Benjamin Jefferson Davis Jr. (September 8, 1903 – August 22, 1964) was an

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

lawyer and

Communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, distrib ...

who was elected to the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...

in 1943, representing

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

. He faced increasing opposition from outside Harlem after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1949 he was among a number of communist leaders prosecuted for violating the

Smith Act The Alien Registration Act, popularly known as the Smith Act, 76th United States Congress, 3rd session, ch. 439, , is a United States federal statute that was enacted on June 28, 1940. It set criminal penalties for advocating the overthrow of ...

. He was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison.

Early years

Benjamin J. Davis Jr. – known to his friends as "Ben" – was born September 8, 1903, in

Dawson, Georgia Dawson is a city in and the county seat of Terrell County, Georgia, Terrell County, Georgia, United States. The population was 4,414 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Incorporated on December 22, 1857, the city is named for Sena ...

to Benjamin Davis Sr. and Jimmie W. Porter. The family moved to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

in 1909, where Davis's father, "Big Ben" Davis, established a weekly black newspaper, the '' Atlanta Independent.'' It was successful enough to provide a comfortable middle-class upbringing for his family. The elder Benjamin Davis emerged as a prominent black political leader and served as a member of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is the primary committee of the Republican Party of the United States. Its members are chosen by the state delegations at the national convention every four years. It is responsible for developing and pr ...

for the state of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

."Benjamin Jefferson Davis Jr."
''Martin Luther King and the Global Freedom Struggle,'' Stanford University.William L. Patterson, ''Ben Davis: Crusader for Negro Freedom and Socialism.'' New York: New Century Publishers, 1967; p. 7. The younger Ben Davis Jr. attended the high school program of

Morehouse College Morehouse College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Men's colleges in the United States, men's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia, ...

in Atlanta. He left the South to study at

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zepha ...

, where he earned his B.A. in 1925. Davis continued his education at

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

, from which he graduated in 1929. Davis worked briefly as a journalist before starting a law practice in Atlanta in 1932.

Political career

Davis became radicalized through his role as defense attorney in the 1933 trial of Angelo Herndon, a 19-year-old black

who had been charged with violating a Georgia law against "attempting to incite insurrection", because he tried to organize a farm workers' union. Davis asked the

International Juridical Association The International Juridical Association (IJA; 1931–1942) was an association of socially minded American lawyers, established by Carol Weiss King and considered by the U.S. federal government (in the form of the U.S. House Un-American Activities ...

to review his brief. During the trial, Davis faced angry, racist opposition from the judge and public. He was impressed with the rhetoric and bravery of Herndon and his colleagues. After giving concluding arguments, he joined the Communist Party himself. Herndon was convicted and sentenced to 18–20 years in jail. He was freed after April 26, 1937, when, by a 5-to-4 margin, the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that turn on question ...

ruled Georgia's Insurrection Law to be unconstitutional. Davis moved to

Harlem, New York Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan ...

in 1935, joining the Great Migration of blacks out of the South to northern cities. He worked as editor of the Communist Party's newspaper targeted to African-Americans, ''The Negro Liberator.'' He later became editor of the CPUSA's official English-language daily, ''

The Daily Worker The ''Daily Worker'' was a newspaper published in Chicago founded by communists, socialists, union members, and other activists. Publication began in 1924. It generally reflected the prevailing views of members of the Communist Party USA (CPU ...

.'' In 1943, Davis was elected under the then-used system of

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...

to fill a city council seat being vacated by

Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Adam Clayton Powell Jr. (November 29, 1908 – April 4, 1972) was an American Baptist pastor and politician who represented the Harlem neighborhood of New York City in the United States House of Representatives from 1945 until 1971. He was t ...

to run for Congress. Davis was reelected in 1945, this time to a four-year term. Benjamin J

Davis lost his 1949 bid for re-election due to a number of factors. First, two years earlier, New York had ceased to use proportional representation and Harlem was broken up into three districts, diluting the black vote. Second, Davis's opponent in the new 21st district was journalist Earl Brown, a fusion candidate for the Democratic, Republican, and Liberal parties. Finally, in July 1948, Davis was charged with conspiring to overthrow the federal government under the

a World War II-era charge that rested on Davis's association with the Communist Party. He was tried along with eleven other defendants for their communist beliefs and party affiliation in the Smith Act trials.

