a coach establish a rule prohibiting his players from protesting against a visiting school?
"If an athlete can wear an armband during a game to protest against a school can he wear an armband to protest the Vietnam War, or the food in the cafeteria, or his grade in English?
"If a coach can't flunk his players, can a teacher flunk his students? If BYU players wanted to wear armbands in protest of racial discrimination at UTEP's fraternities, would BYU allow its players to do so? Should they allow them to do so?
"If Negro athletes don't want to play against BYU shouldn't they say so when they are recruited, or at the moment they decide? Is it honorable of the Negro athlete to wait until game time to protest?
"Is that not taking advantage of the situation and being dishonest to the other teammates?
"Should Utah and Utah State, or any other school that has agreed to play BYU, allow its players to wear armbands in protest of the game?
"Should BYU schedule games with schools that allow its players and coaches to demonstrate against BYU?
"Granted, administrations can't control everyone, but can they control their players, coaches, and faculty? Should they control these groups?
"How important is a college athletic program? Is it worth all the trouble?
"Is the problem complex enough?"
On November 3, Pat Putnam wrote in Sports Illustrated, "Oh, it was a beautiful homecoming. The weather was as pretty as the queen, cool and crisp, and nobody minded a little wind. As people strolled from the stadium last Saturday they laughed and talked about how their unbeaten Wyoming had just manhandled San Jose State 16-7, which made it hard to get up a real working anger against those 14 black athletes Coach Lloyd Eaton threw off the team two weeks ago. Coach Eaton had shown those protesters he could win without them. Good riddance, and never mind a lot of talk about civil rights, because this is Wyoming, and out here we do things our way. Like Coach Eaton told those athletes: Boys, if you don't like the way we run things around here then you better go play at Grambling or Morgan State. Yes sir, and wasn't that victory over San Jose State just glorious?
'Yes, it was a glorious victory,' said Bill Waterman, smiling thinly, 'and now we shall see about the rest.' Waterman is an NAACP lawyer out of Detroit, a short, rather round, quiet-spoken man, and he arrived in Laramie, Wyo. last week with the belief that the rights of a student should not be limited just because he is an athlete. His first move will be to seek an injunction against the University of Wyoming in federal court this week. 'First we want to get the players reinstated,' he said. 'Then we'll go from there.'
"Eaton abruptly dropped the 14 black athletes from the team on Oct. 17, after, he says, they took part in a demonstration against Mormon racial policies, which exclude Negroes from the priesthood of the Mormon Church. Wyoming was to play Brigham Young University, which is run by the Mormons, the following afternoon. Eaton insists that his players act as individuals and not as factions, which he feels splits the team, and he became incensed when the Negro players appeared before him that morning as a group. 'They came in together and they came wearing black armbands,' he said. 'It was simply a matter of discipline. Black or white, it didn't matter to me. They broke the rule and I told them they were no longer members of the team.'
"All his life Eaton has lived by the rules. He is a stern disciplinarian who can neither understand nor forgive a breakdown in team unity. As a boy he had to help his father scratch a living from a tiny ranch in the Black Hills of South Dakota. During the Depression he worked his way through college by sweeping floors for 25¢ an hour. Nobody gave him anything. Nothing came easy for him and he feels that nothing should come easy for those who play under him. Until now his iron discipline has worked and worked well. The last three years Wyoming has been the Western Athletic Conference champion; this year it has won six games, leads the nation in rushing defense and is ranked 16th. Next to two national parks, football - University of Wyoming football - is about the biggest thing in the state. And so, at the university, Eaton has perhaps more influence than Dr. William D. Carlson, the president. He certainly is more popular than Stanley K. Hathaway, the governor. And now he is convinced that he is the target of a Black Power plot.
'We've played Brigham Young for many years,' Eaton said one day last week. 'Why haven't we had a demonstration before? And we've had Negro players here since 1960. I'll tell you why. This is the first year the Black Student Alliance has been on campus. Now they're organized and ready to act. The WAC was picked because of Brigham Young. And we were picked as the trigger because of our rule against demonstrations. It all fits.'
'The whole problem is that no one understands us,' said Joe Williams, the Wyoming tailback and one of the team's three captains before he became one of the exiled 14. 'If Eaton had, none of this would have happened. His story of a racial plot is ridiculous. We knew about the rule against protest and we went to him on that Friday morning only to see if we couldn't work something out. We felt very deeply about this, but we just wanted to talk to him. We wanted to see if we could wear black armbands in the game, or black socks, or black X's on our helmets. And if he had said no we had already agreed that we would be willing to protest with nothing but our black skins.'
"Both sides agree they met first in Eaton's office and that the coach took them into the field house. There they stop agreeing. Eaton claims he listened to them for 10 minutes and then told them that they were out.
'Like hell he gave us 10 minutes,' said Williams. 'He came in, sneered at us and yelled that we were off the squad. He said our very presence defied him. He said he has had some good Neeegro boys. Just like that.'
'Then he said it was stupid for us to be protesting against a faith and a religion none of us knew about,' said Willie Hysaw, an ex-receiver. 'Talk about stupid! Do you know that Ted Williams [another of the 14] is a Mormon?'
"When University President Carlson learned of the dismissals, he called the governor, who drove over from Cheyenne in a snowstorm. A board of trustees meeting was called hastily, and 18 hours later, early Saturday morning, the trustees announced that they were backing Eaton all the way.
"Across the state support for Eaton poured in. The cowboy element was angry. When seven members of the faculty said they would resign unless the 14 were reinstated, the Touchdown Club in Casper said it was raising money to get the seven out of the state. The student senate came out in favor of a hearing on the issue - which caused the rest of the students to call for an impeachment of the senate. A faculty-student ad hoc committee was formed to investigate, and then was never heard from again. The school paper came out for the 14, and then Phil White, the editor, resigned. Carlson called a press conference, was backed into admitting, unintentionally, that at Wyoming football came first and civil rights second. When he realized what he had said, the press conference was over. One member of the state legislature said that if Eaton backed down, there would be trouble with the university budget next year. Eaton wasn't about to back down.
"Meanwhile, at San Jose State the team voted to wear multicolored armbands against Wyoming in support of the 14, and groups at other WAC schools demanded that Wyoming be dropped from their schedules.
'It's building,' said Bill Waterman. 'All across the country. Building and building. This will be a new day for the college athlete, both black and white.'
"At Wyoming the Black Student Alliance said it would set up picket lines at the San Jose game. Governor Hathaway said he was ready to call out the National Guard. Everyone was in a panic. The university, in an official letter, which Waterman has, said it understood on good authority that 2,000 Black Panthers were headed for Laramie. 'That's not only a lie,' said Waterman, 'it's criminal.'
