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About The Omaha guide. (Omaha, Neb.) 1927-19?? | View Entire Issue (April 3, 1937)
COMMENTS EDITORIAL PAGE OPINIONS I ..EDITORIALS.. “THE OMAHA GUIDE * Published Every Saturday at 2418-20 Grant Street, Omaha, Nebraska Phones: WEbster 1517 or 1518 Enured as SecornTciass Matter March 16. 1927, at the Poetortic* at Omaha. Neb.. underAct of Congress of March 8, 1879. ' TERMS OP SUBSCRIPTION *2.00 PER TEAR Race prejudice must go. The Fatherhood of Ged and the Brother hood of Man must prevail. These are the only principles which will Stand the acid test of good. All News Capy of Churches and all Organisations must be in our sffice not later than 6:00 p. m. Monday for current issue. All Adver tising Copy or Paid Articles not later than Wednesday noon, proceed ing date of issue, to insure publication. _ THE SOUTH IS OPPOSED TO LYNCHING from The I-na VegM, Nev., EVENING REVIEW-JO URN AX March 6, 1937 If t?h«' hoodline atartlcH you, it does so no more than n recent Am irNn Institute of Public Opinion poll on a federal Anti-Lynching act ha" "taitlcd us. The Institute report* that not only does the nation as a whole favor a foderal anti-lynching law, but that 65 per cent of the people of the "out.h favor it Can this be? What of the picture (|h« north currently has of the «oi»th overrun by m!t|b« bent on nitrder “to keep the Negro in hi" place.’’ ready to trot out th*< rojie at the first opportunity? What ot the southern senator" who filibu"tered last year to keop the Wugner-Go"tigan anti-lynching bill from passing? What of tha sou thern “states' right"” dry against .the bill? Evidence available toduy indicates the north doe" not have the wrong impression of popular southern feeling on lynching. It begin" to look a« if we have made the niMtake of judging the south by itp politician". Wo believe that Hh<> majority of southerner* are misrepre sented on the lynching in lie by a oomparajtively "mall group of landowners who USE lyn< hings a*a device to keep the Negroe" in econ omic subjection- We believe that 6h« southern senators are just act ing in accord with what they think their people think and that they are in error. The recent boating of Professor Joseph Griders in Alabama (be cause he dared defend a labor organizer’iright) is illuminating. Once the facts of the heating come t, Professor Gelders found that he had almost unanimous newspaper support and .great popular aid. His own "taljemoijt is; “The ( immlm peole of the south rarely know when a ob outrage takes plu<o Their pro*" doesn’t tell them. When we can manage to gift a case fairly pre enyd to a jury, we. have no (Vais a" to the outcome. The pt*ople nye not in favor of mob violence." A CHRISTIAN “CLINIC By WILLIAM PICKENS For A N P. There is a publication called “THE LOOKOUT, Magazine of Chris tian Education,”! published in Cindinnati, O- It has a department call' ed “Christian Action, Life Clinic,” edited by James Do Forest Mureh Ho is supposed to answer questions that puzfcle people in their daily lives and relations to other people,—tas when they are “dissappointed love,” or want to know what college to attend, or what not. Recently a woman wrote him as follows: "I ant a widow, with little or no visible means of support. A neighboring gentleman (a Negro) is the! only one who has shown me any sympathy oi* help. He has givea md money many times, and reads to me. Everybody in our church has quit coming to see me, and many of them will not speak to me because of this- Should 1 refuse any longer to see this gentleman, who is my only solace?” And this i» what the “Christian Doctor” Murch writeb in answer to her in hi« column of the magazine: “While we should havd no racial prejudices, we shuld recognize the fact that God has, in His wisdom, separated men by? racial dis tinctions. Our intima<d social relations should be conducted with in racial limits. This is a law generally recognized. Each race is equally Important beford God, but that does not give us interracial license. Well! This “Christian Clinic” Is certainly headed by a quack doc por Who says the God “separated men by racial distinctions?” The people who know something about that, say that only climate and en* viroments of other sorts variegated the visual appearances of men,— and the last time any of us heard God say anything about itj was when Ho also said: “God has mad« of one blood all nations.” And once when God was trying to illustrate his moaning to Doctor Petenvho seemed to be about as muddled about God’s intentions as is Dr. Murch, God gave Peter a vision of a «hget let down out of heaven, with all sorts of creatures in it,- -trying to