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seeks to annihilate rather than convert. It is immoral because it
thrives on hatred rather than love. It destroys the community and
makes brotherhood impossible.
Fourth, the young people that we pause to honor tonight have
demonstrated a willingness to pay whatever price is necessary for
freedom. They have recognized that freedom is a priceless possession
which every man must possess if he is to be truly human.
Tolstoy, the Russian writer, said in War and Peacet "I cannot
conceive of a man not being free unless he is dead." While this
statement sounds a bit exaggerated, it gets at a basic truth. What
Tolstoy is saying in substance is that the absence of freedom is the
presence of death. Any nation or government that deprives an individual of freedom is in that moment committing an act of moral and
spiritual murder. Any individual who is not concerned about his
freedom commits an act of moral and spiritual suicide. He, at that
moment, forfeits his right to be. The struggle for freedom is not
a struggle to attain some ephemeral desire; it is a struggle to maintain one's very selfhood. It is a struggle to avoid a tragic death
of the spirit. It is no wonder that there have been those discerning
individuals throughout history who have been willing to suffer
sacrifice and even face the possibility of physical death in order
to gain freedom. They have had the vision to realize that physical
death may be more desirable than a permanent death of the spirit.
It was under the spell of this conviction that our forefathers would
cry out: Oh, freedom, Oh, freedom, and before I'll be a slave, I'll
be buried in my grave and go home to my Father and be saved.
Object Description
| Title | Kelly Alexander speeches and KGFJ Radio interview |
| Series | Series 1, Addresses and Statements |
| Digital Collection | Kelly Alexander, Sr. papers concerning the NAACP, 1948-1998 |
| Creator | Alexander, Kelly M. |
| Date Created | 1949, 1953 |
| Series Description | Addresses and speeches by figures in the NAACP organization, including Kelly Alexander, Sr. and Jr., Clarence Mitchell and Roy Wilkins. There are also speeches by Charlotte leaders, including Hugh McColl and Stanford Brookshire. |
| Collection Description | This collection documents the activities of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), with an emphasis on the work and correspondence of Kelly Alexander, Sr. and his sons Kelly Alexander, Jr. and Alfred Alexander in Charlotte, North Carolina. The collection contains minutes, correspondence, reports, speeches, press releases, membership records, and a few photographs. Topics covered include school segregation, housing and employment discrimination, police misconduct, and the Charlotte Area Fund. |
| Subjects--Names |
Alexander, Kelly M. Alexander, Kelly M., Jr., 1948- Alexander, Alfred L., 1952- |
| Subjects--Organizations |
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Charlotte Branch. |
| Subjects--Topics |
African Americans--North Carolina--Charlotte African Americans--Civil rights--North Carolina African Americans--Political activity--North Carolina--Charlotte Civil rights movements--North Carolina--Charlotte Civil rights workers--North Carolina--Charlotte African Americans--Housing--North Carolina--Charlotte Racism--Political aspects--North Carolina--Charlotte Race discrimination--North Carolina--Charlotte Police brutality--North Carolina--Charlotte Police misconduct--North Carolina--Charlotte |
| Subjects--Locations |
Charlotte (N.C.)--Race relations--History--20th century Charlotte (N.C.)--Politics and government--20th century |
| Coverage--Place |
Charlotte (N.C.) Mecklenburg County (N.C.) |
| Box Number | 1 |
| Folder Number | 17 |
| Language | eng |
| Object Type | Text |
| Digital Format | Displayed as .jp2, uploaded as .tif |
| Genre | manuscripts (document genre) |
| Finding Aid | https://findingaids.uncc.edu/repositories/4/resources/701 |
| Original Collection | Kelly Alexander, Sr. papers concerning the NAACP |
| Digital Collection Home Page | http://digitalcollections.uncc.edu/cdm/landingpage/collection/p16033coll20 |
| Repository | J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections (University of North Carolina at Charlotte) |
| Digital Publisher | J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections (University of North Carolina at Charlotte) |
| Rights | These materials are made available for use in research, teaching and private study. The digital reproductions have been made available through an evaluation of public domain status, permissions from the rights' holders, and authorization under the law including fair use as codified in 17 U.S.C. section 107. Although these materials are publicly accessible for these limited purposes, they may not all be in the public domain. Users are responsible for determining if permission for re-use is necessary and for obtaining such permission. Individuals who have concerns about online access to specific content should contact J. Murrey Atkins Library. |
| Location of Original | J. Murrey Atkins Library Special Collections (University of North Carolina at Charlotte) |
| Grant Information | Digitization made possible by funding from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources. |
| Identifier | naacp-ms508-0101017 |
| Date Digitized | 2016-01-28 |
| Rating |
Description
| Title | naacp-ms508-0101017-48 |
| OCR Transcript | seeks to annihilate rather than convert. It is immoral because it thrives on hatred rather than love. It destroys the community and makes brotherhood impossible. Fourth, the young people that we pause to honor tonight have demonstrated a willingness to pay whatever price is necessary for freedom. They have recognized that freedom is a priceless possession which every man must possess if he is to be truly human. Tolstoy, the Russian writer, said in War and Peacet "I cannot conceive of a man not being free unless he is dead." While this statement sounds a bit exaggerated, it gets at a basic truth. What Tolstoy is saying in substance is that the absence of freedom is the presence of death. Any nation or government that deprives an individual of freedom is in that moment committing an act of moral and spiritual murder. Any individual who is not concerned about his freedom commits an act of moral and spiritual suicide. He, at that moment, forfeits his right to be. The struggle for freedom is not a struggle to attain some ephemeral desire; it is a struggle to maintain one's very selfhood. It is a struggle to avoid a tragic death of the spirit. It is no wonder that there have been those discerning individuals throughout history who have been willing to suffer sacrifice and even face the possibility of physical death in order to gain freedom. They have had the vision to realize that physical death may be more desirable than a permanent death of the spirit. It was under the spell of this conviction that our forefathers would cry out: Oh, freedom, Oh, freedom, and before I'll be a slave, I'll be buried in my grave and go home to my Father and be saved. |
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