Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The monitor. (Omaha, Neb.) 1915-1928 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 1927)
The Monitor « | a ~ NEBRASKA’S WEEKLY NEWSPAPER DEVOTED TO THE INTERESTS OF COLORED AMERICANS > w ° THE REV. JOHN ALBERT WILUAMS, Editor. ======€ ■■-■■■ ■■■■"■-: ■■ ' ..." -■:■■■■ ~ ~ . . ■. ; .. ~ . == $3.00 a Year—I a a CopyOMAHA, NEBRASKA, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 28, 1927Vol. XIII—Number 17 Whole Number 639 Woman Is Shot While Protecting Baby Moorfield Story Denounces Washington’s Segregation New York—Moorfield Storey, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored Peo ple, has written a letter to Hubert Work, U. S. Secretary of the In terior, warning him that colored voters are determined to end segre gation in the government depart ments in Washington and that votes will be cast against candidates re sponsible for a segregation policy. Mr. Storey’s letter in fulj is as fol lows: Dear Mr. Work: I was very much amazed at your reply to Mr. Thomas’ representation in regard to the segregation of the white and colored employees in your department, and your suggestion that the colored employees would not make any fuss if the outsiders did not interfere. There are now upwards of twelve million colored American citizens in this country who have, under the constitution and law, every right which belongs to their white fellow citizens. There is a systematic move ment all over the country from white people to deny those rights. There is one movement to prevent their liv ing in the same neighborhood with white people, although the supreme court has declared that any statute to that effect violates the constitu tion. Another movement is made to exclude them from public parks, public bathing places, theatres, res taurants and other public places. Still a third would keep them out of public buildings or give them very inferior accommodations, and in por tions of the country they are lynched and their property rights interfered with, but there is no adequate at tempt to enforce their rights in the courts. A law which will give the United States courts jurisdiction of lynching has passed the House of Representatives and would pass the Senate if it came to a vote, but it was defeated by filibustering. These movements against our fel low citizens exasperate a great many leading Americans, and we are de termined that these movements shall stop. Mr. Coolidge has repeatedly given voice to strong expressions of sympathy addressed perhaps to Ne gro conventions and other gatherings of colored people, but nothing has been done to carry out those expres sions and the exasperation has in creased in consequence. From the time the Civil War end ed through the administrations of Lincoln, Johnson, Grant, Hayes, Gar field, Cleveland, Harrison and Roose velt there was no segregation in the departments. Black and white stood alike in the service of the United States at Washington. Beginning with Mr. Taft’s declaration that he would not appoint a colored person to office in any community where colored men were not desired there has been a steady segregation, and the practice which was good enough for Lincoln and Cleveland is now abandoned by the government offi cials in Washington. The whole movement against the rights of the colored people flourishes under the example of the Republican officers in Washington, and if we say to any community that this segregation shall stop and that it is unconstitu tional, the answer can be made— i“Why, the government officers in, Washington are segregating, and the President justifies it, or does nothing to prevent it.” It is proper that you should under stand that this practice is very bit terly condemned by a "reat many American citizens, and they are de termined that in the forthcoming election the colored vote shall be cast against all who favor these prac tices, or who having the power do nothing to stop it. This will affect everybody who takes part in the seg regation enforcement, and it must be understood that the colored voters are determined now to vote so as to secure their rights, and to make every one who denies them feel their opposition. YOU HIT TWO NEGROES WITH ONE STONE There was a time and not long ago when one Negro was struck, he was just struck, and that was all there was to it. One man was killed and that settled it. How different today among our group. You may now strike one member of our group, and the in significant, but at once he springs j into prominence. Strike one of the j group and the waves of interest will | begin to widen until men and women of color will be aroused in every! state in the union. Our most recent demonstration is the case of Edward Glass. Our mili tant organization has done more to stir the blood of the group to self defense than all other agencies com bined. We speak unhesitatingly of the_N. A. A. C. P. The men and wo men who officer this organization are a militant set. They are fear less. They go into a matter with the courage to back their convictions. And they generally get results. If Glass is taken back to Oklahoma, the efforts of our group will have tri umphed anyway. The country will be taught the lesson that there is a new power in the making, a new en ergy is being generated, and the pow er of our group-action must be reck oned with.