m The Monitor si
tt _■*•*'
NEBRASKA’S WEEKLY NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF COLORED AMERICANS
- THE REV. JOHN ALBERT WILLIAMS, Editor.
_ . 6fi . .. ■■ ■ . . .
52.00 a Yeai I Copy OMAHA, NEBRASKA, FRIDAY, MARCH 26. 1926 Whole Number 554 . Vol. XI.—No. 36
“MOVE",—IS COMMAND ON A BRICK
STARCH AND STIFFEN
BACKBONE, ADVISES
PROMINENT WOMAN
Mrs. Mary Church Terrell of Wash
ington Delivers Instructive Ad
dress Here to Appreciative
Audience
HER FIRST VISIT TO NEBRASKA
Noted lecturer and Prominent Social
Worker Tells of Colored Woman’s
Contributions to Country
and Race
_
Mrs. Mary Church Terrell, of Wash
ington, D. C., widow of the late
Judge Terrell, and former president
of the National Federation of Col
ored Women, noted educator and
speaker and one of the outstanding
women of the race, delivered an in
structive, thought-compelling and
practical address Monday night, to
an appreciative audience in St. John's
A. M. E. church, Twenty-second and
Willis avenue, under the joint aus
pices of the Autumn Leaf and Will
ing Workers .clubs of the church.
Mrs. Terrell’s subject was “What
the Colored Woman Has Done for Her
Country and Race." The cultured
speaker rapidly sketched the diffi
culties which confronted the colored
woman not only during the period
of slavery, but subsequently and show
ed how they had been heroically met
and overcome. Not only did she
have to meet the sex-handicap, which
her white sister had to meet, but
also the added handicap of race. But
in spite of all privations which the
colored women had endured by her
achievements in various fields she
has settled the question of her capa
city and worth.
She gave concrete illustrations of
women’s work in the home, schools, j
institutions, art, literature and indus
tries and pointed out specific spheres
arid places where women have and
can improve the status and conditions
of the race and earnestly pleaded that
the more favored women should rec
ognize their responsibility to the less
fortunate.
The speaker urged her audience to
value as priceless gifts the spirit of
hope and the ability to smile and
sing even in the time of adversity ;
which Almighty God has bestowed
upon the Negro race, face facts and
remedy them, thoroughly prepare
for the w,ork desired and to keep
hammering away at the door of op- ,
portunity until It is opened. “Stiff- j
en your backbone, put more starch
in your backbone and keep moving
forwurd,” was her parting admoni
tion.
Preceeding Mrs. lerreus auuress,
Miss Belle Uyan, assistant superin
tendent of the Omaha piiolic schools,
read an interesting sketch of Mrs.
Terrell’s career; Azalia Garrett, a
high school girl, welcomed the speak
er on behalf of girls; Mrs. Irene
Cochran Morton rendered a vocal se
lection. Itev. Mary E. Palmer, in a
brief and befitting original poem,
gracefully introduced the speaker.
Miss Edna M. Stratton, secretary of
the North Side branch of the Y. W.
C. A., was mistress of ceremonies.
Tuesday afternoon Mrs. Terrell de
livered an address to about 70 wom
en at the North Side “Y”, which was
highly appreciated.
This was Mrs. Terrell’s first visit
to Nebraska and she left 1 hursday
afternoon for Lincoln, expressing her
e|f as being most favorably impress
ed with Omaha. She came from Des j
Moines, where she was the guest or
honor at the twentieth anniversary of
the Mary Churth Terrell club of that
city and spoke before the Chamber
of Commerce and the high schools.
make teachers hide knees.
Newport, Ky.—After much protest
from a mothers’ cluh, the school
board of the city has ordered that
teacherH in the local schools must
keep their skirt? within 11 inches of
the floor, this being felt to be suffi
cient to keep their knees covered and
must wear sleeves that cover their
elbows.
RELIGIOUS LLEADERS
REFUSE SEGREGATION
Pass Resolution Not to Enter Annual
Sunday School Meet In South,
Only to Be “Jim-Crowed."
Nashville, Tenn.—Determined to
make a firm stand against segrega
tion, national Negro religious lead
ers announced that colored citizens
would not participate in the Interna
tional Sunday School convention to
be held in Birmingham, Ala., April
12 to 18.
Race leaders took exception to the
passage of a resoution by the com
mission of Birmingham, which 'pro
vides that colored persons would be
segregated from the whites in the
Municipal Auditorium when the con
vention meets.
