Day of Courage, honoring Judge Horton, aims to inspire community

Jun. 19—The first Judge James E. Horton Day of Courage will be held Saturday to recognize a man who, under immense social, cultural and political pressure, stood against the grain to do what was right.

Horton presided over the Morgan County retrial of Haywood Patterson, who along with eight other Black youths, ages 12-19, was falsely accused of raping two white women in 1931. After eight of the boys were convicted in 1931, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the convictions in 1932. During Patterson's retrial, one of the accusers admitted that there had been no rape. The all-white jury convicted Patterson anyway, and sentenced him to death.

On June 22, 1933 — 91 years ago Saturday — Horton overturned the verdict and ruled that the other defendants, collectively known as the Scottsboro Boys, could not get a fair trial at the time. In Depression-era, Jim Crow South, it was a deeply unpopular decision.

"Every generation, one is presented with these events," said Rev. Wylheme H. Ragland, a historian and board member of the Decatur Scottsboro Boys Civil Rights Museum. The board is sponsoring the Day of Courage and plans to make it an annual event.

"For the generation today: Steve Perkins. A generation before them was Tommy Lee Hines. Before him, you have the Scottsboro Boys."

The Day of Courage will be held at the Morgan County Archives, 624 Bank St. N.E., from noon to 1 p.m. Retired Morgan County Circuit Judge Glenn Thompson will deliver the keynote address. After, visitors are invited to view the Scottsboro Boys exhibit and other related artifacts, and a rendering of the Judge James E. Horton Legal Center will be unveiled.

Local author, historian, and museum board member Peggy Allen Towns said Thompson was chosen to speak because he helped with efforts to clear the names of the accused boys.

"You have to keep in mind that the trial was an international trial," said Towns. "So, (Horton) received correspondence from all over the world: some in favor of the Scottsboro Boys, and most not in favor of them.

"It took a lot of courage for Judge Horton to be fair in listening to even the defense, the prosecutors. On the flip side of that coin, think about his church members. His neighbors. His circle of friends. That's a lot of pressure."

In addition to honoring Horton, Towns hopes the event will also remind residents to practice courage. In subsequent years, the board plans to examine the courage of others involved in Patterson's trial.

"There was a sister, Beatrice Maddox," said Towns. "There was Clarence Watts who came from Huntsville to assist the defense — his daughter told me that his family was ostracized. The Old Town community came to trial every single day at the risk of being fired. There was a young boy who was shot off his bike in Old Town during the trials and lynched: James Royal."

Ragland wondered how the history books will view today's Decatur. The city is still reeling from the Decatur police killing of Steve Perkins in September.

"What will history say about the judge who will preside?" he asked. "What will history say about city leaders? Who will risk standing for fairness and rightness? Only history will tell.

"Your family may not appreciate you. Your friends may not. Your Bible-believing church members may not. 'But what will I stand and say? I stood in the face of all that, and I will do it again.'"

Towns said without confronting society, nothing changes.

"At the end of the day, when we do what is right, right is going to follow," she said. "Our community will be better. We saw that from the Tommy Lee Hines trial, by people listening and by the persistence of so many people.

"Let's have courage to do the right thing in the face of difficulties, in the face of public clamor, in the face of so many things that we look at as obstacles. Let's just have the wherewithal to stand and do the right thing."

Ragland said, back in 1930s Decatur, every Black parent had to have a conversation with their children: When you're walking in a white neighborhood, walk in the street. Walking on the sidewalk could be dangerous.

"Men were pelted with rocks," he said. "People would sic their dogs on them. This is the culture. These people, who were so racist, went to worship every Sunday."

Ragland said many people chose white culture over justice and Christ.

"We're still having the conversation," Towns added. "And that's why it's so important for us to know our history, because during that time we were taught where to walk, where to look — we're still having those conversations with our young Black men. We're still telling them how to act when a policeman pulls them over. We're still having those conversations with our children."

Horton's historic decision cost him his career. He moved his wife's family home from Athens to a farm in Greenbrier. The house was moved to Decatur last year and, after renovations, will become part of the museum.

The Day of Courage is free to the public. Donations are welcome.

— david.gambino@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2438.