show Peter in a kindergarten illu gtration that nothing that God nsido is per so “unclean ” Now if Murch has had any recent and different understanding I with God about it, wo wish God would speak again to us, for himself. How did Dr. Murch get thi < private understanding with God, which none of the roost learned men of! the world is aMe to get? Has God turned Fascism and revealed the fact only to Murch? We are loth to believe that And who has made any “law” about “racete” except poor ignorant men themselves? Neither God nor Nature has set any biological bar riers between the various outward types of Man. And what in the name of God and the devil is “interracial license?” How these D. D.’» do use words, phrases,—“sounding braises” and tinkling cymbals” Did God issue any “licenses” or make any racial “laws,” and if so, why has He not told s<j(nie fcf the rest of us about it, and confided only in Murch? ' ) , * This God alibi is one which human beastliness has used through out written history. Whan they drag God into the argument, you can usually look out for some scoundrel ism that could not get, by on any real logic. Why did not Murch say something (sensible and honest to that poor woman, like this: You are guilty of no wrong, but you are in danger, because the people among whom you live are not yet civiliz ed enough to allow you (to be so civilized. You are right, but you are likely to be destryed, because of the race prejudices that surround you- If you want <o be RIGHT, go ahead; hut if you want to be oomfo»tabIe with your neighbors, submit. You are a bit ahead of your i. i . j imA,a v » KELLY MILLER SAYS A GENUINE NEGRO DEMO CRAT Senator David Rennet Hill of New York attracted national attention to himself by the as' l»ervaiion: ‘‘I am a Democrat11 Th* Hon. William J. Thomp* kirn* of Missouri, might well claifu distinction by proclaim^ ing- "I am a Negro Democrat." Most Ntgro politicians feel eall ! ed upon to explain or apologize for tilieir recent espousal of .the Democratic party. Dr, Thomp kins is a Democrat by birth and [tradition, following in the wake of his father before him. lie was born in Missouri 53 years ago in a complacent Democrat environment. As a lad, he was adopted by a fashiooable Dem ocrat Club as its mascot, and in full regalia 'Ufijefl to function in that capacity on gala ocoa ions. Missouri is a state of striking peculiarities. Until the last two or three decades ij was list ed with the Southern states, al though it, extends further north than Kansas. It was the pivot about which was waged the Is sues of slavery ajid freedom. It was the central figure in tht j Missouri Compromise and the |I)red Scott decision. It fullfils I the defisition of a southern ^tatje in that it held slaves in j I860 and was restrained from ;secession only by force of arms. The Negroes of Missouri have always held a unique position. Ttve state was settled by aristo erntic farmers from Kentucky 'and Indiana. Its population was 'reinforced and liberalized 'by the influx of German radicals, led by Carl Schurtz, as the out come of the Germas revolution of 1848. Henry 0: Bruce, bro ther of Senator B. K. Bruce, gives us an interesting account as to how he and his distin gulshed brother spent their ear ly manhood as slaves on a Mbs souri farm. lvnasasOity consti tuting the halting point in the stream ’of the ‘49 ^California gold rushers, attracted Negro mechanics and carpenters from far and near to make and mend wagons and harness for tht cov ered ’wagons on the western course. Wm. J. Thompkins is a descendent of these coloretJ^-ie chanics who clustered around Kansas City. As Missouri never underwent the tragic experiment of recon truction, it escaped the political horrors about which we hear so much in the deep and distant South. There was never any fratricidal wrangling abo\it i the place of the freedmen in the body politic. It is the only southern state that bus never had jim crow ears or the dis franchiseniylnt laws., The poli tioal division between the two parties has been more or less even. A large number of white liepublicans lias made impos sible the Negro's ambition for leadership in the state organi zatkrn, and has obviated the excuse for lily whites. The Hos. C. H. J, Taylor, min ister to Liberia, and recorder of deeds under Gover Cl eve land, was a Missouri Negro Dem ocrat. The way was well paved for the emergence of Wm, J. Thompkins, tflie Negro Demo crat par excellence. Dr. Thomtpkin's effective work in politics lies in the way of organization. For eight years lie has been president of the National Negro Democratic As sociation, which wag organized in 1892 and operates in Missouri and the