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About The Omaha guide. (Omaha, Neb.) 1927-19?? | View Entire Issue (March 20, 1943)
Give A Patriot’s Share to The Red Cross LARGEST ACCREDITED NEGRO NEWSPAPER WEST OF CHICAGO AND NORTH OF KANSAS CITT —MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED NEGRO PRESS Entered as Second-Class Matter at The Post Office, Omaha, Nebraska Saturday, March 20, 1943 OUR 16th YEAR-No. 6 City Edition, 5c Copy Under Act of March 8, 1874—Business Phone: WE. 151Y_ _Ir. __ Questions Austin-W adsworth Bill To Conscript Labor SAYS RESERVOIR OF VOLUNTARY NEGRO LABOR UNTAPPED Washington. D. C.—Concern for the implications and possible harm ful use of the Austin-Wadsworth bill to provide for the Successful prosecution of the war through a system of civil selective war serv ice". was expressed this week by the NAACP. The NAACP stated that it is making an exhaustive study of the bill in order to point out its po tential dangers. First among probable objections to such legis lation is the existence of unused Negro labor that could b% mobiliz ed through volunteer methods but is not utilized because of tradit ional prejudices. The NAACP stated also that there is consider able doubt as to the establishment of sufficient safeguards to protect citizens under such legislation a gainst arbitrary action by local boards. It is likely too the NA ACP said that compulsory service legislation before the exhaustion of voluntary method violates the 13th amendment t® the Constitu tion which prqfriibits involuntary servitude. In its present state the Austin-Wadsworth bill contains no safeguards which rerjuir^' “the em ployer to insure the employee of the establishment of safety meas ures in plants or of the extension of other established rights to workers. The Washington NAA CP Bureau has held conferences with a number of Senators regard ing introduction of amendments that will prohibit racial and other discriminations. In favor of the present Austin Wadsworth bill known as S666 are the War Department, the Americ an Legion, National Association of Manufacturers. American Farm Bureau and United States Chamb er of Commerce. Opposing S66S are the American Federation of Labor, Congress of Industrial Or ganization and the National Assoc iation for the Advancement of Col ored People, and the National Far mers Union. Private B. Stewart, Jr., of Jack sonville, Fla., once, one of the two assistants of the late Dr. George Washington Carver, eminent scientist, is now a private in the Chemical Warfare Service. HENRY ALLEN BOYD IN OAKLAND Oakland, Calif., March 18 (AN1*) Dr. Henry Allen Boyd, secretary treasurer of the National Baptist convention, unincorporated, was the principal speaker at a mass meeting held at the Mt. Zion Bap tist Church here Sunday. On Mon day he spoke at Parks chapel un der the auspices of the local Min isterial alliance. White Lt. Ignores Southern Justice New Anti Poll Tax Bill Gains Sup* ort Washington. D. C.—The NAACP ' expressed approval this week of the coalition anti-poll tax bill ' sponsored by Congressmen Mar | eantonio of New York, Baldwin of 1 Ne wYork, Dawson of Illinois, 1 Gavagan of New York, Magnuson I of Washington with Bender of o hio floor managing the bill. Long in the forefront of the fight against a poll-tax disfranch isement 10,000,000 potential voters 4,000,000 of them Negroes, the N AACP Sees the coalition as a heart ening indication of a strengthen ing of progressive forces in Con gress. The NAACP stated that it will continue to urge Negroes in voting states to contact their con gressmen with a view to mobiliz ing all possible pressure behind the measure. 5 Ft. McClellan, Ala., March 18th (ANP)—An incident of unusual pro portions took place last week at Fort McClelland when a white cab driver picked up two Negro sold iers to take to Anniston. The cab had progressed only a few hund red feet when a white lieutenant signaled the driver to stop. The driver looked worried. “You can’t ride this cab,” he sputtered.” “Can’t haul white and colored nae sengers in the same cab.” The white lieutenant crawled in to the cab and sat between the two Negro soldiers. The driver turn ed red but sped through the MP. gates amid wide staring eyes. The Negro soldiers, one a sergeant, asked the lieutenant where he had been stationed before coming t° Alabama? The lieutenant smiled. “Hell, I’m from New York where a colored man and a white man ride in cabs side by side. I’m in the SAME army as you boys, and if this cab is good enough for YOU. its good enough for ME. When the cab came to a halt th£ driver smiled and said: “Well mis ter, I ain’t for this southern jus tice either......you see, I was born in Chicago.” White Children Elect Negro Boy as Mayor IGNORE PRIEST’S OPPOSITIONS Chicago, March 18 (ANP)—When the boys and girls in the Carmi homes went to the polls Wednes day they elected 14 year old Charl es Brown as their "mayor.” More than 200 children, both whites and Negroes, gave preference to Brown even though several whites were seeking the office, and even though Father Luigi Giambastiani, whits priest, advocates a policy of seg regation among the Negro and white tenants in the project homes. The Frances Cabrini homes have 586 dwelling units. Of this num ber.’ 117 are to be occupied by Ne gro families. Eighty-five are now housed in the project. Father Luigi feels that the inte gration of Negroes into the homes will present an undesirable influ ence. In commenting on his mode of reasoning he said. “Separation of the two groups, while not the ideal theoretical sol ution. is the only practical road to community brotherhood. Negroes Father Divine Keeps One Wing Ahead of Sheriff On "Angel’s” Charge New York (CNS)—Father Divine, because, should Father's watch 1934. who went to live in Philadelphia last October, has been quietly vis iting his “angels” in the 'heav ens" above 110th Street, on occas ional Sundays, it was reported this week. Weekday visits are out, because an undersheriff is on the watch for Father Divine. Sundays, the day when a warrant is not legal, the udersheriff eyes the clock closely not be accurate, a minute out of the way would g;ve the undersher iff his opportunity to nab him. But Divine is too smart for that. Divine hasn’t paid even one in stallment! of the $3,937 he was or dered to return at the rate of $100 a week beginning last August, to a former ’ angel”, Verinda Brown, who allegedly gave him most of her possessions between 1930 and Verinda's attorney, William Lo well, threatens to sue in Pennsyl vania and New Jersey to make the judgemet effective in those states. Meantime, Father Divine has been appearing- Sundays at Rock land Palace, a Harlem mission, says Attorney Lowell. have the Ida B. \\ ells project, vv hy do they want t° come into this pro ject where they are not wanted? “The colored families do not wish to live with the white famil ies. They know that the true course to armony and good will is through an amicable separate dis tribution. Tl*e Negroes, themsel ves, don’t want to live this way. I They are simply being misled by communistic influences who seek to tell them what they want.” Concerning the election, the priest said: “I am not surprised that they e lected a little colored boy their I Jnayor^ They’re Just children. YALE GRANTS HARRY ROBERTS HIGH DEGREE New Haven. Conn.. March- 18 (A NP)—The name of Harry W. Rob erts, head of the social science de partment at Virginia State College, appears in the graduate school re ports of Yale university here as the recipient of a doctor of phil osophy degree. Dr. Roberts, who did his undergraduate work at Wil berforce and Yale Divinity school wrote his dissertation on "The Life and Labor of Rural Negroes in Virginia.” YVILBERFORCE’S ACCELERAT ED PROGRAM BRINGS COMMENCEMENT TO APRIL 27 As part of the general program of accelerated education to which Wiiberforce University has fully committed itself and to meet the request of the government to take as soon as possible, 400 inductees under the Army Specialized Train ing Program, Dr. Charles H. Wes ley, president of Wiiberforce Uni versity, announces that the annual baccalaureate sermon will be de livered on Sunday, April 25, and that the commencement exercises will be held on Tuesday, April 27. To facilitate the program of ac celeration. Wiiberforce University has changed from the semester system to the quarter system ani will hold a regular one quarter summer school beginning the first week in June of this year. This will complete a year-round period of instruction. There has been no summer school at Wiiberforce since 1932. SIXTY-ONE ERC. CALLED FROM LINCOLN I NI. Jefferson City, MO., March 17,— Sixty-one memDers of the Army Enlisted Reserve Corp at Lincoln University have been called to ac tive service with the army on ord ers of the commanding officer of the Seventh Command, Major Gen eral uhl. The first group of reservists re ceived notification March 6th and will report March 20th to the Jef ferson Barracks, Missouri; the sec ond group will report to the same center March 22nd. Lincoln’s male enrollment was one hundred sixty for the semes ter beginning February 4. 