Eisenhower Meets with Martin Luther King Jr. and Other Black Leaders to Discuss Civil Rights and Voting Rights (1958)

Date: June 24, 1958

Created By: Rocco C. Siciliano

Original or Replica: Original

Era: Civil Rights, The Presidency

Collection: Eisenhower Presidential Library

Citations: DDE’s Papers as President, DDE Diary Series, Box 33, June 1958 Staff Notes (2); NAID #186611

This June 24, 1958 White House memorandum records President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s meeting the previous day with four prominent Black civil rights leaders: Martin Luther King Jr., A. Philip Randolph, Roy Wilkins, and Lester B. Granger. The leaders praised several of Eisenhower’s civil rights accomplishments but urged stronger federal action against segregation and discrimination. King advocated presidential leadership, a White House civil rights conference, and expanded public education to build support for desegregation. Wilkins emphasized strengthening federal civil rights enforcement and protecting Black voting rights, which he described as an effective means of achieving peaceful change.

The discussion also revealed frustration over the pace of racial progress. Granger warned of growing bitterness among Black Americans when anticipated advances were delayed or stopped. Attorney General William P. Rogers defended the administration’s record and emphasized the use of federal court action when legally appropriate. Eisenhower expressed concern about the reported bitterness and stressed careful, persistent federal action. Although he questioned whether a White House conference would accomplish much, he agreed to consider the leaders’ recommendations and emphasized the importance of voting rights. The memorandum provides a detailed record of a significant face-to-face discussion between Eisenhower and major leaders of the Civil Rights Movement about presidential leadership, federal enforcement, desegregation, and Black political participation.