"On Saturday, an hour before the game, Vernon Breazeale, the chief of the Laramie police force, watched as an orderly group of 134 pickets circled 200 feet from the stadium gate. 'One thing I want these kids to understand,' Breazeale said, 'is that we are here to protect them, not to fight with them. Their fight is with the university, not with us. All the football players on the football team are good kids, both the black and white ones. Real gentlemen. I remember another coach we had here. He used to bring in ex-convicts to play. Real hoodlums. Always drunk, always in trouble. We used to club them over the head until the blood ran down the side of their mouths. I'm glad these kids today are different.'
"He watched as a black girl silently carried a sign that said: 'Something is happening here, but you don't understand what it is, do you?'
'I guess that sign says it all,' someone said.
"Yeah, I guess so,' said Chief Breazeale."
"As [a] recent convert to the LDS Church and one of the few minorities on the Cougar team, he remembers the protests, taunts and charges of racism that greeted the football players (and all the school’s athletic teams) in the late 1960s.
"The previous year in San Jose, he said, a bomb threat was called in to their hotel, and the Cougars played the game in a nearly empty stadium, except for a few family members and hundreds of heavily armed guards.
"Echo Hawk said when BYU visited Tempe to play Arizona State - before the Wyoming game - a large protest blocked the team bus from entering the stadium.
"It was a confusing time for Echo Hawk, who, along with his family, members of the Pawnee Nation, had also experienced racism.
'I had respect for [the Wyoming players] for standing up for what they believed in,' Echo Hawk told The Tribune. 'And it was difficult to understand why a university would dismiss them for that.'
"At the same time, he said, 'I had good feelings about the church because it had blessed my life so much.'
"Those internal conflicts 'were a lot for a 20-year-old,' he said. 'My opinions weren’t fully developed and it was difficult for me.'
"While he may have wanted to speak out about racial issues, he remained silent. 'I don’t think I had teammates who were feeling the same way I was.'
On October 23, Joe Watts wrote in his column "Watts Cookin'" for the Provo Daily Herald, "Here are a whole list of questions worth contemplating that have developed around the WAC racial crisis. When you try to write a column about one of the questions the other questions are always popping on the scene and pretty soon the column is long enough to fill the whole newspaper.
"So here goes - just a list of questions for the reader to think about.
"Is the BYU athletic program in jeopardy?
"What can be done about it?
"Would recruiting Negro athletes be any salvation for the BYU athletic program?
"Does the university have any obligation to its own community?
"Would the townspeople object to recruiting Negro athletes when there is only about one Negro family in the entire valley?
"Would the students object to recruiting Negro athletes?
"Because the Church does not allow the Negro to hold the priesthood, and because it frowns on inter-racial marriage, should BYU stay away from recruiting Negro athletes?
"In a recent Sports Illustrated expose of the Negro athlete their biggest complaint around the nation was that they felt they were 'being used.'
"Would it be 'using or exploiting' the Negro to try to urge him and even pay him to come to BYU?
"Would recruiting married Negro athletes be a compromise in the situation? Would that be good? Would it solve any problems?
"Would a Negro athlete come to BYU?
"Wouldn't he be ostercized [sic] from the Negro society as an Uncle Tom?
"If BYU had Negro athletes on its teams would demonstrations still be held against BYU?
"Is the real argument whether BYU discriminates or whether the LDS Church doctrine discriminates or either?
"Is BYU and the LDS Church guilty of discrimination because some group marches around with pickets declaring that it is so?
"Is there such a thing as a fair trial in cases like this?
"Can a university hope to judge whether another school discriminates? Should one WAC university withdraw from the conference because it assumes another school discriminates even when its own skirts aren't clean?
"If BYU were to withdraw from the WAC would that solve the Negro problems within the WAC?
"What about other schools with racial problems that have no connection with BYU?
"If BYU were not in the WAC would the Negroes at those schools find another target, such as fraterniites, sleeping assignment, or etc.?
"When a school invites another school to engage in a friendly athletic contest, does it have an obligation to treat the visiting school as a guest?
"When an administration agrees to play BYU should it see that its coach is willing to play BYU? If he isn't willing should he protest or quit?
"Should the administration find out whether its athletes want to play the school? Should the athletes determine which schools they will play and which schools they won't play? Should they protest or quit if they disagree?
"Should a coach establish a rule prohibiting his players from protesting against a visiting school?
"If an athlete can wear an armband during a game to protest against a school can he wear an armband to protest the Vietnam War, or the food in the cafeteria, or his grade in English?
"If a coach can't flunk his players, can a teacher flunk his students? If BYU players wanted to wear armbands in protest of racial discrimination at UTEP's fraternities, would BYU allow its players to do so? Should they allow them to do so?
"If Negro athletes don't want to play against BYU shouldn't they say so when they are recruited, or at the moment they decide? Is it honorable of the Negro athlete to wait until game time to protest?
"Is that not taking advantage of the situation and being dishonest to the other teammates?
"Should Utah and Utah State, or any other school that has agreed to play BYU, allow its players to wear armbands in protest of the game?
"Should BYU schedule games with schools that allow its players and coaches to demonstrate against BYU?
"Granted, administrations can't control everyone, but can they control their players, coaches, and faculty? Should they control these groups?
"How important is a college athletic program? Is it worth all the trouble?
"Is the problem complex enough?"
On November 3, Pat Putnam wrote in Sports Illustrated, "Oh, it was a beautiful homecoming. The weather was as pretty as the queen, cool and crisp, and nobody minded a little wind. As people strolled from the stadium last Saturday they laughed and talked about how their unbeaten Wyoming had just manhandled San Jose State 16-7, which made it hard to get up a real working anger against those 14 black athletes Coach Lloyd Eaton threw off the team two weeks ago. Coach Eaton had shown those protesters he could win without them. Good riddance, and never mind a lot of talk about civil rights, because this is Wyoming, and out here we do things our way. Like Coach Eaton told those athletes: Boys, if you don't like the way we run things around here then you better go play at Grambling or Morgan State. Yes sir, and wasn't that victory over San Jose State just glorious?
'Yes, it was a glorious victory,' said Bill Waterman, smiling thinly, 'and now we shall see about the rest.' Waterman is an NAACP lawyer out of Detroit, a short, rather round, quiet-spoken man, and he arrived in Laramie, Wyo. last week with the belief that the rights of a student should not be limited just because he is an athlete. His first move will be to seek an injunction against the University of Wyoming in federal court this week. 'First we want to get the players reinstated,' he said. 'Then we'll go from there.'
"Eaton abruptly dropped the 14 black athletes from the team on Oct. 17, after, he says, they took part in a demonstration against Mormon racial policies, which exclude Negroes from the priesthood of the Mormon Church. Wyoming was to play Brigham Young University, which is run by the Mormons, the following afternoon. Eaton insists that his players act as individuals and not as factions, which he feels splits the team, and he became incensed when the Negro players appeared before him that morning as a group. 'They came in together and they came wearing black armbands,' he said. 'It was simply a matter of discipline. Black or white, it didn't matter to me. They broke the rule and I told them they were no longer members of the team.'
