THE DAILY NEBRASKAN
Friday, April 26, 1945
EDITORIAL
COMMENT
Page 2
Ulfl)EfirDp
Era's Lltr
Dear Dean Thompson:
One statement in your open letter published
April 25 in the Daily Nebraskan around which your
entire argument revolves has been frequently ut
tered by many Southerners and some reactionary
Northerners, to wit: ". . . you cannot legislate an
attitude of tolerance upon an individual, or upon
a people." That is nothing more than an ex
pression of hope; it may be correct insofar as it
goes, but is essentially calculated to throw gen
uine liberals and Christians off the track to the
logical conclusion which is that while you may
not be able to legislate against an individual's
or a people's attitude, you can legislate against his
manifesting that attitude if it is liable to be deri
mental to society; thus you may not be able to
prevent an individual from wanting to kill an
other, but- you can pass laws penalizing him if
he carries his desire into action.
You go on to say, "changes favorable to na
tional tolerance can come only through education
and understanding. Until the peoples of this coun
try are willing to open their churches and their
lodges and their select societies and their various
other selective sanctuaries to all races, this prob
lem is going to be ever present." Exactly. How
ever, your implied conclusions do not logically
follow. Sitting tight and doing nothing is not the
answer.
As long as educational institutions such as the
member schools of the Big Six practice discrimi
nation while the theory of racial equality is taught
only in a few obscure labor schools and theological
seminaries or in a few isolated sociology and an
thropology courses, education is failing in its duty
to create national tolerance. As long as the na
tion allows violations of the 14th Amendment and
fails to Dass such legislation as the F. E. P. C. bill
and fails to enforce its anti-poll tax laws, some in
dividuals will feel that they have a franchise to
exercise their unreasonable and undemocratic dis
criminatory practices. Successful legislation and
healthy institutional regulations are the only an
swers. When manifestations of ill-will disap
pear, ill-will too will' eventually disappear. But
you cannot expect a moral revolution of tolerance
to sweep the country when Intolerant actions are
left unchecked.
The implied policy of idly waiting for the status
quo to change is not going to work because that
inaction is strong support of the status quo.
In the matter of the case at hand, the only poS'
sible action that the University of Nebraska can
take as a leading educatior-1 institution in a dem
ocracy is to protest the violation of our demo
cratic principles by member schools of the Big
Six. If no positive action is taken, we should
withdraw from the conference. With an opening
in the Western Conference, now is the strategic
time.
In concluding, may I have the temerity to call
your attention to the excellent Public Affairs
Pamphlet prepared by Alfred McClung Lee entitled
"Race Riots Aren't Necessary." The causes of race
riots and preventative suggestions are capably
presented by Dr. Lee, a 'well-known authority on
race and propaganda.
Sincerely yours,
JOSEPH ISHIKAWA.
Dear Madam Editor:
We were happy to learn, from
the front page article in yester
day's Daily Nebraskan, that there
is at least one person on this
campus who classifies himself as
an internationalist indeed, al
most a "violent" internationalist.
It struck us immediately that the
writer had restrained his violent
internationalism remarkably well!
He had restrained himself so well
that his letter gave the appear
ance of being a typical collection
of patronizing, illogical, discon
nected, equivocating, trite, and
meaningless dodges which to
gether constituted the most tre
mendous pile of palpable hog
wash ever dished out by an ad
ministrator to avoid committing
himself. Of course, all this was
just the apeparance it gave.
The writer used the old argu
ment about 'only through educa
tion" and "not until the churches
do, etc." Apparently the writer
docs not realize that the best way
to educate for "tolerance" is to
allow citizens an actual Inter
racial experience. Apparently he
does not see that, along with
churches and lodges, universities
need to adopt a decent attitude.
If he meant what he said, he
would be a proponent of this
resolution which promotes, in his
own backyard, the very things he
claims are necessary for ''national
tolerance."
The writer of the letter con
sidered himself such an authority
on the question (of course, he has
"no race prejudice whatsoever"
himself) that he had "the temer
ity" to recommend to an adult
Negro, a trained director of a big
city Urban League, that he read
a couple of articles on the Negro
question. We are sure Mr. Grooms
will learn a lot about the race
question from his reading.
Mr. Grooms is referred to "Is
The South That Bad?" by Vir-
Review. The almost violent in
ginius Dabney In the Saturday
ternationalist, it seems, skipped
over the paragraphs in which Mr.
Dabney lauds the Southern Re
gional Council and the Southern
Conference of Human Welfare,
organizations which are propos
ing and effecting changes just like
that proposed by the Student
Council resolution. The sentence,
we suppose, which caught the
writer's eye, was that which said
"You can't rid people of pre
judice by passing laws." This,
of course, fails to observe that you
CAN stop people, by passing laws.
from manifesting their prejudice
in segregation and discrimination,
and thereby make things consid
erably more comfortable for those
against whom the prejudice is di
rected which, for one who has
a "Christian concept," should be
of no small importance.
