LARGEST ACCREDITED NEGRO NEWSPAPER WEST OF CHICAGO AND NORTH OF KANSAS CITY —MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED NEGRO PRESS
Entered as Second-Class Matter at The Post Office, Omaha, Nebraska Saturday, April 17, 1943 OUR 16th YE AR—No. 10 City Edition, 5c Copy
Under Act of March 8, 1874—Business Phone: WE. 1517 _ _ ~
WAAC’S NEED NEGRO WOMANPOWER!
• I - I
‘‘They Give Their Lives—You Lend Your Money" i
47. S. Treasury Department Courtesy King Festurm
Sentence Sermon...
by Rev. Frank Clarence
Lowry for Associated Negro Press
L There will be masy graves with crosses this
Easter, because men have failed to recognize the
cross of the Redeemer.
April 10 of last week to April 19 ,
‘has been set aside as WAAC Week
Lieut Virginia M. Cheeks, WA
AC Recruiting Officer, of Kansas
City. Mo., has headquarters in the
Urban League building.
Office hours daily from 9 am. to
5 pm. i
Take advantage of this oppor
tunity to serve your country by
Joining the WAACs NOW!
m w mmimmm m m mm 9Pf^wi m m m w mm^m m m w w
Austin-Wadsworth Bill
Sample, Cited by NAACP
WANTS MILLION NEGRO «
WOMEN ON THE FARMS
Washington, DC.,—A letter has
been received by a government a
gency in Washington from a white
man in Mississippi urging that a
million Negro women be forced to
work on farms.
The writer says, "Some of the
best farm labor we have in the
South is Negro women. ‘I be
lieve that if there could be found
some formula for getting these
idle Negro women out of the cit
ies and towns and putting them to
work on the farms they would be
healthier, happier and would grow
Some mighty good food crops.
They are equal to almost anything I
but plowing, ditching and felling
trees.”
The writer complains that at
Present these women ‘‘will not”
work and states that he does not
think they are lazy but are examp
les of the Negro’s "natural disin
clination to do anything.”
It was pointed out here that
this suggestion is a sample of what
would happen to Negroes if the
Austin-Wadsworth forced labor
bill were passed by Congress.
^Chinese Vengeance”
(BY RUTH TAYLOR)
We have all read of the great
speech made by Mme Chiang Kai
Shek in Madison Square Garden
in New York. Thousands of Peo
ple gathered there to pay homage
to her and through her to the Chin
ese people, whose brave and
steady fight against what seemed
like hopeless odds, has stirred our
imaginations and quickened our
spirit in our own dark hours.
When Mme. Chiang Kai-Shek
r°se to speak, her words fell like
an echo down the centuries. She
preached not hatred but love. She
talked not of cruelty but of jus
tice. She condemned the sin and
not the sinner. She taught good
and not evil.
“'All nations, great and small.
must have equal opportunity
of development. Those who
are stronger and more advanc
ed should consider their stren
gth as a trust to be used to
help the weaker nations to fit
themselves for full self gov
ernment and not to exploit
them. Exploitation is spirit
ually degrading to the exploit
er as to the exploited.”
The crowd was startled. 'Was
this the way of the Oriental? Was
this Chines^ vengeance? It had a
reminiscent ring..“LOve your en
emies, bless them that curse you,
do good to them that hate you and
pray for them which despitefully
use you or persecute you.”
“Then, too, there must be no
bitterness in the reconstructed
world. No matter what we
have undergone and suffered,
we must try to forgive those
who injured us and remember
only the lesson gained there
by.”
If we hate our enemies we are
no better than they are. We must
fight the evil always—but we must
not hate the evil-doer nor—because
of him—all men of his class, creed
or color.
If his be Chinese vengeance, its
lesson is the greatest gift come out
of China. Printing and gunpowder
were explosives—but this is revol
utionary—as revolutionary as
Christianity itself, as revolutionary
as the Law of Love triumphing
over the law of hate—that Victory
which is the whole message of the
Lenten Season we now celebrate.
Six Dixie Governors Meet
To Consider Negro And
Blast Democrat New Deal
Washington. April 14 IANP) -
Quietly, governors of six southern
states assembled last week to dis
cuss the future of the Negro, De
mocratic party, and the olid south.
In attendance were the governo;S
of Florida, Mississippi, Alabama.
Georgia, Xorh Carolina and Lout
s'ana. They met in Tallahassee
and in a united front solidly oppos
ed the New Deal and all that it
stands for in progress and human
relations.
Undecided whether they wanted
to form a new southern Democrat
ic party- align with the Republic
ans or string along wph the New
Deal, the group decided to do noth
ing about endorsing the pol’' os
of the present administratfon un
4 ail it had another meeting.