"All his life Eaton has lived by the rules. He is a stern disciplinarian who can neither understand nor forgive a breakdown in team unity. As a boy he had to help his father scratch a living from a tiny ranch in the Black Hills of South Dakota. During the Depression he worked his way through college by sweeping floors for 25¢ an hour. Nobody gave him anything. Nothing came easy for him and he feels that nothing should come easy for those who play under him. Until now his iron discipline has worked and worked well. The last three years Wyoming has been the Western Athletic Conference champion; this year it has won six games, leads the nation in rushing defense and is ranked 16th. Next to two national parks, football - University of Wyoming football - is about the biggest thing in the state. And so, at the university, Eaton has perhaps more influence than Dr. William D. Carlson, the president. He certainly is more popular than Stanley K. Hathaway, the governor. And now he is convinced that he is the target of a Black Power plot.
'We've played Brigham Young for many years,' Eaton said one day last week. 'Why haven't we had a demonstration before? And we've had Negro players here since 1960. I'll tell you why. This is the first year the Black Student Alliance has been on campus. Now they're organized and ready to act. The WAC was picked because of Brigham Young. And we were picked as the trigger because of our rule against demonstrations. It all fits.'
'The whole problem is that no one understands us,' said Joe Williams, the Wyoming tailback and one of the team's three captains before he became one of the exiled 14. 'If Eaton had, none of this would have happened. His story of a racial plot is ridiculous. We knew about the rule against protest and we went to him on that Friday morning only to see if we couldn't work something out. We felt very deeply about this, but we just wanted to talk to him. We wanted to see if we could wear black armbands in the game, or black socks, or black X's on our helmets. And if he had said no we had already agreed that we would be willing to protest with nothing but our black skins.'
"Both sides agree they met first in Eaton's office and that the coach took them into the field house. There they stop agreeing. Eaton claims he listened to them for 10 minutes and then told them that they were out.
'Like hell he gave us 10 minutes,' said Williams. 'He came in, sneered at us and yelled that we were off the squad. He said our very presence defied him. He said he has had some good Neeegro boys. Just like that.'
'Then he said it was stupid for us to be protesting against a faith and a religion none of us knew about,' said Willie Hysaw, an ex-receiver. 'Talk about stupid! Do you know that Ted Williams [another of the 14] is a Mormon?'
"When University President Carlson learned of the dismissals, he called the governor, who drove over from Cheyenne in a snowstorm. A board of trustees meeting was called hastily, and 18 hours later, early Saturday morning, the trustees announced that they were backing Eaton all the way.
"Across the state support for Eaton poured in. The cowboy element was angry. When seven members of the faculty said they would resign unless the 14 were reinstated, the Touchdown Club in Casper said it was raising money to get the seven out of the state. The student senate came out in favor of a hearing on the issue - which caused the rest of the students to call for an impeachment of the senate. A faculty-student ad hoc committee was formed to investigate, and then was never heard from again. The school paper came out for the 14, and then Phil White, the editor, resigned. Carlson called a press conference, was backed into admitting, unintentionally, that at Wyoming football came first and civil rights second. When he realized what he had said, the press conference was over. One member of the state legislature said that if Eaton backed down, there would be trouble with the university budget next year. Eaton wasn't about to back down.
"Meanwhile, at San Jose State the team voted to wear multicolored armbands against Wyoming in support of the 14, and groups at other WAC schools demanded that Wyoming be dropped from their schedules.
'It's building,' said Bill Waterman. 'All across the country. Building and building. This will be a new day for the college athlete, both black and white.'
"At Wyoming the Black Student Alliance said it would set up picket lines at the San Jose game. Governor Hathaway said he was ready to call out the National Guard. Everyone was in a panic. The university, in an official letter, which Waterman has, said it understood on good authority that 2,000 Black Panthers were headed for Laramie. 'That's not only a lie,' said Waterman, 'it's criminal.'
"On Saturday, an hour before the game, Vernon Breazeale, the chief of the Laramie police force, watched as an orderly group of 134 pickets circled 200 feet from the stadium gate. 'One thing I want these kids to understand,' Breazeale said, 'is that we are here to protect them, not to fight with them. Their fight is with the university, not with us. All the football players on the football team are good kids, both the black and white ones. Real gentlemen. I remember another coach we had here. He used to bring in ex-convicts to play. Real hoodlums. Always drunk, always in trouble. We used to club them over the head until the blood ran down the side of their mouths. I'm glad these kids today are different.'
"He watched as a black girl silently carried a sign that said: 'Something is happening here, but you don't understand what it is, do you?'
'I guess that sign says it all,' someone said.
"Yeah, I guess so,' said Chief Breazeale."
El Paso
Heber Wolsey recalled, "I had a hard time with President Wilkinson to get approval to do anything. He was a lawyer, not a PR man, and I finally was very polite.
"I said, 'Either give me permissio to go to El Paso this weekend of the football game [October 25] or get yourself another PR man.'
"And he said, 'Well what do you think you're going to do?'
'I'm going down and find out what's going on and talk with the media and talk with the university, talk with the militants. I want to know what's going on in these towns.'
"So he said, 'Well, go and see what you can find out.'
"So I went down and it was a very interesting weekend. I got one fellow, called me up on a radio station and said, 'Would you consider coming on my talk show?'
"I said, 'Sure. That's what I'm here for.'
"I mentioned it to the Institute director, who'd been setting up all the appointments for me, and I mentioned this guy's name and he just turned white and said, 'Oh no, he's the worst man in El Paso. He's mean, he's ornery and he hates the Mormons. He'll tear you to ribbons.'
"And I said, 'Well, I've told him I'd go on his show so I plan to go on tomorrow.'
"And the next day I did, and it didn't work out like he or I or anybody expected. Basically speaking, it was a call-in show and people would call in and say, 'Well, Mr. Wolsey, we really appreciate you coming down and talking to us about BYU and your Church,' and someone else says, 'I'm not a Mormon but my neighbor is, and if everybody in this world is as nice as she is, this would be a great world to live in.'
"And another one said, 'You're talking to the wrong people in El Paso about these militants on campus.'
"But at any rate, it got so that I started to be able to talk, is what it amounted to. It's almost as simple as that. And when we had an opportunity and spoke, people listened.
"This fellow that was on the radio station, after we'd finished, he turned to me and said, 'When are you coming to El Paso next time?'
"I said, 'Well, as soon as it looks like we're going to have problems with the Blacks and the priesthood and that kind of stuff.' He said, 'Well, do me a favor and let me know a few days in advance.'
"He said, 'I'd like you on my station for three or four hours. I won't let my audience bother you about this little incidental question about the Blacks and the Priesthood. I'll just let them ask you questions about this interesting Church of yours.'
"And he was a guy who was supposed to tear you to ribbons, you know. But I only mention that because time after time after time when people are supposed to be really upset, when we gave them the time and courtesy of talking to them, it changed completely."
On November 8 the entire San Jose State team and their coach wore black armbands during a game against BYU to show affinity with the Black 14.