The other article recommended
to Mr. Crooms, "Report on the
Negro Soldier," points out that a
policy of segration, like that in
the army (or in the Big 6) in
addition to being immoral, is
wasteful and inefficient. "One
thing is certain," said Mr. Wei
ll ver, the author of this article.
"As the opportunity to prove
himself and gain recognition as an
individual respected by his society
was extended to the colored man.
that opportunity will increase his
effectiveness." If the writer of
the letter believes that the author
has "understanding and judg
ment" he should oppose the segre
gation which Mr. Welliver is condemning.
The letter, of course, says ab
solutely nothing conclusive about
the situation under discussion. Far
be it from us to "intimidate" Dean
Thompson, but we do feel that
an honest and unanimous expres
sion of a desire of the student
body by its elected representatives
is deserving of more than fatuous
evasion. BILL. MILLER.
At The Student Union This Week
Contract Bridge Tournament
2:00 P. M., SATURDAY, APRIL 27
Union Room 313-315
FREE VARIETY SHOW
JACK OAKIE DONALD O'CONNOR
8:00 P. M. Sunday, April 28
UNION BALLROOM
THE MERRY MON AH ANS'
a-
Open Letter to Dean Thompson:
Your recent open letter to Dr.
Duward Crooms explaining your
stand on Negro participation in
Big Six athletics was deeply in
teresting, though very uninform
ative. Just exactly, Dr. Thompson, in
specific, direct language, what are
you going to do about the matter
at the next meeting of the Big
Six governing board?
In your recent letter you took
absolutely no position on Negro
participation in the Big Six. Nor
did you state any opinion what
ever on the Student Council reso
lution demanding a positive stand
against discrimination and even
tual withdrawal from the confer
ence if Oklahoma and Missouri
would not co-operate in the prac
tice of democracy. And finally,
you failed utterly to make clear
your intentions of future action,
or possibly inaction, in the prob
blem. The whole matter, we grant
you, is one to be weighed care
fully. There are considerations of
high importance on both sides of
the question. In favor of a strategy
of inaction and compromise is the
certainty of a great uproar
among influential alumni and
citizen opposing any threat of
withdrawal from the Big Six. If
you, as Nebraska's representative
on the Big Six governing board,
were to take a clear-cut stand
in favor of the Council resolution,
and would act upon it, your posi
tion would be seriously threat
ened. And this is a possibility
that demands the fullest consid
eraton of any man.
Howaver, cutting squarely
throught the center of the whole
question is the body of principles
involved; the principals of that
faith that we term democracy.
It is in the framework of these.
our professed principles that the
fuzzyness of our thinking about
the Negro problem is cleared
away, and the absolute, two-alternative
choice becomes clear.
You cannot both follow the prin
ciples and not follow them. You
cannot say both yes and no. Right
is right, and injustice is injus
tice.
You stated In your letter. Dr.
Thompson, that you would not be
intimidated. Are you also refer
ring to the "intimidating" effect
of high moral principles?
The choice before you Is clear:
Your "Christian concepts, or a
possible weakening of your popu
larity in some quarters. The stu
dent body, as well as Justice, is
watching.
BILL ROBERTS.
FORTt-FIFTH TEAS
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IllHINKHd STAFF
tonalne Abimmsoa
, Dorothea Boienberr, Donna Pcternon
Keith Jones. Phone Mill
Hoods and Baldics . . .
The red hoods and baldics of Innocents, senior men's
honorary society, will reappear on Ivy Day but only long
enough for the wearers to take part in a short ceremony.
There will be no tapping until next year, according to the
four Innocents now on campus.
It would be impossible to tap the traditional 13 new
members this spring, since there have not been 13 men on
the campus during the last three war years who fulfill the
activity requirements of membership. It is regrettable, how
ever, that the few men, probably less than half a dozen, who
have been active the last three years will be deprived of
their chance to be Innocents. Their service to school life
has been all the greater because they gave their time volun
tarily without aiming for the senior men's honorary as
their goal.
There are four Innocents in school now. Only two of
them will return next year on more or less of a graduate
basis. We would think' that present members would be
glad to have some new blood in the organization to reinstate
the group as an active body as soon as possible.
E.B57EH 7 TOGS
"The things I find myself buying! . . .
'.'Knough paper clips in a year to fill a freight car . . .
telephone poles by the hundreds of thousand . . . tons and
tons and tons of paper for your telephone directories . . .
"You see, I'm the 'shopper' for the country's Bell
Telephone companies. I'm a careful buyer... study markets
all over the world... I get the best and know how to save
by buying in large quantities from all sections of the country.
That's one reason why our nation's telephone service
is the world's most economical as well as the world's best.
I'm the manufacturer for the Bell System, too. I distributt
the telephone apparatus I make, and all manner of supplies ,
that I buy, to the telephone companies. To top it off, I
install central office equipment.
'Remember my name . . . It's Western Electric."
Western Electric
SOURCE OF SUPPLY FOR THE BELL SYSTEM