July to September, 1969, 1969

During this period, Local 300 made an unsuccessful attempt to organize a rice mill at Abbeville, Louisiana, owned by Riviana Foods, Inc. In addition to numerous flyers and letters to the workers issued by both sides, the papers include three speeches by the Riviana management to the employees (July 11; Aug 13; Sept 23), the brief filed by the company with the NLRB (Aug 22), the NLRB decision in the case (Aug 28), a letter from Mitchell to the NLRB charging Riviana with unfair labor practices (Sept 9), the tally of ballots in the election (Sept 24), and a union press release charging that the company initiated a "reign of terror" to win the election (Sept 26). Three of the young civil rights workers attempting to survey the living conditions of sugar workers were arrested for "criminal trespass" at Houma, Louisiana; see Mitchell's press release (July 22) and his letter to Oberlin student Gordon Johnson (Sept 16). On the plans for continuing the summer project, see Mitchell to Fay Bennett (Aug 19) and the fund-raising letters sent out by the newly created Southern Mutual Help Association (Sept 15, n.d.)