"I said, 'Either give me permissio to go to El Paso this weekend of the football game [October 25] or get yourself another PR man.'
"And he said, 'Well what do you think you're going to do?'
'I'm going down and find out what's going on and talk with the media and talk with the university, talk with the militants. I want to know what's going on in these towns.'
"So he said, 'Well, go and see what you can find out.'
"So I went down and it was a very interesting weekend. I got one fellow, called me up on a radio station and said, 'Would you consider coming on my talk show?'
"I said, 'Sure. That's what I'm here for.'
"I mentioned it to the Institute director, who'd been setting up all the appointments for me, and I mentioned this guy's name and he just turned white and said, 'Oh no, he's the worst man in El Paso. He's mean, he's ornery and he hates the Mormons. He'll tear you to ribbons.'
"And I said, 'Well, I've told him I'd go on his show so I plan to go on tomorrow.'
"And the next day I did, and it didn't work out like he or I or anybody expected. Basically speaking, it was a call-in show and people would call in and say, 'Well, Mr. Wolsey, we really appreciate you coming down and talking to us about BYU and your Church,' and someone else says, 'I'm not a Mormon but my neighbor is, and if everybody in this world is as nice as she is, this would be a great world to live in.'
"And another one said, 'You're talking to the wrong people in El Paso about these militants on campus.'
"But at any rate, it got so that I started to be able to talk, is what it amounted to. It's almost as simple as that. And when we had an opportunity and spoke, people listened.
"This fellow that was on the radio station, after we'd finished, he turned to me and said, 'When are you coming to El Paso next time?'
"I said, 'Well, as soon as it looks like we're going to have problems with the Blacks and the priesthood and that kind of stuff.' He said, 'Well, do me a favor and let me know a few days in advance.'
"He said, 'I'd like you on my station for three or four hours. I won't let my audience bother you about this little incidental question about the Blacks and the Priesthood. I'll just let them ask you questions about this interesting Church of yours.'
"And he was a guy who was supposed to tear you to ribbons, you know. But I only mention that because time after time after time when people are supposed to be really upset, when we gave them the time and courtesy of talking to them, it changed completely."
On November 8 the entire San Jose State team and their coach wore black armbands during a game against BYU to show affinity with the Black 14.
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico student government also reviewed the demands in the BSU's letter. On November 12, Brian Mazill of Las Vegas, New Mexico, wrote to the editor of the BYU Daily Universe, "I am one non-Mormon who thinks the notion of the University of New Mexico's student Senate is one of the most unreasonable examples of the bigoted minds of so-called 'liberals' I've ever seen.
"In the first place, BYU is a privately-endowed school. It is not supported by the taxpayers like the other universities [that] are members of the WAC.
"Mainly, the reason for Negro athletes being at the other schools stems not from any great degree of humanitarianism on the part of those institutions. To the contrary, the reason for many, or even most, of Negro athletes being at these schools is because of their acknowledged athletic ability. The alumni preferred these schools during the past 10-15 years to give athletic scholarships to Negro athletes to assure success for their teams.
"The Negro athletes have won games for these schools, they have seen and heard the coed cheerleaders go into hysterical frenzy over their exploits - only to find, after the game was over, they were supposed to keep their place. They were led to believe that by attending otherwise predominantly 'white' (a silly word, if you examine it closely) schools, the Negroes would be pals with all the other students and it didn't work out that way. Now, the more militant want their own dorms, eating facilities, etc.
"On the other hand, Brigham Young University has competed with the other members of WAC handicapped by not having black athletes on their teams, but the students, and alums, have registered no complaints. Mind you, BYU is not tax supported, therefore, I ask what the hell business it is of your sanctimonious hypocrites who the BYU administration wants to have on its campus?
"The Negroes have reached the state in their development in this country at which anyone who doesn't agree with them is considered a 'racist,' or bigot. The white students at schools such as New Mexico who voted for the expulsion of BYU from WAC don't give a real hoot about their black brothers. They just consider it the in-thing to be 'liberal' about such matters.
"If the LDS only want to have whites for the priesthood, what business of the Negroes? Do they have members of the Black Muslims, the Black Panthers, who are 'white'? As a Protestant, such as I am, can I take communion at a Catholic Church? As a non-Mason can I attend the secret sessions of the organization? All the more power to Brigham Young."
Elder Ezra Taft Benson held a photocopy of this letter in his papers. In the margin beside the final paragraph he wrote "Very good."
"In the first place, BYU is a privately-endowed school. It is not supported by the taxpayers like the other universities [that] are members of the WAC.
"Mainly, the reason for Negro athletes being at the other schools stems not from any great degree of humanitarianism on the part of those institutions. To the contrary, the reason for many, or even most, of Negro athletes being at these schools is because of their acknowledged athletic ability. The alumni preferred these schools during the past 10-15 years to give athletic scholarships to Negro athletes to assure success for their teams.
"The Negro athletes have won games for these schools, they have seen and heard the coed cheerleaders go into hysterical frenzy over their exploits - only to find, after the game was over, they were supposed to keep their place. They were led to believe that by attending otherwise predominantly 'white' (a silly word, if you examine it closely) schools, the Negroes would be pals with all the other students and it didn't work out that way. Now, the more militant want their own dorms, eating facilities, etc.
"On the other hand, Brigham Young University has competed with the other members of WAC handicapped by not having black athletes on their teams, but the students, and alums, have registered no complaints. Mind you, BYU is not tax supported, therefore, I ask what the hell business it is of your sanctimonious hypocrites who the BYU administration wants to have on its campus?
"The Negroes have reached the state in their development in this country at which anyone who doesn't agree with them is considered a 'racist,' or bigot. The white students at schools such as New Mexico who voted for the expulsion of BYU from WAC don't give a real hoot about their black brothers. They just consider it the in-thing to be 'liberal' about such matters.
"If the LDS only want to have whites for the priesthood, what business of the Negroes? Do they have members of the Black Muslims, the Black Panthers, who are 'white'? As a Protestant, such as I am, can I take communion at a Catholic Church? As a non-Mason can I attend the secret sessions of the organization? All the more power to Brigham Young."
Elder Ezra Taft Benson held a photocopy of this letter in his papers. In the margin beside the final paragraph he wrote "Very good."
Stanford Suspends Athletic Relations with BYU
On November 12, Stanford University president Kenneth Pitzer suspended athletic relations with BYU, announcing that "It is a policy of Stanford University not to schedule events with institutions which practice discrimination on a basis of race or national origin, or which are affiliated with or sponsored by institutions which do so." Outraged alumni and community members joined BYU in criticizing this move, arguing that BYU itself did not discriminate and that the Church's freedom of religion was being violated. Supportive newspaper articles included "Stanford's Bigotry toward Mormons" in the Chicago Daily News and "Cards React 10 to 1 against Break with BYU" in the San Francisco Chronicle.
