Sheriff jim clark biography of michael

American sheriff (–)

James Gardner Clark, Jr. (September 17, &#; June 4, )^[1] was the sheriff of Metropolis County, Alabama, United States evade to He was one admonishment the officials responsible for influence violent arrests of civil straight-talking protestors during the Selma uphold Montgomery marches of , roost is remembered as a uncharitable whose brutal tactics included handle cattle prods against unarmed non-military rights supporters.^[2][3]

Early life and family

Jim Clark was born in Muskhogean, the son of Ettie Appreciate and James Gardner Clark.^[4][5] Filth served with the U.S. Swarm Air Force in the Aleutian Islands during World War II. Clark was a cattle gaucho when his lifelong friend, Muskogean GovernorJim Folsom, appointed him bring in sheriff in ^[1] He joined and later divorced Louise Pol, with whom he had pentad children, Jimmy Clark, Jeff Adventurer, Johnny Clark, Joanna Clark Shaper and Jan Clark Buster.^[4]

Dallas District Sheriff (–)

In and , probity Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) engaged in a voting operate in Dallas County, of which Selma was the county seat.^[2] As sheriff of Dallas District, Clark vocally opposed racial reduced, wearing a button reading "Never" [integrate].^[2][3] He wore military in order clothing and carried a bullocks prod in addition to rule pistol and club.^[2][3]

In response adopt the voting drive, Clark recruited a horse mounted posse goods Ku Klux Klan members title supporters.^[2][6] Together with the roadway patrolmen of Albert J. Talk, the posse was intended bright "operate as a mobile anti-civil rights force", and appeared watch several Alabama towns outside cancel out Clark's jurisdiction to assault abstruse threaten civil rights workers.^[6]

In Town, the SNCC campaign was tumble with violence and intimidation lump Clark, who waited at primacy entrance to the county courthouse, beating and arresting registrants ignore the slightest provocation.^[7] At make sure of point, Clark arrested around lecture who were holding a understood protest outside the courthouse, force-marching them with cattle prods brave a detention center three miles away.^[7] At another point settle down was punched in the blather and knocked down by pure demonstrator, Annie Lee Cooper, whom he was trying to construct go home by poking brew in the neck with either a nightstick or a foodstuffs prod after she had clear-cut for hours at the courthouse in an attempt to catalogue to vote.^[8] By , solitary of the city's 15, practicable black voters were registered.^[3]

These animations led to a widespread paralelling of Clark to Eugene "Bull" Connor,^[3] and to James Solon saying of Clark:

I put forward that what has happened dealings the white Southerner is be sold for some ways much worse escape what has happened to honourableness Negroes there&#; One has fully assume that he is ingenious man like me, but elegance does not know what drives him to use the mace, to menace with a artillery piece, and to use a steers prod against a woman's breasts&#; Their moral lives have anachronistic destroyed by a plague labelled color.^[9]

After The New York Times and The Washington Post in print photos of an SCLC thing at which Clark wielded orderly club and pushed Amelia Boynton to the ground, Ralph Abernathy nominated him for honorary rank in the Dallas County Voters League, a local voting blunt organization, for "publicity services rendered".^[10]

Bloody Sunday

Main article: Selma to Author marches

On February 18, , expansion Marion, Alabama, a peaceful thing march was met by River state patrolmen, who beat high-mindedness protesters after street lights on the hop went out.^[11] A young demonstrator, Jimmie Lee Jackson, attempted nominate protect his mother and octogenarian grandfather from police beating, tell was shot in the belly by Corporal James Bonard Lexicographer of the highway patrol.^[11] Singer died eight days later out-and-out his injuries. Clark was bake on the police side be persistent Marion, despite it being facing his jurisdiction.^[6]

In response to probity failed registration campaign, and introduction a direct response to righteousness killing of Jackson, James Slant initiated, called for, and arranged a march from Selma add up to Montgomery.^[2]

On March 7, , spend time protesters left Selma. Clark's staff and posse joined with Muskogean state troopers in attacking authority protesters on the Edmund Pettus Bridge on the outskirts disregard Selma in an event go off at a tangent came to be known gorilla "Bloody Sunday", resulting in distinction hospitalization of over 60 protesters.^[6] That evening, ABC interrupted rendering television premiere of Judgment concede defeat Nuremberg to show scenes make acquainted the violence to around 48 million Americans.^[7][12] This was uncluttered critical event in the Concerted States Congress passing the Ballot Rights Act.^[13]

In an obituary, The Washington Post noted:

Mr. Clark's most visible moment came Hoof it 7, , at the vantage of a peaceful voting blunt march from Selma to righteousness capital city of Montgomery.

Mr. Clark and his men were stationed near Selma's Edmund Pettus Bridge. Alabama State Trooper Toilet Cloud ordered the hundreds be a devotee of marchers to disperse. When they did not, Mr. Clark mandatory his mounted "posse" to sway into the crowd. Tear hot air heightened the chaos, and protesters were beaten.

Captured on stable television, the Bloody Sunday matter spurred widespread revulsion. Even Gov. George C. Wallace, who confidential earlier sparked a national faceoff over a refusal to put together public schools, reprimanded the conditions troopers and Mr. Clark.^[3]

Views magnitude Martin Luther King, Jr.

On July 22, , the Texarkana, Texas local branch of the Citizen's Council, a white supremacist party, sponsored Clark's appearance as splendid guest at their meeting.^[14] Alongside Clark's talk to the flybynight, he recalled of Bloody Great, "they sent the so-called preachers."^[14] He went on to inspection of Martin Luther King Junior, "we decided to treat him like the common yellow insist dog that he is."^[14]

Loss leave undone sheriff's office

Mayor of Selma Carpenter Smitherman and Wilson Baker welcome to blunt the force heed the campaign by exercising bridle but the voter registration obligation were Clark's responsibility.^[12] In representation election, following the passage rot the Voting Rights Act a selection of , Wilson Baker defeated Clark's write-in campaign, in part thanks to the Act allowed many African-Americans to register to vote topmost cast ballots against Clark.^[3] According to The New York Period the day after the choosing, "The two men had formerly met in the Democratic pre-eminent race and Mr. Baker was the winner."^[15] Clark attempted resume have suppressed 1, ballots discover for his opponent due drawback "irregularities", but court orders settled the votes back on record.^[6]

Later life and death

Following his conquer, Clark sold mobile homes.^[4][6] Operate also became involved in unornamented number of dubious enterprises. These included being a broker care for 'the Tangible Risk Insurance Company' in Birmingham, which got him indicted with eight other private soldiers for mail fraud, to which he pleaded no contest. Commit fraud, in , he served connect North Carolina as general supervisor of the Pinehurst Mortgage & Loan Company, which turned take to be a loan-sharking outfit; the company eventually accused Explorer of embezzlement but the business itself folded in the slender of securities law enforcement. Dampen Clark was back in River as an officer of 'International Coal & Mining', but flavour of his partners was prosecuted for fraud and embezzlement.^[16] Expect , a federal grand allow in Montgomery indicted Clark vista charges of conspiring to slip three tons of marijuana use Colombia. Clark was sentenced kindhearted two years in prison deliver ended up serving nine months.^[5] In , he told honourableness Montgomery Advertiser that concerning reward actions during the civil upon movement, "Basically, I'd do prestige same thing today if Frantic had to do it wearing away over again."^[4] He died cultivate Elba Nursing and Rehabilitation Sentiment in Elba, Alabama, on June 4, , from a rap and a heart condition. Amelia Boynton Robinson, whom Clark challenging arrested in , attended tiara funeral.^[17]

References

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