1943. Eighty men were enlisted in the reserve group; of the group sixty three have been called to active duty. Among the seventeen ERC. mn remaining are those enrolled in the departments of Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Agricul ture; Pre-medical studets and mem bers of the Air Corp Reserve. They don’t begin to think until they grow up. They don’t learn to discriminate until they’ve be gun to take the trend of the envir onment.” Housing authorities ignored the several petitions submitted by fol lowers of Father Luigi, threaten ing a wholesale withdrawal of the white families from the project unless Negroes are immediately segregated or evicted. Grander Blasts HappyAm I’OWI Policy • •• White Cabinet for Race • •• WASHINGTON, March 18 (ANP Severe Criticism of the Office of War Information for its handling of news and inormation regarding the Negro and the pursuance of a “happy am I” policy, was gener ously ladled out here by Lester B. Granger, executive secretary of the National Urban League. Wed onesday afternoon at the down town YWCA. One hundred and fifty “integrated” luncheon guests of the Washington branch of the league responded enthusiastically to the remarks. significant. too, was Mr. Gran ger’s observation that there is em erging in the Capital a “white cab inet” to which questions of policy toward Negroes are increasingly being referred for solution; his plea for the rejuvenation of the “black cabinet” which, he said, has disintegrated considerably since its creation in the early days of the New Deal; and his admon ition against making of the race’s struggle an exclusive fight. “The recent OWI publication called “The Negro and the War’ is a monumental mistake and a dis service to the government and the Negro.” he declared. “I say this not because its contents are not true, but because it is like kicking a man who is down, and congrat ulating him because he is not yet dead. I am criticizing OWI be cause of its ineptness. We want to see the job done that can be (continued on pagej^p>2) ROLE OF COLLEGE WOMEN TO BE DISCUSSED Hampton institute, Va„—“Col lege Women and Victory” will be the theme of the annual Women’s Day at Hampton Institute next Saturday, March 20, when the Wo men's Senate of the college will sponsor an all day program devot ed to women and the war effort. HIS Words are with them By Bcrean of Public Relations. D. S. War Dept., Wash., D. O. Chaplain J. R. C. Pinn, of Washington, D. C., conducts an in formal Bible class on shipboard enroute to Liberia. Chaplain Pinn if now back in the United States. Hastie To Get Spingarn Award New York, N. Y.—Judge William! H, Hastie will receive the medal for 1942, the NAACP Spingarn A ward Committee announcel this week. The Spingarn Award of which Hastie will be the tweniy eighth winner was instituted in 1914 by the late J. E. Spingarn, chairman of the NAACP Board. It is a gold medal awarded annually to the American Negro who h; s made the highest and noblest ac hievement during the preceding year Or years. Announcing the award the Com mittee said: "William Henry Hastie is select ed as Twenty-eighth Spingarn Med alist for his distinguished career as jurist and as uncompromising champion of equal justice. Though young in years his record of ac hievement is notable measured by any standard, however absolute or high. “His scholastic career as honor graduate from Amherst College) and as Doctor of Juridical Science from the Harvard Law School has been continued in quality of serv ice in several capacities. His was a distingushed career as Assistant Solicitor of the Department of the Interior. He made a brilliant rec ord as the first Negro to serve as Judge of a United States District Court, serving in the Virginia Vs lands. He established a high stan dard of scholarship and of service to mankind for the students dur ing his period as Dean of the Law School of Howard University. As Civilian Aide to the Secretary of War he refused to temporize with racial bigotry, segregation Or dis crimination. Men of lesser char acter and of greater selfishness would have closed their eyes to prejudice in order to maintain themselves in a remunerative pos ition. But Judge Hastie refused to do this, resigning in protest a Back To DC. After Completing his third visit in 31 years to Fort Huachuca. Ari zona. important military post. Brigadier General Benjamin O. Davis, only Negro General in the United States Army, has returned to his headquarters in the Inspect or General’s Department, Wash ington. D. C. — ■ . which more aptly would have char gainst perpetuation of practices which more aptly would have char acterized the racial ideology of a dictatorship than of a democracy. His every act. and particularly his Protest against racial bigotry in an army fighting for the preserva tion of the democrtic processes, has established a standard of char acter and conduct which the Spia garn Medal Award Committee is honored to recognize by the select ion of Judge Hastie as Twentv eighth Spingarn Medalist. First Negro Medical Personnel Reaches Africa Shores Safely SPELMAN GRADUATE NINE DOCTORS, 30 NURSES ARRIVE SAFELY Atlanta, Georgia, March 18 - Word has been received in this country that Lt. Maria August, R. N., a graduate of the Spelman High school and Nurse Training Department, has arrived “some where in North Africa” with a de tachment of thirty nurses and nine doctors. This group compris ed the first colored hospital per sonnel staff to reach African shor es since the American occupation. Lt. August is a native of Atlan ta, Georgia, and resides at 338 An gier Avenue. Following her period