Page 2 of Chairman Stokes' closing remarks House Select Committee on Assassinations. Preview of document. Louis Stokes manuscript collection. Collection being processed.
The United States House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations (HSCA) was established in 1976 and Louis Stokes was appointed by Speaker of the House, Tip O’Neill to serve as the chairman. As the chairman he oversaw the high profile assassination investigations, and hearings, of both John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. who were assassinated in 1963 and 1968, respectively. Under his leadership the committee found that both murders possibly involved multiple assassins, but concluded there was no evidence to support conspiracy theories involving domestic or foreign governments. Shown here, a poster for the Distinguished Lecture Series hosted by Georgia State University.
After leaving the army he was determined to become a lawyer and defend the rights of those who had been taken advantage of by the justice system. He attended Western Reserve University and Cleveland Marshall College of Law, and began practicing law in 1953. In 1962 Louis’s brother Carl joined him at his law firm Stokes, Stokes, Character, and Terry. In 1967 Stokes argued the historic case Terry v. Ohio, commonly known as the “Stop-and-Frisk“ case, in front of the Supreme Court. This case set a precedent for police search and seizure procedures, and a number of Supreme Court cases that followed. By the time he ran for Congress in 1968, Louis Stokes was the most prominent civil rights lawyer in Cleveland
When Stokes took office in 1969 there was little black representation in politics, but the civil rights movement had helped to give way to the emergence of black political power. Stokes realized that as a black congressman he couldn’t serve the same way as white representatives could, he felt he had an obligation to represent African Americans everywhere. So not long after his election, Stokes and several other black congressmen and women began forming the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). The CBC which still exists today, mission was, and still is, to challenge the status quo and leverage its political force to advocate and influence issues of special concern that affected black communities nationwide.
During his time as a congressman house leaders frequently called upon Strokes’ due to his demeanor of stability, trustworthiness, and competency. Louis Stokes would go on to serve and chair many committees during his career, including the prestigious Appropriations committee, the House Select Committee on Assassinations, the Education and Labor committee, and the Ethics Committee. He eventually became an Appropriations subcommittee chair, or “Cardinal,” for the Veterans, HUD, and Independent Agencies—controlling more than $90 billion annually in federal money. Stokes was the second African American “Cardinal” ever.
Page 2 of Chairman Louis Stokes Opening Remarks House Select Committee on Assassinations December 11, 1978. Louis Stokes Manuscript Collection being processed.
Memo to President Jimmy Carter by architect R.B. Cutler with additional notes to Chairman Stokes. May 11, 1979. Louis Stokes manuscript collection being processed.
Chairman Stokes' closing remarks for the House Select Committee on Assassinations December 1, 1978. Louis Stokes manuscript collection being processed, preview of the document.
Chairman Louis Stokes opening remarks for the House Select Committee for Assassinations December 11, 1978, from the Louis Stokes Manuscript collection that is being processed.
Investigator Blakey's narration of James Earl Ray's admission November 9, 1978. Preview of document. Louis Stokes manuscript collection being processed.
Back of photograph: Grace on the day that she left Memphis-Grace's current location in Calilf. photo by M. Casey May 1978 Louis Stokes manuscript collection being processed.
Page 2 of HSCA investigator Blakey's narration of James Earl Ray's Admissions November 9, 1978. Preview of document. Louis Stokes manuscript collection. Collection being processed.
Cover of pamphlet by Mrs. Julia Brown, accusing Martin Luther King of being a communist. Preview of document. Louis Stokes manuscript collection, being processed.
Guidelines for members of the House Select Committee on Assassinations for questioning Sam Trafficante. Louis Stokes manuscript collection. Preview of document. Collection is being processed.
Page 2 of Fidel Castro Interview with HSCA April 3, 1978 Havana, Cuba. Preview of document. Louis Stokes manuscript collection. Collection being processed.