William Alexander Massingale was a state legislator in Missouri. He served in the Missouri House of Representatives from 1947-1948. He lived in St. Louis.[1]

Massingale was elected to the new eleventh district of the Missouri House of Representatives as a Democrat in the 1946 election beating Republican Peter Ferrara.[2]

In January 1948, he introduced a bill to make racial discrimination in public places a punishable offence.[3]

He and a driver were arrested for using a vehicle-mounted sound system to campaign in violation of a city ordinance. Massingale was described as a Republican who switched to the Democrats after being elected and then became a Progressive when running for re-election.[4] After his unsuccessful campaign he was part of a delegation that lobbied mayor Aloys P. Kaufmann to support an anti-segregation bill.[5]

He was described as an elevator operator and accused of being a Communist in testimony.[6]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Greene, Lorenzo Johnston; Kremer, Gary R.; Holland, Antonio Frederick (February 18, 1993). Missouri's Black Heritage. University of Missouri Press. ISBN 978-0-8262-0904-7 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ "13 Republicans Lead for City's 21 Legislature Seats". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. 6 November 1946. p. 4. Retrieved 18 February 2024.  
  3. ^ "Representative Massingale Says Bill Has Good Chance". The St. Louis Argus. 30 January 1948. p. 1. Retrieved 18 February 2024.  
  4. ^ "Rep William Massingale Arrested". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. September 23, 1948. p. 3 – via newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "William A Massingale leads delegation to lobby Mayor to support Anti-Segregation Bill". The St. Louis Star and Times. January 10, 1949. p. 20 – via newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Activities, United States Congress House Committee on Un-American (February 18, 1956). "Investigation of Communist Activities in the St. Louis, Mo., Area: Hearing Before the Committee on Un-American Activities, House of Representatives, Eighty-Fourth Congress, Second Session ..." U.S. Government Printing Office – via Google Books.