On November 15, the Denver Post reported, "The Rev. Roy Flournoy... called for reform of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) in what he alleged is a practice of racism against blacks... The Church of the Black Cross,... is called for: —Boycott of Mormon goods, such as record albums of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. —Discouraging tourist travel to Utah, home state of the church. —Taxpayer petitions to the government asking that the Mormon church's tax-exempt status be abolished... Flournoy added that he believes the average member of the Mormon Church would willingly remove such doctrines from his religion and would welcome outside pressure to do so... 'I believe racism has been forced upon Mormons by its leaders, and isn't the philosophy of the people,' Flournoy said."
On November 19, the University of Utah newspaper Utah Daily Chronicle published an ad from student Sharon Pugsley, "a Mormon concerned about racial problems".
On November 15, the Denver Post reported, "The Rev. Roy Flournoy... called for reform of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon) in what he alleged is a practice of racism against blacks... The Church of the Black Cross,... is called for: —Boycott of Mormon goods, such as record albums of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. —Discouraging tourist travel to Utah, home state of the church. —Taxpayer petitions to the government asking that the Mormon church's tax-exempt status be abolished... Flournoy added that he believes the average member of the Mormon Church would willingly remove such doctrines from his religion and would welcome outside pressure to do so... 'I believe racism has been forced upon Mormons by its leaders, and isn't the philosophy of the people,' Flournoy said."
On November 19, the University of Utah newspaper Utah Daily Chronicle published an ad from student Sharon Pugsley, "a Mormon concerned about racial problems".
BYU Defends Itself and Stanford Apologizes to David O. McKay
On November 26, the Provo Daily Herald reported, "President Ernest L. Wilkinson, speaking to the Devotional Assembly at Brigham Young University Tuesday in the fieldhouse, recounted the racial turmoil that has centered around BYU this fall and reasserted the university's position judging every individual 'on his own merits.'
"In recounting the problems that have occurred this fall, President Wilkinson recounted the Wyoming incident, in which 14 black players were dismissed from the Wyoming football team for demonstrating.
"He recalled small demonstrations at Arizona State University Oct. 4 and at the University of Texas at El Paso Oct. 25, and the wearing of black armbands by San Jose State's football players and coach Nov. 8 in the BYU Stadium.
"In reference to the San Jose State incident, President Wilkinson said, '...the San Jose State team and coaching staff wore black armbands, injecting racial and religious controversy into an athletic contest, which BYU has never done.'
"President Wilkinson spent a good deal of time recounting the action of Stanford University President Kenneth Pitzer, who publicly announced that Standford [sic] would no longer schedule competition of any kind with BYU.
"In reference to that action, President Wilkinson said, 'It should be noted that President Pitzer never once spoke to me about this subject; neither were we given any hearing as to our athletic policy; further in his public statement President Pitzer admitted he did not know of any racial discrimination by BYU.
'You will be interested to note that we have received scores of letters from Stanford alumni, most of them are not members of our Church, apologizing for the action of President Pitzer and opposing his stand...'
"He further stated that one Stanford alumnus had given BYU a 'substantial monetary contribution,' and that others had informed BYU they were discontinuing any contributions to Stanford.
'I have been urged from many quarters to make a statement denouncing the action of President Pitzer,' he said. 'This I have refused to do on the ground that Stanford University has the right to determine the policy of Stanford University, just the same as we believe that Brigham Young University has the right to determine the policies of Brigham Young University.'
President Wilkinsin then said, 'BYU has no policy which discriminates in any way whatsoever against any race.'
"He said the policy of the university is that black athletes are entitled to athletic grants-in-aid 'just the same as players of any other race who excel. As in the case of white athletes, we welcome black athletes at BYU provided they satisfy our entrance requirements and are willing to abide by our standards.'
On December 10, the Provo Daily Herald reported, "President Kenneth Pitzer of Stanford University has written David O. McKay, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to apologize for the handling of Stanford's announcement that it was severing relations with Brigham Young University.
"Pitzer said on Nov. 12 Stanford would 'not schedule any further meetings, debates or other competition' with BYU because of alleged racial discrimination practiced by the Mormon Church.
"Dr. Howard Brooke [sic], vice provost of Stanford, said Monday, 'We had hoped to keep this purely an athletic matter, and we were naive in that. The foresight was not there.
'We failed to take adequate and responsible measures to be sure the policy was expressed in as articulate and precise manner as possible.'
'President Pitzer has written to President McKay conveying this view,' Brooks said. Brooks and Pat Shea, a former Salt Lake City resident and now student body president at Stanford, appeared at a meeting of the Stanford Club.
"Shea said there would be 'no discrimination against Mormons on the Stanford campus,' and 'the decision had not been made to change the Mormon Church.'
"He said there would be 'no vendetta against the church.'
"The latest statement did not change Stanford's policy with BYU. It was only an apology for the manner in which the policy was announced."
"In recounting the problems that have occurred this fall, President Wilkinson recounted the Wyoming incident, in which 14 black players were dismissed from the Wyoming football team for demonstrating.
"He recalled small demonstrations at Arizona State University Oct. 4 and at the University of Texas at El Paso Oct. 25, and the wearing of black armbands by San Jose State's football players and coach Nov. 8 in the BYU Stadium.
"In reference to the San Jose State incident, President Wilkinson said, '...the San Jose State team and coaching staff wore black armbands, injecting racial and religious controversy into an athletic contest, which BYU has never done.'
"President Wilkinson spent a good deal of time recounting the action of Stanford University President Kenneth Pitzer, who publicly announced that Standford [sic] would no longer schedule competition of any kind with BYU.
"In reference to that action, President Wilkinson said, 'It should be noted that President Pitzer never once spoke to me about this subject; neither were we given any hearing as to our athletic policy; further in his public statement President Pitzer admitted he did not know of any racial discrimination by BYU.
'You will be interested to note that we have received scores of letters from Stanford alumni, most of them are not members of our Church, apologizing for the action of President Pitzer and opposing his stand...'
"He further stated that one Stanford alumnus had given BYU a 'substantial monetary contribution,' and that others had informed BYU they were discontinuing any contributions to Stanford.
'I have been urged from many quarters to make a statement denouncing the action of President Pitzer,' he said. 'This I have refused to do on the ground that Stanford University has the right to determine the policy of Stanford University, just the same as we believe that Brigham Young University has the right to determine the policies of Brigham Young University.'
President Wilkinsin then said, 'BYU has no policy which discriminates in any way whatsoever against any race.'
"He said the policy of the university is that black athletes are entitled to athletic grants-in-aid 'just the same as players of any other race who excel. As in the case of white athletes, we welcome black athletes at BYU provided they satisfy our entrance requirements and are willing to abide by our standards.'
On December 10, the Provo Daily Herald reported, "President Kenneth Pitzer of Stanford University has written David O. McKay, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, to apologize for the handling of Stanford's announcement that it was severing relations with Brigham Young University.