—The California Voice. I AWARDED $6,500 IN THE DEATH OF HER HUSBAND Cleveland, Ohio. — Judgment for $6,500 was returned by a jury in fa vor of Mrs. Cliff Mundy in a damage suit growing out of the death of her husband at the Ferro Foundry Com pany, June, 1926. Cliff Mundy died from the effects of becoming overheated while work ing for the Ferro Foundry company. Mrs. Mundy in her petition blamed the foundry for his death, due to negligence of providing proper ven tilation in the plant. AIKEN LYNCHING NOT YET DEAD ISSUE IN SOUTH CAROLINA New York.—The National Associa tion for the Advancement of Colored People, 69 Fifth avenue, receives in timations that the lynching in Aiken, S. C., last October, of three members of the bowman “family is not yet a dead issue in that state. One correspondent of the N. A. A. C. P. forwards an editorial from the Columbia (S. C.) State, of October 10, which reads as follows: Blood Brothers “Wonder if that Aiken man who on Saturday shot to death his infant child and wounded the Negro woman who was attempting to shield the in fant was one of the ex-members of the noble band of lynchers that about a year ago, in behalf of law and jus tice and in order that Anglo-Saxon supremacy should be maintained, did to death three helpless prisoners, one of whom was a woman? “The latest achievement of this ex alted citizen would seem, indisputa bly, to link him with that gallant group of patriots who did so much to focus national attention upon Aiken in the declining months of 1926. Certainly if he was not with them in person he was there in spirit. His type is drawn as needle to magnet to the ranks of lynchers. Saturday he was but running true to form; that finest lynching form, when copi ous portions of liquor have washed away whatever slight veneer may have been laid by rudimentary civili zation, and left the human as un hampered by sensibilities as the most original of the glorious aborigines who lived on all fours with the beasts of the jungle. "Yes, gallant lynchers, claim Child Killer as your brother; Child Killer, give the bloody hand of fellowship and fraternity to those compatriots who glory in the slaughter of man acled prisoners snatched from the palsied hands of the law of South Carolinu.” EDITORIAL Do you not think that we have too many small congrega tions of the same denominations among our group in Omaha? Well, we do. We have been of this opinion for some time. We believe that if the denominations to which our people in largest numbers belong were reduced in number by wise and judicious combinations or mergers much more effective work could be done. To be specific: There are some fourteen or more Baptist congregations among our race in this city. Most of these are small and struggling congregations, ekeing out a hand-to mouth existence. The three or four larger congregations, like Zion, Mt. Moriah and Pilgrim, are groaning under a heavy burden of debt, which jeopardizes their existence. These debts are undoubtedly a heavy tax upon the vitality of these congre gations. The notable exception among our larger Baptist con gregations which is not debt burdened is, we believe, Pleasant Green. Would it not relieve the situation and make for effi ciency if all the Negro Baptists in Omaha, on the North Side, at least, were to unite in three or four strong congregations? It unquestionably ought to. We have chosen the Baptist congregations as an example, because they excel all others in multiplication, which does not always mean addition, but as we see it, subtraction in resources and efficiency. A searching of heart among the Methodists, of various names, might also be productive of mergers which would strengthen their work in the community, for they, too, in most instances are struggling with debts. Banks and business houses and firms of the same class, frequently find that it cuts down overhead and makes for ef ficiency by merging. The same rule applies to churches of the same denomination, at least. The merger of different de nominations in any given community is beset with more diffi culties, but even here there is a growing sentiment among all Christian folk that there are entirely too many sects among Christians. Hence, world conferences, such as the recent one at Lausanne, on Faith and Orders. But while these larger mergers must necessarily wait, it does seem to us that here in Omaha among our race, with limited resources and income, a way ought to be found to decrease rather than to multiply the number of our churches. What do you think about it? Are we right, or are we wrong? Let us hear from our readers. URBAN LEAGUE REPORTS ON INDUSTRY FOR SEPTEMBER Bulletin No. 18 of the Industrial department of the National Urban League summarizes employment as follows: You could have gotten a rather ac curate idea of the depressed state of employment among Negroes in the North during September by visiting any one of the several employment agencies of New York, Chicago and Detroit. Southern conditions could have been witnessed by visiting At lanta, Jacksonville, Fla., and Winston Salem, N. C. In each of these cities unemployment did not abate during September. Cleveland is a good gaisge. Here according to analysis by the