Chief sore spot irritating the gov
evnors was the attiude of the New
Dtal toward the N'srro problem
which was particularly vexing ft
th? state leaders. They vocifer
ously asserted that Mrs. Roosevel
nas the chief offender in the mat
ter of race relations and they want
ed some definite understanding as
to the future problem. Southern
• Cor.t nued on pagtj^=4)
Suit 7 o Enter
Kentucky bni.
Set For May 5th
Lexington. Ky.,—Charles Hous
ton member of the NAACP legal
staff representing Charles Lam
ont Eubanks .Louisville student
who is Seeking admission to the
Univer- ly of Ken ucky gave not
in*- n L'l-pjct Co .-i here cn Ar.nl
Si i that he will .1.1 ;A'. ih"“ c
plant i~> include damages sus
1s...ed by Eubalks d'.r hi*
year’s absence from school. The
trial has been reset for trial *n
May 5th and 6th.
Eubanks charged he had been
denied admission to the Univers
ity of Kentucky in violation of his
constitutional rghts and is seek
ing a court order to compel the
university to admit him. He also
is asking $5,000 damages from the
registrar.
The University contended that
State law prohibited his admis
sion and that facilities were avail
able for him at the Kentucky
State College for Negroes at Frank
fort. Eubanks filed hi ssuit Octo
ber 16. 1941.
It was found on inspection that
the Engineering School at Ken
tucky State is not substantially e
qual to the school at the Univers
j :ty of Kentucky. Kentucky State
[College has only one teacher, not
an engineer, but a bachelor ft
science in Industrial education.
The school is practically without
equipment. The curriculum is nut
an egineering course but an indus
trial course which includes sucb
subjects as welding.
Poll-tax Issue Quickly
Breaks Up Mme Kai Shek’s
Calif. Press Conference
Ask Negro
FEPC Head
New York, April 12 (ANP) Sug
gestion that a qualified Negro be
given consideration for the chair
manship of the FEPC was mad 2 in
a letter dated April 8, to Manpow
er Czar Paul V. McNutt from St.
Clair Bourne, well known New
York Negro newspaperman.
Bourne sent the letter to McNutt
following revelation that Oscar
Chapman assistant secretary of the
interior, had refused an offer or'
ihe FEPC chairmanship.
The letter suggested that appar
ent confinement of the search for
a chairman thus far to members oi
lie white race could be viewed as
drjacriminatory in itself, further
expressed the opinion that a ouali ,
fied Negro could function in the
position as well as anyone else.
KAPPAS START WEEK ON
“WINGS” BROADCAST
Detroit, April 12 (AXP) ‘‘Wings
Over Jordan” win broadcast from
this city Sunday morning, April
18, at which time the program will
be dedicated to Guide Right week
of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity
which opens its 2lst annual observ
ance that day and continues until
April 24.
The special guide right speaker
will be Atty. Augustus G. Parker,
civic and political leader and at
torney of Cleveland, it has been
announced by the Rev. Glenn T.
Settle, director of the program and
the Columbia Broadcasting* system.
Besides the usual “Wings Over
Jordan” radio audience nearly 100
groups of members of the Kappa
fraternity and high school stud
ents will listen to the broadcast in
the third annual series of guide
right breakfasts from coast to
coast.
This year Guide Right week is
stressing the guidance of young
Negro workers and potential work
ers into the most beneficial and
fullest use of their talents in the
war effort, both on the production
line and in those areas of public
and industrial relations which will
accomplish most in building the
gans being made because of new
openings for Negroes in industry,
it has been announced.
| 16 NEGRO CHAPLAINS AMONG
j HARVARD CHAPLAIN'S
! SCHOOL GRADUATES
Cambridge, Mass.. April 12 (ANP
Sixteen Negro chaplains, commis
sioned 1st lieutenants and capt
ains, were among the approximat
ely 400 student chaplain graduates
of Harvard university on April 3.
It is estimated that more than
235 Negro chaplains will be needed
by 1944. Thus it is seen that the
army policy for commissioning
chaplains is far different from that
of the navy where there are no
chaplains.
| To qualify for admission in the
j chaplain’s corps, the only com
pletely volunteer group connected
with the armed forces, one musi
have a college degree, advanced
ministerial training at a college
and have served as a pastor. How
. e'ver. the army has waived certair
qualifications for Negro chaplains
i as the demand is so great.
