'Cinema Society' Refused License; Cancel 'Birth of a Nation' Showing

William B. Drexler '55, president of the Boston Cinema Society, yesterday charged City Censor Walter Milliken with breach of faith in the licensing of "Birth of a Nation," the film the Cinema Society proposed to show tomorrow and Saturday.

Drexler said that when he had contacted Milliken two weeks ago about a license for the film, Milliken told him that there had been some trouble when another group tried to show "Birth of a Nation "before, but offered the Cinema Society tacit assurance that he would grant the license. Since no prints of the picture were available at that time, Drexler told Milliken that he would not get a copy until the day before the first showing (today) and, according to Drexler, Milliken agreed to view the picture whenever it came in.

However Milliken called Drexler two days ago and informed him that since a print had not been shown to him at least two weeks before the showing, a license could not be granted. Milliken further admitted that pressure had been placed upon him by the Equal Rights Society, the N.A.A.C.P., and other prominent Negro citizens, including several clergymen, to prohibit the showing.

Drexler then met with the groups who had called Milliken and found that if the movie was shown, they planned to send a delegation to Mayor Hines protesting the picture, and picket the theater (they had already begun to make up picket signs). They also predicted violence if the picture were shown, especially in the Fine Arts Theater (located near a heavily-populated Negro section.