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, . By JACK NELSON ot The Los Angeles Times WASHINGTON—Mississippi civil rights leaders Thursday Jaunched a campaign for a. massive demonstration to protest a scheduled speech by Atty. Gen. John Mit- chell to the Delta Council—the epitome of the state’s upper-crust white society. Aaron E. Henry, Mississippi NAACP president said he had failed in quiet efforts to persuade Mitchell not to address the Chamber of Commerce-type organization, which Henry branded “segregationist and racist.” . . A spokesman for the attorney general said ‘Mitchell does not consider the organization _ to be reaciaily exclusive and plans to make the speech at its annual meeting on May 19 in - Cleveland, Miss. In letters mailed to other civil rights ~ figures Thursday, Henry accused some Delta Council members of supporting school Ba 5 ' ue . if Bp ge your. e dA. oniry e tia church ‘and civil rights leaders, as well as some political leaders, to convene in Gleveland on May 18 and 19 “for a demon- stration of civil disobedience against Mr. ‘Mitchell’s presence here.” * For years national political figures ‘journeyed to Cieveland to speak at the council's anntial meeting. H was there on May, 147, for example, - that then- itchell visit rapped Undersecretary of State Dean Acheson first mentioned the European recovery program that a bit later was unfolded by Secretary of State George C. Marshall and became known function would buoy segregationist sen- timent. Alena HET protested, Morrj wi § Jr. of Indianola council president, Wrote him as the Marshal) plan. In his book, ‘‘Present “alefter saying that if the council's meeting is ai the Creation” Acheson wrote of the Delta Council meeting: “Once a year the Delta Council meets on the tree-shaded lawn of the teachers college at Cleveland, bringing families and relatives with them to discuss their own area’s in- terests and problems and to hear about the great world to which historically their products have gone. Those most im- Mediately concerned listen to the speaker in the large gymnasium of the college. His - words are carried to many more thousands on the surrounding lawn while they eat sandwiches, drink pop, and keep an ¢ye on the sleeping children. The scene is an easy- going, good-natured, shirt-sleeved, thoroughly American one. By the 19608, however, the heat generated by the civil rights movement persuaded national politicjans that the scene might not go easy-going and they stopped ad- JA. dressing the council. One of the last invited was Agriculture Secretary Orville Freeman. A former council official recalled that “Freeman was supposed to come at about the time the freedom rides started and be suddenly decided he had to inspect the cranberry. crop somewhere and couldn’t- come.” For more than two months Henry, a long- time civil rights leader, tried to convince Mitchel} that Jending the prestige of the _attorney general's office to the Delta Council all-white “It will be only because no Negroes want to attend. At our annual meetings in the past Negroes have attended and at no time were they denied admittance. . .The Delta Counci] has never had any restriction on Negro membership.” Aspokesman for ‘Mitchel said the attorney genera], after receiving a copy of Lewis’ letter, decided the council was not racially exclusive. A former council official who has been a member for more than 20 years told the Los Angeles Times, “I’ve never seen a black face in the audience at one of cur mectings. Negroes are not excluded by the by-laws, but they aren't included as members. It’s just like Jews are not excluded by our country club’s by-laws, but they're not admitted a: members.” — Council President Lewis, who is Jewish said in an interview that he financialls supports a private school af Indianola. He said he also has supported public schools. He said he does not know how many of the county council's 4,000 members ar: Negroes “because our membership card: don't show race, but-I recognize one or twi names as friends of mine who are Negroes,’ “I can say uncategorically I] have see them quite a few times at the meetings, Lewis said. “I can’t recall whether [I saw an the last year or the year before, but I wa told by people I know that they saw some las year.” . , .