region round about. It has 92 clubs in Mteouri, 55 in Oklahoma, 46 in Kansas and a lesser number in Nebraska, Col orado, Iowa and California. These are not quadriennial mushrooms which spring up for election purposes, but are per manently maintained for Demo cratic propaganda among the colored voters of these stt^m In the campaign of 1932, Mr. Thompkina had charge of the Negro contingent for all the western stales, all of which landed safely in the Roosevelt column. In 1936, because of the unseemly sectiou)al rivalry of Negro Democratic leaders, he was technically confined to his home state, but actually his re gional influence was demanded by the exigencies of the situa tion. His own ward in Kansas City, composed mainly of Ne gro voters, gave Roosevlj 17000 votes against 300 for Landon. We first met Dr. Thompkins in his official capacity as sur geon in chief of the Kansas City hospital, which position he held for several terms, according to the fluctuation of political for1 tunes in that state.. The Kan' sas City hospital for Negroes is said by some to be the best equipped and best managed in stitution of its kind anywhere in the country. Dr, Thompkins became an enthusiast for the 'development of the health pro gram to meet the needs of the Negro race on a nation wide scale. He was endorsed by the Missouri Delegation for the headship of Freedmen*s hospi tal which he, at that time sought mainly as a wider field to ex tend his "health program. Dr. Thompkins established! the Kansan City American ten! years ago. It now has a eircula1 .tion of over 2</J00 with a read! ing radius covering the region al states above enumern ed. It1 is, I believe, the only Negro pa per that was established as a Democratic organ, which still rema.ins true to its original principles . As a result of his work for the reeled ion of President; lioosevelt, he was appointed re cord,er of deeds in Washington,! D.C: He took hold of the office with vigor and intelligence and reorganized it in harmony with the required standards of effi cient administration. He hasj about 150 persons on his offi \ cial staff, divided about equal ly between the races. His is the only office now held by a Ne gro which carries with it pat ronage and administrative con trol. Recently he had prepared and installed the pictures of 12 or 13 colored recorders of deeds who ha.ve held office be fore him. This, I believe, is the1 only instance in the public ser! vice where the portraits of eol ored officials decorate a public office. Sometime ago 1 wrote a re lease on "The Black Cabinet" including fie prudential ap pomtees or departmental assign qes to positions above the Civil Service. These composed a list of a. dozen or more distinguish ed colored men of character and efficiency, but none of these, except Dr. Thompkins, (now that Mr. Robert L. Vann has voluntarily withdrawn) has back of him a local voting con !stituency. This Black Cabinet played little or no part in the election of Roosevelt, either in ‘32 or ‘36, nor are they likely to do much in the election in 11940. The brunt of this work falls upon the shoulders of the politician who is in finger touch with his constituency. A group of people in a democracy must have its own politicians who deal in the commodity of votes which they barter, not for per Calvin9s Digest By Floyd J. Calvin* EMERGENCY PEACE CAMPAIGN We have perused the handbook, “No-Foreign-War Ouoade,” of The Emergency Peace Campaign, Dr, Horry Emerson Fosdick, chairman; Ray Newton, executive director; 20 South 12th street, Philadelphia, Pa. First, we have noted with inter est that of the many individuals prominent in national life, who are listed as sponsors of this campaign, and whose pictures are published, among them are two colored per sons, Mrs. Addie W. Dickerson, president of the International Coun cil of Women for Darker Races, Philadelphia; and Dr- W. E. B. DuBois. professor of Sociology at Atlanta university. There are many southern people listed in this hand book, among them being Admiral Richard E. Byrd, Honorary Chair man, of Virginia, and Bishop Paul R. Kern, of the Methodist Epis copal Church, South- For colored men and women to be listed in this group is, indeed a step ahead. As to the “Crusade” itself, we are in full accord. We think Presi dent Roosevelt himself has shown that at least durng his term of office everything possible will bo done to keep this country out of war. Howe'er, there is a real need for building up “Peace Sentiment” throughout the land under the aus pices of such organization as this. Man, at heart, is a fighting ani mal: but man can be trained to peaceful pursuits, and to peaceful methods and means of