To Thurgood Marshall
Author: King, Martin Luther, Jr.; Walker, Wyatt Tee
Date: October 11, 1961
Location: Atlanta, Ga.?
Genre: Letter
Details
SCLC congratulates Marshall following his 23 September 1961 nomination by President Kennedy to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Southern senators delayed Marshall’s confirmation until September 1962.1
thurgood marshall director
legal defense and educational fund
100 columbus circle
the officers board and constitutency of the southern christian leadership conference salute you in your appointment to the federal branch of our nation the administration knows full well that they have chosen the best equipped man for this task it makes us very proud to say that we know you. [strikeout illegible] may god’s richest blessings for you in this new responsibility
sincerely yours
martin luther king jr
president
wyatt t walker
director
southern christian leadership conference
1. Mississippi Senator James O. Eastland, chairman of the Judiciary Committee, delayed action on Marshall’s nomination for eight months, and then held four months of hearings. The Senate confirmed Marshall 54–16 (Warren Weaver, “Thurgood Marshall Confirmed by Senate, 54–16, for Judgeship,” New York Times, 12 September 1962).
Source: MLKP-MBU, Martin Luther King, Jr., Papers, 1954–1968, Howard Gotlieb Research Archival Center, Boston University, Boston, Mass.