State-City Employment ser vice: "We are convinced that the general public is really very much concerned regarding the trend of em ployment and also that most of the people who are in position to judge are of the opinion that no very great improvement is in prospect before the first of the year. A comparison with orders received in September 1926 shows a decrease of 31.5 per cent, which proves conclusively that our employment situation while consider ably improved over the summer months, does not begin to compare with the situation one year ago.” The Industrial department of the Ne gro Welfare asociation reported 443 positions filled in September as com pared with 578 in September 1926, a decrease of approximately 24 per cent. Ruioni for Unemployment Several reasons are assigned for the continued unemployment period, which is displayed not alone by the number of people out of work, but also by the large number who are on part time shifts—working either a limited number of days per week. These reasons are the slowing up in automobile production due to uncer tainties surrounding the long ex pected new Ford car, the psychology which usually accompanies national elections, economic and trade dis turbances between the United States and other countries, and the ap proaching winter months which al ways cause a shifting within the la bor market. Reports from Cities Whatever the cause is, the result is depressing as the following reports show: Harrisburgh. "Men are awaiting the resumption of full activities in steel mills.” Springfield, 111. “There is perhaps not a single night but what we have three or four^ transients in jail for lodging.” Tampa, Fla. “A continuation of the inability of many to find work. This is true of white and colored.” New York. “All evidence points to the fact that there is much more unemployment prevalent at this time.” Fort Wayne, Ind. “A growing feel ing among leading colored citizens that new openings must be made.” Advances Shown There wer some slight gains dur ing September, as for instance, in Newark, where a novelty company employed bench workers and a dress factory employed machine operators, thereby increasing their number of colored help. Also in Winston-Salem, where skilled bricklayers, cement fin ishers and carpenters made signifi cant gains. Incidentally, Negro un ion hod carriers scored over open shop workmen on a 27 story building in Tulsa, Okla. Hotels in two cities, one in Texas and the other in Missou ri, decided to use colored orchestras, In Pittsburgh, a new hotel opened with a colored headwaiter and a crew of 30 waiters. Here also the coal strike caused the use of colored op erators in mines which hitherto de nied Negroes employment. In New York City a large oil company with subsidiaries in various parts of the country has hired its first colored clerk. In Chicago the demand con tinues for skilled lamp shade workers and power machine operators, fields in which colored girls work in large numbers. EIGHT-YEAR TERM ASKED FOR METHODIST BISHOPS Chicago.—The Rock River Confer ence of the M. E. church Monday voted to send to the general assem bly meeting at Kansas City next May a memorial favoring the appointment of bishops for a single term of eight years instead of for life as at pres ent. A storm of protest was evoked by the resolution. Bishop R. E. Jones and Bishop M. W. Clair are the two colored M. E. bishops. Savannah, Ga. — Georgia State College has recently issued a pamph let which state that thi? state leads ull other states in the nation with a popplation of approximately 1,200, 000 colored people, and that they pay taxes of $47,000,000 in property. COLORED WOMAN SHOT TRYING TO PROTECT WHITE BABY’S LIFE Drink-Crazed Father Slays His Own Baby in Arms of Servant Who Risks Her Life in Attempt to Save the Child Aiken, S. C.—Adabelle Curry was shot and perhaps fatally wounded by Kinley Willis, a white man, here Fri day night when she attempted to pre vent Willis from killing his baby. The heroic attempt was in vain as one of the shots fired by the liquor-crazed father snuffed out the life of the child. According to the report given the police, Willis went home Friday night under the influence of liquor. He declared his intention to kill the child, and Mrs. Curry, who works for him, grabbed the child in her arms to shield it, and attempted to es cape. Willis overtook her and fired twice, the first shot wounding the woman and the second killing the child. After the shooting, Willis ran into the swamps near his home where he was captured. He is being held for the murder of the child, but his trial is being held up pending the outcome of Mrs. Curry’s injuries. PIOUS PROFESSOR HITS USUAL SNAG ON NEGRO PROBLEM Arraigns “White Supremacy” as a “Relic of Barbarism,” But Regards Civil Equality as Impossible— Is Strong for Segregation (From the Morning Alberton) The magnitude of the Negro prob lem in the United States is discussed at great length in a recent book writ ten by Prof. Jerome Dowd of the University of Oklahoma. For 20 years he has given himself to an in vestigation of this racial question, and at the end of his prodigious re search he confesses that the Negro problem can never be solved. How ever, he thinks it has been greatly mitigated and he has hopes of further improvement