1952 Domestic Developments
1952
Domestic Developments
Domestic Developments
On the evening of June 16, 1952 what become known as the Great New York Handball Riot, sometimes referred to as the Battle of East River Bridge, occurred when rival fans of the Manhattan Dexters fought the Brooklyn Sinisters. The immediate cause of the riot was a dubious call made by the game's referee that threw the game to Manhattan, although racial tensions undoubtedly had some role in the violent clash. Ultimately six people were killed and approximately fifty-seven were injured before the New York City Police Department could restore order. The American Handball Association (AHA) woud not allow the Manhattan Dexters and the Brooklyn Sinisters to play each other again until 1954.
In June of 1951, Coast to Coast a Sunday night variety show premiered on the Rockefeller Broadcasting Company (RBC). Hosted by Nicholas Young, Coast to Coast would over the years headline some of the nation’s most important and influential entertainers, musicians, and politicians. Nicholas Young would have the distinction of interviewing every American president and presidential candidate for the next quarter century. Coast to Coast would run for a record 26 seasons before going off the air in 1977 making it one of the longest running American television shows of the 20th Century.
At their party convention in Chicago, the Democrats nominated Wilber Gibbons, the senior senator from the State of Jefferson, as their candidate for president in the 1952 presidential election and the young up and coming governor of New York, Paul Francis Delano, as his running mate. In Philadelphia, the Republicans unanimously re-nominated President Conner and Vice President Vanderbilt for a second term. President Conner entered the 1952 campaign with several significant achievements under his belt including winning the South American War, the 1951 Civil Rights Act, and the creation of the League of American Republics. However, ongoing unrest over racial integration and a sluggish economy presented his wily opponents with plenty of opportunities to attack his policies. The Democrats tried to paint Conner as an out of touch idealist who was ignoring the views of the majority of Americans in order to pursue his own radical domestic and foreign agendas. Conner in turn claimed that his administration had done more to promote equality at home and peace abroad than any administration since Robert Todd Lincoln. In the end, President Conner was reelected by a substantial margin winning over 52% of the popular vote. The Democrats fared better then in 1948 but trailed at 46% of the popular vote. The pro-segregationist American Conservative Party, who had re-nominated governors Charles Hinnant and Joseph Gladson, embarrassingly carried only Mississippi and Alabama, the candidates’ home states. Republicans retained their control over both the House and Senate despite slight Democratic gains.
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