"Pitzer said on Nov. 12 Stanford would 'not schedule any further meetings, debates or other competition' with BYU because of alleged racial discrimination practiced by the Mormon Church.
"Dr. Howard Brooke [sic], vice provost of Stanford, said Monday, 'We had hoped to keep this purely an athletic matter, and we were naive in that. The foresight was not there.
'We failed to take adequate and responsible measures to be sure the policy was expressed in as articulate and precise manner as possible.'
'President Pitzer has written to President McKay conveying this view,' Brooks said. Brooks and Pat Shea, a former Salt Lake City resident and now student body president at Stanford, appeared at a meeting of the Stanford Club.
"Shea said there would be 'no discrimination against Mormons on the Stanford campus,' and 'the decision had not been made to change the Mormon Church.'
"He said there would be 'no vendetta against the church.'
"The latest statement did not change Stanford's policy with BYU. It was only an apology for the manner in which the policy was announced."
The Priesthood and Temple Ban is Almost Lifted
President Hugh B. Brown's grandson Edwin B. Firmage wrote, "Grandfather was eventually able to get a proposal allowing full priesthood for blacks approved by the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Elder Harold B. Lee was not present when this proposal was approved, and because of the advanced age of Joseph Fielding Smith, then president of the Quorum of the Twelve, Elder Lee was the dominant senior voice among the Twelve."
In a 2010 interview by Stan Larson, Firmage recalled, "Yes, they made the strongest effort of all when Harold B. Lee would have been the next president of the church, if Joseph Fielding didn’t take it. Joseph Fielding was sleeping through the Quorum meetings every Thursday. He turned out to be a very good president, in my mind. But in any event, he was surely going into senility. He would sleep right through the meetings. That’s how Grandpa and Eldon Tanner got through the ordination of Blacks - before it was reversed. Brother Kimball had to follow through on it years later; he promised Grandpa he'd do it. Grandpa got the Twelve unanimously ordaining Blacks."
Larson: "Except Harold B. Lee was absent?"
Firmage: "Harold B. Lee was in Europe, absent, and Joseph Fielding was asleep, so they got it all passed. Harold B. Lee comes back like a tiger out of hell, and they all back down, including Spencer Kimball, who cried and came to Grandpa’s office and cried in the night, he was like Nicodemus. He said, 'I didn’t have the courage to support you.'
In a 2010 interview by Stan Larson, Firmage recalled, "Yes, they made the strongest effort of all when Harold B. Lee would have been the next president of the church, if Joseph Fielding didn’t take it. Joseph Fielding was sleeping through the Quorum meetings every Thursday. He turned out to be a very good president, in my mind. But in any event, he was surely going into senility. He would sleep right through the meetings. That’s how Grandpa and Eldon Tanner got through the ordination of Blacks - before it was reversed. Brother Kimball had to follow through on it years later; he promised Grandpa he'd do it. Grandpa got the Twelve unanimously ordaining Blacks."
Larson: "Except Harold B. Lee was absent?"
Firmage: "Harold B. Lee was in Europe, absent, and Joseph Fielding was asleep, so they got it all passed. Harold B. Lee comes back like a tiger out of hell, and they all back down, including Spencer Kimball, who cried and came to Grandpa’s office and cried in the night, he was like Nicodemus. He said, 'I didn’t have the courage to support you.'
First Presidency Statement
Edwin B. Firmage recalled, "Convinced that the ban was doctrinally based, Elder Lee sought to memorialize his belief by drafting a statement on the matter for the First Presidency's consideration. At the time, President McKay's health was failing and he did not sign such documents. Grandfather managed to add language to Elder Lee's statement endorsing full civil rights for all citizens, but he still resisted signing the statement. However, he suffered from advanced age and the late stages of Parkinson's disease and was ill with the Asian flu. With Grandfather in this condition, Elder Lee brought tremendous pressure to bear upon him, arguing that with President McKay incapacitated Grandfather was obliged to join the consensus within the Quorum of the Twelve. Grandfather, deeply ill, wept as he related this story to me just before he signed the statement that bore his and President Tanner's names."
Though similar in some respects to the 1949 statement, it no longer mentioned theories regarding the premortal existence, the "curse of Cain", or Brigham Young's statement that black people would have to wait for all of God's other children to receive their priesthood blessings. It emphasized more clearly that the reasons for the ban were not fully known to man and that the principle of continuous revelation could bring about a change. It was also distributed to all stake presidents, mission presidents, and bishops instead of remaining relatively private.
"December 15, 1969
"To General Authorities, Regional Representatives of the Twelve, Stake Presidents, Mission Presidents, and Bishops.
"Dear Brethren: In view of confusion that has arisen, it was decided at a meeting of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve to restate the position of the Church with regard to the Negro both in society and in the Church.
"First, may we say that we know something of the sufferings of those who are discriminated against in a denial of their civil rights and Constitutional privileges. Our early history as a church is a tragic story of persecution and oppression. Our people repeatedly were denied the protection of the law. They were driven and plundered, robbed and murdered by mobs, who in many instances were aided and abetted by those sworn to uphold the law. We as a people have experienced the bitter fruits of civil discrimination and mob violence.
"We believe that the Constitution of the United States was divinely inspired, that it was produced by 'wise men' whom God raised up for this 'very purpose', and that the principles emobdied in the Constitution are so fundamental and important that, if possible, they should be extended 'for the rights and protection' of all mankind.
"In revelations received by the first prophet of the Church in this dispensation, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), the Lord made it clear that it is 'not right that any man should be in bondage one to another'. These words were spoken prior to the Civil War. From these and other revelations have sprung the Church's deep and historic concern with man's free agency and our commitment to the sacred principles of the Constitution.
"It follows, therefore, that we believe the Negro, as well as those of other races, should have his full Constitutional privileges as a member of society, and we hope that members of the Church everywhere will do their part as citizens to see that these rights are held inviolate. Each citizen must have equal opportunities and protection under the law with reference to civil rights.
"However, matters of faith, conscience, and theology are not within the purview of the civil law. The first amendment to the Constitution specifically provides that 'Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof'.
"The position of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints affecting those of the Negro race who choose to join the Church falls wholly within the category of religion. It has no bearing upon matters of civil rights. In no case or degree does it deny to the Negro his full privileges as a citizen of the nation.
"This position has no relevancy whatever to those who do not wish to join the Church. Those individuals, we suppose, do not believe in the divine origin and nature of the Church, nor that we have the priesthood of God. Therefore, if they feel we have no priesthood, they should have no concern with any aspect of our theology on priesthood so long as that theology does not deny any man his Constitutional privileges.
"A word of explanation concerning the position of the Church.
"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints owes its origin, its existence, and its hope for the future to the principle of continuous revelation. 'We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.'
"From the beginning of this dispensation, Joseph Smith and all succeeding presidents of the Church have taught that Negroes, while spirit children of a common Father, and the progeny of our earthly parents Adam and Eve, were not yet to receive the priesthood, for reasons which we believe are known to God, but which He has not made fully known to man.