largely through what education can do for the Negro. Amalgamation of the two races he sets down as socially impossible and biologically undesirable. Unfortun ately, he maintains, certain deep in stincts in widely differing race groups prevent any general inter mingling. While increase in mulat toes throughout the United States has been marked, it has been due mainly to marriages of Negroes with mulat toes and not with whites. “Why any white person,” he says, “should wish for a time when the races of the world will lose all iden tity and become a single chromatic type passes all understanding, for it is only by each race retaining its in dividuality and flowering in its par ticular habitat that the culture of the world can receive its greatest variety and richness of content.” Professor Dowd dismisses proposed colonization schemes, such as the plan to remove the American Negroes to Africa, as inconceivable. He does, how’ever, point out the advantages of segregation to the Negro. It creates for him a world of his own where he can fill every position in the commun-1 ity w'thout competition and restric tion from the whites. He admits, however, that both the southern and northern Negroes condemn compul sory segregation. The writer strikes the usual snag in a discussion of the problem when he approaches the question of civil equality. He regards it as impossible, and yet white supremacy he calls a “relic of barbarism which should be eliminated by the progress of civiliza-j tion.” But he admits that complete ci\ il rights cannot be allowed the Negro in states where he is numeri* cally in the majority, because that would mean black political control. This the whites would resist, by force if necessary. There is nothing startling in his summing up. He believes that the greatest hope for the Negro lies in the direction of a better understand ing of the white people and a greater inclination to co-operate with them in a spirit of good faith and friendship. There is nothing new in this pious sentiment. TWO NEGRO BANKS OF LONGSTANDING FORM A MERGER Memphis Institution Takes New Name and Becomes Strongest In the South Fraternal and Solvent Savings Banks Combine Under New Name and Become Strongest in the South WARD IS ELECTED PRESIDENT Memphis, Tenn.—Merger of the Fraternal Savings Bank and the Sol vent Savings Bank, with a peid up capital of $100,000 and.combined as sets of nearly $1,600,000, making it the largest and strongest Negro bank in the south, was announced Satur day by officers of both institutions. Future name of the bank will be the Fraternal and Solvent Bank and Trust Company. It has opened busi ness in the Solvent Savings Bank building at 197 Beale Avenue, where officers of both institutions will hold open house until the close of bank ing hours. A. F. Ward, who has been presi dent of the old Fraternal Savings Bank since 1922, will become presi dent of the merged institutions. The board of directors of both banks have been combined giving the new institutions one of the strongest set of Race business men in any southern state. The Fraternal Savings Bank was organized and opened for business February 10, 1910. It began with a small paid up capital. A. F. Ward, who had been in the banking busi ness 22 years, beginning as a clerk in the Alabama Penny Savings Bank at Birmingham, entered the organi zation of the Fraternal Bank as tell er and has filled every position from that to president. He came to Mem phis from Birmingham in 1908 with splendid letters of credit from sev eral officers of the largest banks in that city. Today he holds the con fidence of all Memphis bankers. The Solvent Savings Bank was or ganized 23 years ago and was one of the first institutions of its kind in this city. MARSHALL JOINS ATTACK ON FLORIDA’S JURY DISCRIMINATION New York, N. Y.—Louis Marshall, member of the National Legal Com mittee and of the board of directors of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, is to prepare a reply brief to be filed in the state supreme court of Florida, challenging the state’s right to ex ecute Abe Washington, a colored man on the ground that deliberate wilful exclusion of colored people from jury service violates the fourteenth amend ment to the Constitution and renders the conviction void. S. Decatur McGill, colored attor ney of Jacksonville, Florida, is fight ing the case. It is Mr. McGill’s pres ent intention to carry the case to the United States supreme court if nec essary, on appeal. Victory would mean an effective attack on the ex clusion of colored men from jury ser vice throughout the southern states. VIRGINIA SUPREME COURT REFUSES HIM ANNULMENT Richmond, Va.—Claiming that hia wife deceived him as to her color and that he married her thinking her white, Rosser Jamerson, white, is asking an annulment of his marriage. In his petition, he stated that his wife, Mrs. Cassie Jamerson, told him that the dark color of her skin was due to Indian ancestry. The case was loBt in the supreme court of appeals of ■ Virgina, and Jamerson has an nounced that he will carry the case to the United States supreme court. COFFEYVILLE RIOT CASES ARE CLOSED New York.—According to infor mation received by the N. A. A. C. P. from Elisha Scott, its attorney, the Coffeyville riot cases have been closed.
