Bluford vs. Canada, Civil Action No. 42: Affidavit of Robert S. Cobb in support of Challenge to Panel

Affidavit of Robert S. Cobb in support of challenge to panel in Civil Action No. 42: Lucile Bluford v. S.W. Canada. Cobb, an attorney in Jefferson City, attests that he knows "both from his personal knowledge and general community reputation that Negroes have not been called for jury service in [the U.S. District Court for the Central Division of the western District of Missouri] since he came to Jefferson City in 1919." He also asserts that "a large percentage of said Negro population possess all the legal qualifications for jury service," but that "said Negroes have not been called for jury service solely because of race." At the time, Bluford was the managing editor of the Kansas City Call and her effort to gain admittance to the masters degree program at MU's School of Journalism, and repeated denials due to her race, lead to a a series of lawsuits that eventually reached the Missouri Supreme Court.