of training at Spelman, she spent part of a year as dietitian at Mac Vicar Hospital (the Spelman In firmary), and for six years she was instructor in home hygiene and care of the sick at Booker T. Wash ington High School, Atlanta. In 1941, Lt. August entered the De fense Program at Fort Bragg, N. Carolina, serving in Hospital No. 2 with a group of 24 Negro nurs es. It was from Fort Bragg '.hat she wrote President Read of Spei man College that the army was a great place to gain experience, and “you may count on me to do my best because to my mind the highest calling for service is when one is called to serve his country”. In the years that have passed since she left Spelman, Lt. August has had additional training at the Pennsylvania State College, at Un iversity Hospital, Augusta. Geor gia; in the extension departments of Morehoues and Morris Brown Colleges, and in the Atlanta Uni versity Summer School. For five years she was vice president of the Spelman Alumnae Association and at one time she was treasurer of the Atlanta-Spelman Club. Discrimination In Tulsa Defenss Plants Forces I oung Men To Seek Employment Outside of the Slate Two New Halls for Negro DC. Government Workers Wake and Midway Halls-two residence halls for Negro Govern ment workers. .. .will be available for occupancya bout April 21, Wil liam J. Bissell. manager of resid ence halls for the Public Buildings Administration of the Federal Workg Agency, announced this week. The buildings are to be completed by April 1. and approx imately three weeks will be requir ed to install furnishings. Exten sive landscaping will get under way shortly. These halls, located in northeast Washington, are part of a large residence project which includes an infirmary, a cafteria, and a re creation building. They will ac comodate about 1.000 women in S33 rooms. 767 of which will be single and the rest double. These rooms are being furnished in 15 different color combinations and have comfortable and attractive furnishing^. including dresser, bureau, easy chairs, floor lamps, and draperies. The following rentals have been set: single rooms. $2450 per month; double rooms. $16.50 to $24.50 for each occupant. These fees cover the use of all facilities, including health service and infirmary for emergency and minor ailments, ordinarily handled by home rem edies. The infirmary will be operated by the United States Public Health Service. Trained personnel will have charge of the recreational program which will be centered in the fully-equipped recreation hall. The Office of the Manager of Res idence Halls is engaging qualified personnel to operate the halls. Tt : is expected that the complete staff I will be announced shortly. I TULSA, Okla., March 17 (ANP)— According to figures released by the board of education here, tbe annual school census points out that the Negro school population in Tulsa has decreased since the establishment of defense industr- j ies in this area while the white school population has greatly in creased. School officials say that the enrollment in the senior class in high school is the smallest in the last 12 years. Numbers of young men between the ages of 18-21 have left the state to Seek employment else where. Many of these men have taken courses in defense training. Negro leaders are alarmed over this exodus, inasmuch as these young men would be able to ob tain employment in this locality where there is a crying need for manpower if it were not for the fact that defense plants are oppos ed to hiring skilled Negro workers. They feel that the condition war rants the attention of the FEP'J. These leaders have repeatedly approached the Douglass Aircraft company officials because of their attitude against Negro skilled la bor. In those defense plants which utilize Negro services, the workers express the fact that discrimin ation is practiced throughout the Plant. HAMPON PLAYERS GIVE “WITHERING HEIGHTS” Hampton Institute. Va„— Mem bers of the Communications The atre of Hampton Institute Present ed Randolph Carter's stage vers ion of Emily Bronte's “Wuthering i Heights” in Ogden Hall at the col lege last Friday and Saturday ev enings, under the direction of Mrs. P. Wall of the Communications -enter Staff. BONORABLE DISCHARGED LINCOLN U. PROFESSOR ro TUSKEGEE Stewart B. Fulbright. former Lineonl University instructor of French who recently received an honorable discharge from the Ar my Air Force with a special call provision, was reassigned to the lir force and has been instructed to report at Tuskegee Army flying 3chool on April 1. This new move by the Governm ent came after a statement from the Seventh Corps area command er who sought to “explain” the re sent incident at Jefferson Bar racks. Missouri, in which Pvt. Ful bright was released from the arm ed services allegedly because he bad been mistaken for a white man due to faulty records. HELP FINISH THE JOB 4 Courtesy Stockton, Calif. Record