"Our living prophet, President David O. McKay, has said, 'The seeming discrimination by the Church toward the Negro is not something which originated with man; but goes back into the beginning with God...
'Revelation assures us that this plan antedates man's mortal existence, extending back to man's pre-existent state.'
"President McKay has also said, 'Sometime in God's eternal plan, the Negro will be given the right to hold the priesthood.'
"Until God reveals His will in this matter, to him whom we sustain as a prophet, we are bound by that same will. Priesthood, when it is conferred on any man comes as a blessing from God, not of men.
"We feel nothing but love, compassion, and the deepest appreciation for the rich talents, endowments, and the earnest strivings of our Negro brothers and sisters. We are eager to share with men of all races the blessings of the Gospel. We have no racially-segregated congregations.
"Were we the leaders of an enterprise created by ourselves and operated only according to our own earthly wisdom, it would be a simple thing to act according to popular will. But we believe that this work is directed by God and that the conferring of the priesthood must await His revelation. To do otherwise would be to deny the very premise on which the Church is established.
"We recognize that those who do not accept the principle of modern revelation may oppose our point of view. We repeat that such would not wish for membership in the Church, and therefore the question of priesthood should hold no interest for them. Without prejudice they should grant us the privilege afforded under the Constitution to exercise our chosen form of religion just as we must grant all others a similar privilege. They must recognize that the question of bestowing or withholding priesthood in the Church is a matter of religion and not a matter of Constitutional right.
"We extend the hand of friendship to men everywhere and the hand of fellowship to all who wish to join the Church and partake of the many rewarding opportunities to be found therein.
"We join with those throughout the world who pray that all of the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ may in due time of the Lord become available to men of faith everywhere. Until that time comes we must trust in God, in His wisdom and in His tender mercy.
"Meanwhile we must strive harder to emulate His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, whose new commandment it was that we should love one another. In developing that love and concern for one another, while awaiting revelations yet to come, let us hope that with respect to these religious differences, we may yet gain reinforcement for understanding and appreciation for such differences. They challenge our common similarities, as children of one Father, to enlarge the out-reachings of our divine souls.
"Faithfully your brethren,
The First Presidency
By Hugh B. Brown
N. Eldon Tanner"
Though similar in some respects to the 1949 statement, it no longer mentioned theories regarding the premortal existence, the "curse of Cain", or Brigham Young's statement that black people would have to wait for all of God's other children to receive their priesthood blessings. It emphasized more clearly that the reasons for the ban were not fully known to man and that the principle of continuous revelation could bring about a change. It was also distributed to all stake presidents, mission presidents, and bishops instead of remaining relatively private.
"December 15, 1969
"To General Authorities, Regional Representatives of the Twelve, Stake Presidents, Mission Presidents, and Bishops.
"Dear Brethren: In view of confusion that has arisen, it was decided at a meeting of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve to restate the position of the Church with regard to the Negro both in society and in the Church.
"First, may we say that we know something of the sufferings of those who are discriminated against in a denial of their civil rights and Constitutional privileges. Our early history as a church is a tragic story of persecution and oppression. Our people repeatedly were denied the protection of the law. They were driven and plundered, robbed and murdered by mobs, who in many instances were aided and abetted by those sworn to uphold the law. We as a people have experienced the bitter fruits of civil discrimination and mob violence.
"We believe that the Constitution of the United States was divinely inspired, that it was produced by 'wise men' whom God raised up for this 'very purpose', and that the principles emobdied in the Constitution are so fundamental and important that, if possible, they should be extended 'for the rights and protection' of all mankind.
"In revelations received by the first prophet of the Church in this dispensation, Joseph Smith (1805-1844), the Lord made it clear that it is 'not right that any man should be in bondage one to another'. These words were spoken prior to the Civil War. From these and other revelations have sprung the Church's deep and historic concern with man's free agency and our commitment to the sacred principles of the Constitution.
"It follows, therefore, that we believe the Negro, as well as those of other races, should have his full Constitutional privileges as a member of society, and we hope that members of the Church everywhere will do their part as citizens to see that these rights are held inviolate. Each citizen must have equal opportunities and protection under the law with reference to civil rights.
"However, matters of faith, conscience, and theology are not within the purview of the civil law. The first amendment to the Constitution specifically provides that 'Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof'.
"The position of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints affecting those of the Negro race who choose to join the Church falls wholly within the category of religion. It has no bearing upon matters of civil rights. In no case or degree does it deny to the Negro his full privileges as a citizen of the nation.
"This position has no relevancy whatever to those who do not wish to join the Church. Those individuals, we suppose, do not believe in the divine origin and nature of the Church, nor that we have the priesthood of God. Therefore, if they feel we have no priesthood, they should have no concern with any aspect of our theology on priesthood so long as that theology does not deny any man his Constitutional privileges.
"A word of explanation concerning the position of the Church.
"The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints owes its origin, its existence, and its hope for the future to the principle of continuous revelation. 'We believe all that God has revealed, all that He does now reveal, and we believe that He will yet reveal many great and important things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.'
"From the beginning of this dispensation, Joseph Smith and all succeeding presidents of the Church have taught that Negroes, while spirit children of a common Father, and the progeny of our earthly parents Adam and Eve, were not yet to receive the priesthood, for reasons which we believe are known to God, but which He has not made fully known to man.
"Our living prophet, President David O. McKay, has said, 'The seeming discrimination by the Church toward the Negro is not something which originated with man; but goes back into the beginning with God...
'Revelation assures us that this plan antedates man's mortal existence, extending back to man's pre-existent state.'
"President McKay has also said, 'Sometime in God's eternal plan, the Negro will be given the right to hold the priesthood.'
"Until God reveals His will in this matter, to him whom we sustain as a prophet, we are bound by that same will. Priesthood, when it is conferred on any man comes as a blessing from God, not of men.
"We feel nothing but love, compassion, and the deepest appreciation for the rich talents, endowments, and the earnest strivings of our Negro brothers and sisters. We are eager to share with men of all races the blessings of the Gospel. We have no racially-segregated congregations.
"Were we the leaders of an enterprise created by ourselves and operated only according to our own earthly wisdom, it would be a simple thing to act according to popular will. But we believe that this work is directed by God and that the conferring of the priesthood must await His revelation. To do otherwise would be to deny the very premise on which the Church is established.
"We recognize that those who do not accept the principle of modern revelation may oppose our point of view. We repeat that such would not wish for membership in the Church, and therefore the question of priesthood should hold no interest for them. Without prejudice they should grant us the privilege afforded under the Constitution to exercise our chosen form of religion just as we must grant all others a similar privilege. They must recognize that the question of bestowing or withholding priesthood in the Church is a matter of religion and not a matter of Constitutional right.
"We extend the hand of friendship to men everywhere and the hand of fellowship to all who wish to join the Church and partake of the many rewarding opportunities to be found therein.
