Wilmington-New Hanover County Good Neighbor Council, 1963-1968

Contains business correspondence, reports, minutes, agendas, publications, newspaper clippings, mailing lists, and notes pertaining to the Wilmington-New Hanover County Good Neighbor Council, formerly the Wilmington-New Hanover County Bi-Racial Committee. Soon after Governor Terry Sanford assumed office in 1961, he began to meet with black leaders, encouraging the establishment of local biracial committees. In January 1963, Terry Sanford announced the establishement of the North Carolina Good Neighbor Council, which would eventually link twenty-eight biracial committees under the statewide organization. The purpose of the North Carolina Good Neighbor Council, which would evolve into the North Carolina Human Relations Council, was to fight racial segregation and encourage employment of black North Carolininans. In May 1963, Wilmington Mayor O. O. Allsbrook and New Hanover County Commission board chairman Mike Hall formed the Wilmington-New Hanover County Bi-Racial Committee. This purpose of the Bi-Racial Committee aligned with that of the statewide Good Neighbor Council. Shortly after the formation of the Wilmington-New Hanover County Bi-Racial Committee, Wallace Murchison joined and served for several years as chairman. The purpose of the Bi-Racial Committee was stated in the minutes of an October 1963 meeting, arranged into the following four objectives: "1) To create better understanding between the races in the community; 2) To serve as a means of communication between people involved in or affected by racial problems. To attempt to reach agreement by negotiation between individuals and groups on both sides; 3) To seek peaceful and lawful solutions to community problems, to uphold the right of private businesses to select their customers, to discourage mass demonstrations, boycotts and mob pressures, and to urge all citizens and especially our youth to become better trained and qualified for employment; 4) To encourage businesses serving the public to adopt voluntarily a policy of open public accommodations, to encourage employment of qualified people without regard to race, and to encourage all citizens to eliminate discrimination based on race, creed or color." In 1964, the Bi-Racial Committee evolved into the Wilmington-New Hanover County Good Neighbor Council. In May 1968, Murchison resigned as a member of the Council. Materials date from 1963 to 1968.