Marilyn Kaemmerle

From Special Collections Research Center Wiki

Marilyn Kaemmerle, class of 1945, was a student at the College of William and Mary from Jackson, Michigan. Kaemmerle was editor of The Flat Hat in 1945 when her editorial on race relations, "Lincoln's Job Half-Done," 7 February 1945 sparked a controversy that garnered attention beyond campus. The Flat Hat was temporarily suspended and Kaemmerle was removed as editor.

Newspapers reported that "few of the students have expressed agreement with" Kaemmerle, but students did oppose a censored publication.

An apology for the incident was issued by the Board of Visitors to Kaemmerle in the 1980s.

References

• Various issues of the The Flat Hat
• Marilyn Kaemmerle Collection

In the News

• "EX-W&M EDITOR RECALLS EQUAL-RIGHTS COLUMN FUROR," THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 21 February 1995; accessed 13 March 2008.
• "In 1945, a call for equality silenced," Flat Hat 12 February 2008; accessed 13 March 2008.
• "A call for integration at W&M came back in 1945," Richmond Times Dispatch 12 March 2008; accessed 13 March 2008.

A Note About The Contents Of This Wiki

Unfortunately, many of the early original records of the College of William and Mary were destroyed by fire, military occupation, and the normal effects of time. The information available here is the best available from known documents and sources at the time it was written. Information in this wiki is not complete as new information continues to be uncovered in the SCRC's collections and elsewhere. Researchers are strongly encouraged to use the SCRC's access tools for their research as the information contained in this wiki is by no means comprehensive.