Full Text of the Excerpt

CHARLES DUNN:

At the time you ran for Governor, you were somewhat of a political novice weren't you? Had you been active in politics?

I. BEVERLY LAKE:

Somewhat! I was a rank political novice! [Laughter] I didn't know anything about organization. Well, I'll show you how naive I was. Bob Morgan, my manager, although he had been in the Legislature, was almost as naive. I said, "Bob, how much do you think we've got to raise?" Bob thought $40,000.00 would be enough to run a successful campaign, and I didn't know any better then, I didn't have any money, and I wasn't going to mortgage my home and jeopardize my family's home in order to run for Governor. I said, "If the people of North Carolina want me to run for Governor, I will put out a program." It was not just schools. I had a twelve point program, if you will remember, dealing with highways, attraction of business, schools, crime prevention, various public utility regulations, and various and sundry other vital programs. All of them, I discussed all of them in my campaign. But with the exception of the Durham Herald, thanks to you--you were a reporter over there--most of the newspapers in the state did not give my campaign a fair deal. Every time I spoke it was belittled, and it was portrayed, my campaign was portrayed, as an anti-Negro campaign which it was not. I never in my campaign, either one, I never made a speech to a white audience that I would not have made to a Negro audience or to an integrated audience. So I have no apology for my campaign. I've got all my speeches. And I'll show them to anybody who asks about them.

CHARLES DUNN:

I remember you made some outstanding speeches, I thought, on fiscal responsibility of the government.