A resolution adopted at a meeting
of the Negro spokesmen said:
“We recommend all our people re
main away from the Birmingham ses
sion of the International Council, and
have nothing to do with the particu
lar session of the council. The de
ciding factor in coming to this con
clusion was the fact that we learned
there was no city ordinance demand
ing segregation at the auditorium un
til after our meeting of Febr. 8, and
we felt a gross injustice had been
done our entire people.”
AMERICAN NEGRO ENTERS c
LITERATURE
New York—Writing under the ttle,
"The Amercan Negro Enters Litera
ture,” Jim Tully in the March num
lier of the Literary Digest Interna
tional Rook Review, notices a num
ber of new books either written by or
i/nout Negroes. Of "The New' Ne
gro,” edited by Alain L. Locke, Mr.
Tully says: * It is a direct challenge
to the young white writers of the na
tion. In it are more than two dozen
names of Negro authors, many of
them showing splendid promise.”
Of Countee Cullen, whose book of
poems, “Color,” Is reviewed, Mr. Tully
writes: “If there is a more promising
poet in America, I do not know his
name." Mr. Tully names, among other
books by Negroes: Jean Toomer's
“Cane,” which he calls “a string of
uneven pearls;" Jessie R. Fauset’s
“There Is Confusion” and Walter
White’s “The Fire In the Flint,” of
which Mr. Tully writes: “White is a
master of emotion and pathos, that
rarest of combinations when the heart
is hot.” A book by a white man with
a Negro theme, “Norg.v,” by Du Bose
Heyward, also comes in for praise.
SEGREGATION CASE
GOES TO SUPREME COURT
New Orleans—Contest over the va
lidity of the city’s segregation ordi
nance was carried to the United States
supreme court when the Land Devel
opment company obtained a tempor
ary injunction restraining enforce
ment of the measure in regard to a
Palmer avenue house, in which it is
alleged that Negroes have occupied
the double residence in question for a
period of 20 years, and that they
could not be prevented by the city
from continuing to reside there. The
land company alleges in its petition
that it ia being deprived of its prop
erty without due process of law, in
violation of the Fourteenth amend
ment to the Constitution.
Judge Bums has directed the city
to show cause why the enforcement
of the ordinance should not be perma
nently enjoined.
VETERAN RETIRED WITH HONORS
Fort Denning, Ga.—Master Sergeant
William Washington of the 24th United
Slates Infantry, stationed here, was retired
March 11, after completing the equivalent
of thirty years’ service. He is the posses
sor of eight discharge certificates, seven
of which are excellent character references
and one, very good. He was congratulated
by officers of the regiment in general
orders issued, announcing his retirement
for “steady application to duty und fideli
ty and good service.”
Sergeant Washington was bom at Union
Point, Georgia. He will enter civil life
at Gary, Indiana.
EDITORIAL
Is Omaha to have a Doctor Sweet case?
We sincerely hope not. Indeed, we believe that we will not
have, and we think we have valid reasons for this belief. It is not
because Omaha lacks the potentialities or the possibilities of such
a case, for there are the same elements here and the same general
conditions here—although not so acute—as have issued in serious
trouble and loss of life in Detroit. Mich., and several other Amer
ican cities. Let there be no delusion upon this poin. What has
happened elsewhere can and may happen here. There exists here,
as elsewhere, an opinion that citizens of the colored race should be
restricted to certain localities. The realtors have a definite un
derstanding among themselves that there are certain districts in
which they will not sell to Negroes. The presence of our people,
no matter how respectable, cultured and well-to-do they may be,
is resented in many neighborhoods. This resentment has been fre- j
quently shown, but efforts to drive them out by violence have not
yet been resorted to, and as soon as the first flurry of excitement j
has subsided the neighborhood has accepted these unwelcome “in
truders” (?) in a sensible, neighborly spirit, finding them mindingi
their own business and maintaining their property up to ,the
standard of the community. But that there may be resort to vio
lence is not impossible nor improbable, although, as we have be
fore stated, we believe it improbable, and for this reason:
We have confidence in the Mayor and Police force of this city
that they would act promptly and vigorously to suppress such acts
of violence, should they be attempted, and not lend aid and en
couragement to either individuals or mobs lawlessly attempting to
drive respectable and law-abiding citizens from their homes; and
that they would spare no pains to apprehend and punish all per
sons guilty of destroying the property, threatening violence, or
attempting to intimidate citizens in the peaceful occupancy of
their homes, be they white or black, Jew or Gentile, Roman Cath
olic or Protestant.
