Outstanding TLS, one page, 5.5 x 9, Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute letterhead, July 12, 1904. Letter to Judge Emory Speer. In full: “I beg to acknowledge, with sincere gratitude, a copy of the opinion rendered by you, in the District Court of the Southern District of Georgia, June 28th, bearing upon the Chain Gang System of the whole country. I shall be very greatly obliged to you if you will send me a number of additional copies. I can distribute them to good advantage. You have done, not only my race, but the cause of humanity, a splendid service by this fearless and masterful decision.” In fine condition, with toning to the bottom border and upper right corner. Accompanied by a carbon copy of Speer’s response.
At the start of the twentieth century, the South had entered into new depths of racism, with public officials encouraging lynching and Supreme Court decisions setting the grounds for legal discrimination. In spite of the circumstances, Judge Emory Speer pushed for racial equality, believing wholeheartedly that stabilizing race relations was the first step for the postbellum South to regain economic prosperity. Among his many rulings to help protect and empower African Americans, he made a landmark decision in June of 1904 against the chain gang system, denouncing it as a form of involuntary servitude (explicitly outlawed in the Thirteenth Amendment). Though ultimately unsuccessful (the Supreme Court on appeal held that the judge had no jurisdiction over the matter), his efforts did not go unnoticed. This letter of high praise from Booker T. Washington, one of the most respected and prominent African Americans of his time, commends the judge’s brave decision. From his post at what is now Tuskegee University, he requests additional copies of the ruling, intending to spread the word of Speer’s groundbreaking work, putting him on the frontlines of the fight for equality. A remarkable letter from one determined American to another, both working to rebuild the South for all of its citizens. Pre-certified PSA/DNA and RR Auction COA.
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