Early Years
Johnson was a native of Crossett, the seat of Ashley County in southern Arkansas, near the Louisiana line. Johnson was said to have admired the political style of Huey Pierce Long, Jr., but was to Long's political right. In 1950. Johnson was elected to the Arkansas State Senate and served until January 1957. In 1956, he did not run again for the legislature because he challenged Governor Orval Eugene Faubus in the Democratic Party primary. Johnson accused the segregationist Faubus of working behind the scenes for racial integration. Johnson finished second in the pivotal Democratic primary with 83,856 votes (26.9 percent). Faubus then defeated the Republican Roy Mitchell to win a second consecutive two-year term as governor.
Being a lifelong staunch segregationist Johnson also played a role in the Little Rock Nine crisis. He was elected to the Arkansas Supreme Court in 1958 and served until 1966, when he resigned to run again for governor. During his legal career, his wife, Virginia Lillian Morris Johnson (January 21, 1928 – June 27, 2007), a Conway native whom he married in 1947, served as his legal secretary.
Read more about this topic: James D. Johnson
Famous quotes related to early years:
“Even today . . . experts, usually male, tell women how to be mothers and warn them that they should not have children if they have any intention of leaving their side in their early years. . . . Children don’t need parents’ full-time attendance or attention at any stage of their development. Many people will help take care of their needs, depending on who their parents are and how they chose to fulfill their roles.”
—Stella Chess (20th century)