William "Al" Smith

Below are my reflections on the impact he has made:

Many of you may never have heard of Sarah Patton Boyle. She was one of Virginia’s most prominent white civil rights activists in Virginia in the 50′s and 60′s.

She was born in Lindsay, Virginia in 1906 and raised in an environment that was committed to segregation, but as the young wife of a drama instructor at the University of Virginia she began a political transformation into an ardent and outspoken civil rights advocate – a role that would come to engulf her life.

Her journey started in 1950 when Gregory Swanson sued for admission to the University of Virginia Law School, and continued with a campaign of newspaper and magazine articles and as a witness in front of the Virginia General Assembly. She traveled extensively throughout the state for the Virginia Council on Human Relations, and then the NAACP, constantly working and recruiting. She accumulated numerous awards and recognitions, but by the late 50′s became deeply depressed. She was terribly disheartened by the grip massive resistance had on the Commonwealth and the lack of empathy of her fellow man. She was ostracized and shunned, received volumes of hate mail and threatening phone calls, and had a cross burned in her yard. Despite her idealism, she began to contemplate suicide.

Her lowest point came during a conversation with one of her closest friends and allies. They were discussing the fact that in most work, the more you do and the better known you become, the greater your power and influence. In a fight against the status quo, the reverse appears to be so and your usefulness declines as your reputation mounts. Her friend then said the following to her:

“You’ve done such a good job that your usefulness is permanently over. Anything that has your name on it is automatically doomed to failure. You are the kiss of death.”

You can imagine how this left her feeling completely alone and desperately worthless.

Then she read a letter from a complete stranger that appeared in the Richmond Times Dispatch that pulled her out of her darkness. The letter said:

“…never become antagonistic or vindictive because of the suffering inflicted or being inflicted upon us. Out of suffering comes wisdom and strength. One human with courage constitutes a majority, and as long as Virginia can claim just one Sarah Patton Boyle, hope will spring eternal in the Commonwealth’s breast.”

About the letter Mrs. Boyle said, “I cried for shame of self-pity when I read that letter. Then I resolved to fight on.”

The letter was from William Alfred Smith.

At the time he was only in his mid-twenties and already a brave, smart, insightful and compassionate man.

He just got better with age.

I called Mr. Smith right after Thanksgiving this year because I could not recall Sarah Patton Boyle’s name or the name of her first book, called A Desegregated Heart. I had once owned a copy but had lent or given it away. Mr. Smith instantly understood what I was asking for and gave me Mrs. Patton’s name and the name of her book. I ordered a copy and it came a week or so later. When I last saw Mr. Smith in early December, I thanked him for so cheerfully and kindly taking my call and he said, “Thank you for remembering.”

What an incredibly generous thing to say.

Mr. Smith: We remember.