This is our chief ground for the belief that Omaha will be
spared the tragic outcome of a Sweet case, although the potential
ities for such are here, as shown by the stoning of the home of
Clarence Jennings early Monday morning—the first event of the
kind to occur in this city. Assurance is given by police authoirties
that every effort is being made to apprehend the persons guilty
of the outrage and that adequate protection will be given Mr. and
Mrs. Jennings in case of further trouble, and moreover they have
also been advised to be ready to protect their home should the
exigency arise and which they are prepared to do, although it is
hoped and believed that this will not be necessary.
The Jennings’ case has its lesson for our own people and for
all the citizens of Omaha. It must not be considered! lightly. It
sounds a note of warning that should be heeded by all. Let us
not live thoughtlessly or contentedly in a Fools’ Paradise. The
business interests of Omaha cannot afford the unsavory advertis
ing a racial residential conflict, such as this may presage, would
give us. We are still paying the debt in financial depression, low
ered self-respect and debased spiritual ideals of the mob of Sep
tember, 1919. The time to stop an evil is before it starts, not
after it gets under way. Let us heed the warning of this incident
and stop the malady, this symptom indicates, before it spreads.
It is up to the authorities to see that it does not spread and it’s
up to us to do our part by standing our ground, remembering that
the frightened rabbit invites and encourages the pursuit of the
hound.
— '•sasar
© A.N.P.
MR*. ANNA M. MALONi
Weatlhy St. Louis woman, and
founder of Poro Beauty Cuture Col
lege, a generous giver to charitable
institutions of the race.
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BOY PRESIDENT OF
HIGH SCHOOL ASSOCIATION
New York, N. Y.—David Myers, a
colored student at Stuyvesant High
school of this city, has been elected
president of the general organization
of the school, winning by an over
whelming majority of the students’
votes. Mr. Myers has been ever act
ive in the affairs of the school, hav
ing been for two years a member of
the football team, a member of the
track team, one of the best javelin
throwers that the school has had for
long time and a shot-putter, as well
as a member of the relay team.
FUND TO MEMORIALIZE .
.WHITE MAYOR, PLANNED
New Orleans, La.—Plans have been
made by prominent Negroes to raise ten
thousand dollars as a contribution from
colored citizens of New Orleans as their
contribution to the Dehrman Memorial
Fund as an appreciation to the late mayor
whom they regarded as the best friend
the Negro had in the south. C. W. Taylor,
editor of The Louisiana Weekly, is one of
the prime movers in the affair.
SOUTHERN WOMEN DEMAND
ANTI-LYNCHING LAW
Conscience of Mississippi Stirred in
Behalf of Justice; Inter-Racial
Leaders Encouraged.
Jackson, Miss.—Thousands of Mis
sissippi’s white women have gone on
record publicly against lynching, and
3,000 of the number have signed a
petition asking the legislature to enact
more stringent laws against it, as a
result of a tour of the state by Mrs.
Maud Henderson, of the Commission
of Inter-Racial Co-Operation. Mrs.
Henderson visited 20 cities and spoke
from one to three times a day to se
lected groups representing the best
leadership of the several communities.
In a number of cities the desire was
expressed for the immediate organiz
ation of women’s inter-racial commit
tees and the inauguration of a pro
gram of co-operation.
Every girls’ college in the state was
visited with one exception, and the
students were found to be keenly in
terested and responsive. At Colum
us, Mrs. Henderson addressed the
1,200 students of the State College
for Women, with the result that the
student body voted approval of the
anti-lynching resolutions and several
hundred personally signed the peti
tion.
Members of the inter-racial com
mittee are greatly pleased wdth the
result of the tour and are planning to
follow it up actively. They are much
encouraged by the wide interest re
cently manifested in Mississippi in
the suppression of mob violence and
the betterment of race relations gen
erally.
JIM CROW BILL IS SIDE
TRACKED IN VIRGINIA
W'as Aimed at Hampton Institute to
Separate the Races at Public
Concerts.
MARRIAGES ALSO AFFECTED
Richmond, Va.—Whatever the out
come it seems as though the general
assembly of Virgina which last Tues
day passed the anti-Hampton meas
ures calling for separate seating of
white and colored, is not going to get
itself mixed up on the integrity of the
races residing in the confines of this
noble state. The bill was ordered post
poned indefinitely, after a motion to
reconsider had been rejected. I f
passed and signed by the governor,
it would have forced the registration
of persons according to their race and
made it a felony for persons to marry
any having some trace of mixed blood
far back in their history.