Paul Robeson Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, actor, professional American football, football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for h ...

, noted actor, singer, and civil rights activist publicly advocated for Davis and his fellow defendants. His conviction was announced on October 13, only a few weeks before the election. Benjamin J

With only a month remaining in his last term, Davis was expelled from the city council, a requirement under state law. His former colleagues even passed a resolution celebrating his ouster. He appealed his conviction for two years all the way to the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...

, without success. On March 1, 1955, after serving three years and four months in the federal penitentiary in

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and Terre Haute metropolitan area, its metropolitan area had a populati ...

, Davis was freed."Benjamin Davis"
, Spartacus Educational. However, he was immediately transferred to the Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to serve an additional 60-day term for contempt of court. He had appeared there in 1953 as a defense witness for another group of five Communists charged under the Smith Act, but was asked and refused to answer questions about unrelated individuals involved in the Communist Party's National Commission of Negro Work. In 1957, the Supreme Court revisited the Smith Act and reversed itself in

Yates v. United States ''Yates v. United States'', 354 U.S. 298 (1957), was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States that held that the First Amendment protected radical and reactionary speech, unless it posed a "clear and present danger". Background ...

, which held that the

First Amendment First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

protected radical and reactionary speech, unless it posed a "

clear and present danger ''Clear and Present Danger'' is a political thriller novel, written by Tom Clancy and published on August 17, 1989. A sequel to '' The Cardinal of the Kremlin'' (1988), main character Jack Ryan becomes acting Deputy Director of Intelligence i ...

In subsequent years, Davis engaged in a speaking tour of college campuses and remained politically active, promoting an agenda of civil rights and economic populism. Davis' 1962 speaking circuit drew crowds at schools such as

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

, Columbia, Amherst, Oberlin and the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

.Jarvis Tyner
The Legacy of Benjamin J. Davis
''People's World,'' September 6, 2003. But the

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a Public university, public research university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York ...

in the New York council district he represented in the 1940sbarred Davis from speaking on its campus in this period. After a student protest, Davis was allowed to speak outside, on the street. He was close to Communist Party chairman

William Z. Foster William Z. Foster (born William Edward Foster; February 25, 1881 – September 1, 1961) was a radical American labor organizer and Communist politician, whose career included serving as General Secretary of the Communist Party USA from 1945 to ...

. Davis continued to publicly defend the actions of the Soviet Union, including the Soviet invasion of

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

in 1956. In 1962 Davis was charged with violating the Internal Security Act. He died shortly before the case came to trial.

Death

Ben Davis died of

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

in New York City on August 22, 1964. He was less than one month shy of his 61st birthday at the time of his death, and was in the midst of a campaign for

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

on the People's Party ticket.

Legacy

While in prison, Davis had written notes for a memoir. These were confiscated by prison authorities and not released until after his death. They were posthumously published under the title ''Communist Councilman From Harlem'' (1969), with a foreword by his Smith Act codefendant Henry Winston.

Works

* "Must Negro Americans Wait?" * "The Negro People in the Struggle for Peace and Freedom." * "Upsurge in the South." * "The Path of Negro Liberation." * "Why I Am A Communist." * "Ben Davis on the McCarran Act." * "Communist Councilman from Harlem"

References

External links

* Jarvis Tyner,
"The Legacy of Benjamin J. Davis"
''People's Weekly World''. * Oakley C. Johnson

''ChickenBones: A Journal for Literary & Artistic African-American Themes''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Benjamin J. 1903 births 1964 deaths African-American people in New York (state) politics Activists for African-American civil rights African-American communists People convicted under the Smith Act Amherst College alumni Morehouse College alumni American anti-racism activists Harvard Law School alumni New York City Council members People from Harlem Politicians from Manhattan People from Dawson, Georgia Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Deaths from lung cancer in New York (state) 20th-century American lawyers 20th-century New York (state) politicians Writers from Georgia (U.S. state) Writers from Manhattan African-American New York City Council members 20th-century African-American lawyers