settling his disputes. It is because of *his hope ful element in man’s character, in hi» make-up, that the “visionaries” of today have embarked upon what may look like the “impossible” task of changing a fighting man into a Galilean When we calmly look at the re cord of the last war, and contem n’ate just what actually came out nf all the bloodshed and destruction of property, wo are moved, by rea son, to exert our efforts in behalf f peaceo. War accomplished little, if anything at all. Put when we realize what is possibe, what may ippcn in the heat of passion; how quickly men may become raving rind raging boasts, we are face to t oo with the very real problem of c'ranging the nature of man by training him differently—by chang ing the old material airs to songs of reason and common sense. What does it profit us to charge the II in in Europe if wc are still to be faced with lynehings and burnings at) home? These are questions wo may "■ell ponder, while considering how we can help th£ Emergency Peace Campaign. Touring Europe Tim Sunday papers are now blaz ing with travel talk. Some of the headlines read: “1937 Due to Set Record for American Travelers;” Tourists Asked to Follow Spring sonal gain or graft, but for the advantage and advancement of their constituents. Those ap pointed to office without poli tical following are political recipients, but not partakers. They are the beneficiaries of, but not a power in the political equation. Herein,Dr. Thompkin“ bears the palm. Of the horde of Democratic politicians in the different sec tions of the country, Dr.Thomp kins is the only one who is en titled to the distinction “DBR“ (Democrat Before Roosevelt). All .the rest are new creatures, following upon the tide of nor them emigration during the past decade. Most of these are likely to abide in the Democrtt .tent for the simple reason that nowhere else can they find a more comfortable shelter or a more hearty welcome. The Grand Old Party was de moralized, if not demolished by the last two elections. It seems .that like the old Whig proto type, it is headed for the poli tical graveyard of defunct po litical parties. In the new po litical household. Dr: Thomp kins cannot be deprived of the privilege and prestige which priority always confers. in Germany;'.’ "Coronation IB Britain’s Ance-a-Generrition Spect acle;” Cathedrals Preserve English Medivallstn; ” etc. Negroes in America may con gratulate themselves that they are not left out of this, the cultural and broadening aspect of our na tional life. We have developed, al ong with many other things, our own Travel Bureau, which is con ducted by Mr. Adolph Hodge, of 1949—-74th street, Brooklyn, N- Y Mr- Hodge, who stands high in edu cational circles a» a man, being a eacher in the New York City school ayySam, Is this year coHdupting his ninth annual tour to Europe, which will last 47 days, and on which tourists will visit France, Switzerland and Italy, all by mo or, after sailing from New Yonk on the palatial French liner He de Fame on July 9th. On the Hodge itinerary are calls at Rouen, Paris, Verdun, Strasbourg, Lucerne, Lu gano, Milan, Venice, Florence, As sisi, Rome, Genoa, Pisa, Grenoble Dijon and back to Paris and home on August 24th. It is announced that the New York City Board of Education re cognizes the Hodge Tours, and will grant "Alertness Credit” for sal ary increases to teachers who may take them M. Hodge in to be congratulated on blazing a new trail for hie peo ple in Amjeridan life. Such high class publications as The Nation and the New York Times have pu blished fine comments on his work. When we find an adventurous soul among us whose call is high and unique, tfhe least we can do is to encourage him. Those who can should support him Economic Adjustment The twenty-sixth annual report of the National Utiban League is labeled “Economic Adjustment for tho Negro.” Under the “Depart ment of Industrial Relations” of the report, we read: “In connec tion with our work to improve the industrial lot of the Negro, we have completed the organization of 73 Workers’ Councils and Committees —groups of Negro workers in vari ous occupations who are studying for themstlves the labor thought in the nation and preparing them selves psycologically to join with other Workers as opportunity is presented to Negroes to enter those lines of occupations which have hitherto been denied to them be cause of organized labors’ disinclin ation to accept Negro member ship.” Under the “New Territory” cap tion, we read: “We have made an intensive effort to organize new territory in the south, inasmuch as we felt that for the first time in a number of years there were com munities