The Massenburge bill is aimed
against Hampton Institute and in
tends to inaugurate compulsory sepa
ration of the races at public concerts
given by the school. The movement
to have the bill introduced is said to
have originated with John Powell, a
white pianist, who had sought to es
tablish a musical reputation for him
sef in southern Virginia. His efforts,
however, were eclipsed by those of
organizations fostered by R. Nathan
iel Dett, Hampton’s music master and
a pianist and composer of national
reputation.
It is said that the issue was first
•brought to a point when Colonel Cope
land, editor of the Newport News
Star, attended a public concert at
Hampton and found that he and his
wife were forced to sit in a section of
Ogden Hall where there were colored
persons. Copeland’s wife is reported
to be related to Pow’ell. This latter
gentleman, smarting under the humil
iation of Dett’s ascendancy, is be
lieved to have contrived and con
spired with Copeland to use the lat
ter’s newspaper to propagandize and
create sentiment against Hampton.
The passage of the Massenburg meas
ure which he, as the delegate from
Hampton admitted he pressed to a
vote “to get the folks at home off
my back,” indicates the success Pow
ell and Copeland had.
A motion to postpone the meas
ure indefinitely was adopted by a
vote of 20 to 9.
Mrs. M. L. Todd was reported in
disposed several days this week.
BRICKS ARE HURLED
THROUGH WINDOWS
OF JENNINGS HOME
Presence of Colored Family in Mid
dle Class Neighborhood Believed
to Have Aroused
Resentment
FIRST EVENT OF KIND IN CITY
Police Seeking Culprits and Promise
Protection to Victims of Outrage
Who Express Determination
to Remain
Last Saturday Mr. and Mrs. Clar
ence Jennings, who for some time pre
vious had resided at 1518 North
Twenty-fifth street, moved into a
larger house at 2601 Emmett street.
The neighborhood into which they
moved differs little from that in which
they formerly lived for it is a very
ordinary community, occupied by the
average industrious midde class, the
modest but attractive homes repre
senting probably an average value of
$.'{,600. There is one other colored
resident on this street in this im
mediate vicinity, and also there are
three or four other colored families
who are homeowners, within a stone’s
throw of the Jennings home.
Sunday afternoon Mr. Jennings no
ticed three or four small boys fooling
around the porch and finally went out
to see what they were doing. The
boys ran, but a little girl said, “Look,
mister, there’s where the boys wrote
on your house.”
He saw chalked on the side of the
house, “K. K- K.” This did not dis
turb him, as he regarded it merely
as a boyish trick, but casually re
marked to his wife, “I wonder if those
else?”
Mr. and Mrs. Jennings, whose bed
room is on the first floor, just off
the front room, retired about 11 p. m.
At 12:30 they were startled by a
noise which sounded like the house
was being wrecked. They jumped out
of bed to find the front room strewed
with glass, gaping holes in the front
room windows and the missies which
had wrought the damage lying on the
floor. They consisted of a brick bat
to which was tied an envelope, on
which was written the one word,
"Move,” and two pieces of concrete
about the size of the brick.
Mrs. Jennings said, “You cannot
imagine how frightful it sounded. I
can’t describe it to you. I said to
Clarence, ‘Oh, my, they are wrecking
the house, what shall we do?’ But
hearing no further noise we flashed
on the light and went into the parlor
and the sight that met our eyes was
glass and rocks. We called the po
lice who responded promptly and were
as nice as they could be. You see
there are three sections to the front
window, the large one in the center
and the two smaller ones on the side.
As there was only the one crash, and
rocks went through all three top panes
there must have been at least three
persons who said “One, two, three,
go.”
Both Mr. Jennings and his wife
spoke in the highest praise of the
police officers who responded to their
call and of the detectives who came
later in the day checking up and seek
ing clues as to the perpetrators of
the deed, and assuring them of pro
tection.
The Jennings have resided in Oma
ha for nearly eleven years and Mr.
Jennings has been employed steadily
for nine years at the American Smelt
ing and Refining Works. They are
members of St. John’s A. M. E. church
and highly respected. They have no
intention of moving.
The Omaha branch of the National
Association for the Advancement of
Colored People has promptly tendered
its services to help in any way it
can and is carefully watching the
outcome. No further trouble, however,
is anticipated.
The D. D. girls held a social hour,
Tuesday evening, March 16, at the
home of Miss Grace Dorsey, 3717
Parker street, as a farewell to their
beloved president, who has left for
the east on an indefinite stay.