Catholic Council on Human Relations

Dates

• Existence: 1961 - 1964

Historical Note

The Catholic Council on Human Relations (CCHR) of the Archdiocese of New Orleans was a Catholic layman's organization founded on May 5, 1961, to deal with the issue of race relations and integration. The CCHR's objectives were to promote positive relationships between people of all races in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, to spread awareness of the Church's teachings on interracial justice and charity, to work cooperatively with agencies to strengthen relations between all American people, and to devote their resources to a peaceful and charitable solution to all human relations problems.

New Orleans public schools had started to desegregate in 1960. While then Archbishop Joseph Rummell had publically denounced segregation in 1956, there was no action on the Church's part towards the desegregation of parochial schools until 1961, when the CCHR was organized. In January 1962, a formal plan of integration was finalized, stating that the desegregation of New Orleans' parochial elementary schools would begin in fall 1962. Pro-segregation groups began organizing protests against desegregation and attempted to pressure the Archdiocese to withdraw their integration plan, yet the school year went on as planned and New Orleans Catholic elementary schools officially desegregated on September 4, 1962, without incident.

Citation:

Abstract:

Catholic Council on Human Relations papers, 1961-1964.  Amistad Research Center. 

Manning, Diane T. and Perry Rogers.  "Deseregation of the New Orleans Parochial Schools."  The Journal of Negro Education.  Vol. 71, no. 1/2 (Winter-Spring 2002), 31-42.

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