there where sntiment was favoable to interracial approaches to the social problems of the Ne gro and where financial aid might be forthcoming. Accordingly, ef forts have been directed at Birm ingham, Memphis, Little Rock and New Orleans. In each of these ci ties committees have been organized through which peranent local Lea gues seem probable ” WTien the Urban League moved into the field of organized labor, it showed it was unafraid; that it was not bound to a set routine, but was on the alert to follow the needs of a growing and expound ing people. More power to the Ur ban League. Sentenced to 20 years on the chain gang— for asking for justice! ANGELO HERNDON tells his own story, the incred ible TRUE record of conditions facing white and black work ers alike -in his autobiography Let Me Live! Just published. $2.50 at ell book stems—or from tho publishers— KANDOM MOUSE, 20 f. 57, N.T.C. ~ ■ > g m a ■_!__ An Echo 1 From My Den By 8. & Gilbert A* I sit here In my DEN, medi tating as it were, I would like tor my people to know that the Omaha Guide is m/ucjh concerned about the why that no Negro has received appointment to the Federal Wri ters project being carried on in our city. Wo have followed very cloely tfhe impartial attitud^ of P ederal authouities in surrounding chiee, relative to the appoint ment of qualified Negroes to this particular project. For example jv.st across the bridge in Council Bluffs a young race lady was appointed by the director of the th« fifth district of Iowa to ga ther and compile data relative to Negro life in the city of Council Bluffs. In Sioux City, a town that boasts of only 1,800 Negroes, we find that the director of the Works Progress Admin istratioh, Iowa district number 3, ytW fit to ap point a young Negro man to the position of assistant research edi tor of the writers and Historical projects, having as his duty the editing of material from 19 sur rounding counties. The question thus arises, if these towns which boast of lens than one tenth the Negro population that may be found in Omaha., find it expedient to place qualified Negroes in thew white collar jobs, why then, should not Omaha with its 16,000 Negro population, harve similar jobs open ed to qualified Negroes. Ujpon interviewing one of ths local Negro (Social organization heads, we were informed by him that he had endeovored to have placed on the Writers project a Negro but up to date ad been refused- He further stated that he had been asked by a young white lady employed on the Feder a' Writers project to give her data or the Negro in Omaha but had refused to comply to her wishes on the grounds that he felt that such a job should be given to some qualified Negro whom he knew by virtue of racial identity would be able to give a better view of the race life in Omaha- The Omaha Guide commends the stand taken by this champion of justice and equal economic rights, who is none other than Mr. B. E. Squires of the Urban League Community Center, and a« mouth piece of the Omaha Negro, urge, that we all stand be hind his contention, until the will of that humanitarian Franklin D Roosevelt) who believes in and ad vocates the giving of jobs to qual ifier! individuals regardless of color creed, or race, has been duly car ried out in Omaha. Most of the several! million Ne gro motor ear owners are today buying Goodriah fjilvertovm tires and accessories. Just two year ago this was not true. Other advertis ed brands gave the B. F. Good rich Co. a run for the Negro mar ket. Almost overnight the Negro car owner became “Goodrich"Silvertown conscious. ” In mjany cities this was accomplished by the use of liberal advertising space in the lead ing Negro newspapers. In other cities in addition to ll.c ads he firm employed colored smen. Most of these Negro s<-' men worked up as did Louis Mi < . ugh and Ho mer Bell, the sale > ien, from the position of car wa : or. Over 1,000 color ■! men are em ployed in tho varl ,us service and accessory stores of thiscorporation scattered throughout the coun try'. At the Akron plant of the B. F. Goodrich Co., fie parent organ ization, many black faces will be seen helping turn out tires which Goodrich claims are the best on the market. Tho Negro buyer, knowing as he does the peculiar labor problems of his people, is approaching each purchase he makes these days with a more critical attiude. Firms like Goodrich-Silvertown people are getting his business because he feels he is getting, not only mer chandise, but more important to him, a chance to earn a living and a chance to advance. Watch the tires as they go by and you will see Goodrich Silver town are leading the parade in 4* Negro market.