"We join with those throughout the world who pray that all of the blessings of the gospel of Jesus Christ may in due time of the Lord become available to men of faith everywhere. Until that time comes we must trust in God, in His wisdom and in His tender mercy.
"Meanwhile we must strive harder to emulate His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, whose new commandment it was that we should love one another. In developing that love and concern for one another, while awaiting revelations yet to come, let us hope that with respect to these religious differences, we may yet gain reinforcement for understanding and appreciation for such differences. They challenge our common similarities, as children of one Father, to enlarge the out-reachings of our divine souls.
"Faithfully your brethren,
The First Presidency
By Hugh B. Brown
N. Eldon Tanner"
Kenneth Pitzer Explains Stanford's Decision
On December 19, the Provo Daily Herald reported, "President Kenneth Pitzer of Stanford University has written a former Stanford faculty member, now teaching at Brigham Young University, that Stanford's action in dropping competition with BYU was not intended as a religious criticism.
"Pitzer wrote Dr. Larry V. Knight of the BYU physics department that the action was not 'intended in any way to constitute a criticism of the Mormon faith, BYU or any other organization.
'Black students at Stanford,' Pitzer wrote, 'sincerely believe that it is degrading to them to be asked to compete against institutions which are sponsored by organizations which hold that certain blacks are by doctrine relegated to a second-class position.
'Many correspondents have pointed out that the denial of the priesthood to blacks of certain lineage is deeply rooted in Church doctrine; that BYU itself does not practice discrimination and the Church and individual members have done much to advance the cause of Negroes in America.'
"Pitzer said Stanford had first approached BYU seeking a 'disengagement' for games under contract. He said that BYU refused the request.
"The Stanford president said that he was writing the letter to explain the actions of the school leading to the cancellation.
"He said the beliefs of the students may keep a 'complete understanding out of reach.'
"Pitzer wrote Dr. Larry V. Knight of the BYU physics department that the action was not 'intended in any way to constitute a criticism of the Mormon faith, BYU or any other organization.
'Black students at Stanford,' Pitzer wrote, 'sincerely believe that it is degrading to them to be asked to compete against institutions which are sponsored by organizations which hold that certain blacks are by doctrine relegated to a second-class position.
'Many correspondents have pointed out that the denial of the priesthood to blacks of certain lineage is deeply rooted in Church doctrine; that BYU itself does not practice discrimination and the Church and individual members have done much to advance the cause of Negroes in America.'
"Pitzer said Stanford had first approached BYU seeking a 'disengagement' for games under contract. He said that BYU refused the request.
"The Stanford president said that he was writing the letter to explain the actions of the school leading to the cancellation.
"He said the beliefs of the students may keep a 'complete understanding out of reach.'
John W. Fitzgerald
On December 28, the Holladay Utah Stake Presidency wrote to John W. Fitzgerald, "We are in receipt of a notice advising us of a series of discussions between yourself and the Reverend Roger Prescott of Our Saviours Lutheran Chruch [sic], beginning January 4. We are very much concerned that you would involve yourself in such a discussion ostensibly representing the view of the L.D.S. Church and although we do not disagree with the value of such discussions held under proper circumstances and under proper authority, we feel that it is unwise for you to take upon yourself the responsibility of representing the Church in this area.
"Though the notice indicated that you are a member of the Holladay 1st Ward, our records indicate no activity or participation by way of attendance or contribution to this ward and you cannot therefore represent yourself as an active member and in good standing.
"There is within the Church, as you well know, a line of authority which those of us who are active in service to the Church recognize and honor. In whatever assignment we may undertake we must have the blessing and authority of those entitled to give such blessing and authority. You have not received in this instance, nor in previous experiences, the authority to speak in behalf of the L.D.S. Church and we feel that it is our responsibility to remind you that until you are properly assigned you may represent only your own views and not the views of the L.D.S. Church in this or other discussions or dialogues. Many of your views are in fact opposed to those of the Prophet and other authorities of the Church as indicated in your letters to the editors of the local newspapers and written statements of which we are aware in other correspondence and publications.
"Those of us who know you and know your qualifications and your abilities which could be channeled to the strengthening and building up of members of the Church and those who would like honestly to know more about the truths of the Gospel but which instead seem to be channeled toward disagreement with authority and challenging accepted doctrine, are heartsick and disappointed at your action.
"May we suggest that you humble yourself before our Heavenly Father and place yourself in harmony with the teachings and doctrines as prescribed by the brethren.
"We enclose herewith a copy of a letter just received from the First Presidency with regard to the position of the Church toward the Negro. Any other opinion or attitude is self-concoctive and does not represent the view of the Church. We also enclose a copy of some recent instructions from Elder Mark E. Petersen which emphasises the constant need to align ourselves with the Gospel Doctrine, in the hopes that they will be of interest to you.
"We hope that you will receive this letter in the spirit in which it was intended, that it might be of assistance to you in finding your way back to the harmony of the gospel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
"Sincerely,
W. Wayne Prince
Marvin W. Wallin
Kirk L. Brimley"
Next: The Church of Jesus Christ and Black People 1970
Main Page: Latter-day Saint Racial History
"Though the notice indicated that you are a member of the Holladay 1st Ward, our records indicate no activity or participation by way of attendance or contribution to this ward and you cannot therefore represent yourself as an active member and in good standing.
"There is within the Church, as you well know, a line of authority which those of us who are active in service to the Church recognize and honor. In whatever assignment we may undertake we must have the blessing and authority of those entitled to give such blessing and authority. You have not received in this instance, nor in previous experiences, the authority to speak in behalf of the L.D.S. Church and we feel that it is our responsibility to remind you that until you are properly assigned you may represent only your own views and not the views of the L.D.S. Church in this or other discussions or dialogues. Many of your views are in fact opposed to those of the Prophet and other authorities of the Church as indicated in your letters to the editors of the local newspapers and written statements of which we are aware in other correspondence and publications.
"Those of us who know you and know your qualifications and your abilities which could be channeled to the strengthening and building up of members of the Church and those who would like honestly to know more about the truths of the Gospel but which instead seem to be channeled toward disagreement with authority and challenging accepted doctrine, are heartsick and disappointed at your action.
"May we suggest that you humble yourself before our Heavenly Father and place yourself in harmony with the teachings and doctrines as prescribed by the brethren.
"We enclose herewith a copy of a letter just received from the First Presidency with regard to the position of the Church toward the Negro. Any other opinion or attitude is self-concoctive and does not represent the view of the Church. We also enclose a copy of some recent instructions from Elder Mark E. Petersen which emphasises the constant need to align ourselves with the Gospel Doctrine, in the hopes that they will be of interest to you.
"We hope that you will receive this letter in the spirit in which it was intended, that it might be of assistance to you in finding your way back to the harmony of the gospel of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
"Sincerely,
W. Wayne Prince
Marvin W. Wallin
Kirk L. Brimley"
Next: The Church of Jesus Christ and Black People 1970
Main Page: Latter-day Saint Racial History