(BY HARRY LEVETTE)
LOS ANGELES, April 12 (ANPH
“How important do you consider
the part the darker races are play
ing in the winning of the war?,”
was question No. one prepared by
me as representative of the Asso
ciated Negro Press to be asked
Madam Chiang Kai Shek at her
press conference at the Ambassa
dor hotel Friday. But the lovely
little Chinese First Lady revealed
by her answer that she had been
well coached by her American
counselors as to the avoidance of
controversial subjects.
Her answer was. ‘‘I think I have
made myself clear in many inter
views throughout the country as
to the part the darker races are
Playing in this world."
Immediately after another ques
tion caused the white director of
the conference to call upon China's
voice minister of information, H.
■Tong, to bring the dlsrusSloii to a
close. Mrs. Charlotta A. Bass
editor publisher of the California
Eagle, had risen to ask "Do you
not think the pjjll tax should be a
bolished in this country, and that
its abolishment would aid the war
program?”—‘‘Just whom does the
poll tax effect.” the Madame in
turn asked. Said Mrs. Bass, "It
affects some 10,000,000 citizens of
the United States, and (just a min
ute,”) she reprimanded a white in
terupteD. “of 13,000,000 Negroes,
it affects 4,000,000 tf them.”
Madame Chiang. visibly affect
' ed by the outspoken objections
from whites, quickly declared. "I
think the question of poll tax De
pends on how much the Negro peo
ple are contributing to the war ef
fort.” Then as Mrs. Bass Starting
to further clarify this matter, she
was again interrupted by Madame
Chiang who asked “How do these
' people intend to use their voting
; power once they receive ft? I
J frankly admit I have not made a
comprehensive study of the noil
tax situation.”
Apparently fearing that the ques
tioner. some one of the other few
Negroes present. Or some liberal
minded white anti-poll tax support
er might satisfy her curiosity that
now seemed aroused, the ■ announc
* er exclaimed. “This press confer
ence is at an end. We will per
mit only one more question, that
of the gentleman whose hand is
| already raised.” This was from a
j white man who merely asked if
i the Madame planned any further
travels.
Other Negroes presnt. among the
hundreds crowded into the Mod
j em room of the palatial Ambassa
1 dor hotel, were Miss Almena Davis
I editor of the Los Angeles Tribune,
I Mrs. Dora Moore of the Los Angel
' es Sentinel; C. T. Tucker, presj
j dent of the American Anti-Preju
dice Society, who served as my A.
NP assistant, and Mrs. Bass’s sec
retary, who to°k down the proceed
ings in shorthand for her.
[NAACP COUNSEL TO
DEFEND BURROWS
1 Gulfport- Miss—The NAACP re
vealed this week that it has re
1 tained a white Mississippi lawyer
■ as counsel for George Burrows.
I cook, who was returned here after
; fleeing Mississippi following his
l escape by shooting his way out cl
. a group intent upon his lynching.
Burrows awaits trial in Hines
i County jail, Jackson, Mississippi
5 where he was sent for safety. H«
wa sent back to Mississippi aftei
the NAACP had appealed to Gov
T^ft^^sArmy
Negro
To ^eir A^g?«8
I
ELIMINATE BLOCK C
SYSTEM
WASHINGTON, April 14 (ANPK
Almost simultaneously with the
announcement of Secretary of War
Henry L. Stimson that his depart
ment will promote Negro officers
according to their ability, it was
learned in another quarter that
the block system of promotions has
been eliminated and that colored
commissioned personnel will be
raised in rank as the individual
qualify.
The secretary’s reply came in
answer to a question at his Thurs
day’ morinng press conference as
to whether the policy stated by
Under secretary William Patter
son last week in a letter to the
Washington Federation of Church
es, would be followed throughout
the army wherever command of
Negro troops is involved. Patter
son had said that Negro officers
would be advanced according to
their ability as they qualify.
“Yes, that is our intention,” was
the Stimson answer.
The block system is the method
whereby Negroes could not be com
missioned as lieutenants until an
equal number could be elevated to
the rank of captaincy, and this lat
ter would not be done until there
was an organized unit of sufficient
Negro personnel to require the
particular number of captains.
It was this limitation on advance
ment that was lifted out of a
speech of Major Gen. Frederick
Miller, commanding general for
the 93d Division stationed at Fort
Huachuca, a few months ago and
highlighted in the Negro press. It ■
was not generally known, however
that even at that time, Gen. Miller
had submitted to his superior offi
cers the recommendations for the
promotion of several qualified of
ficers at nis base.' c
The probability is that these and
possibly other names will be ict
ed upon for promotion at an early
date, although no specific promise
was available.
Sec. Stimson also declared that
"the policy of the war department,
is to utilize trained Negro troops !
wherever they can be used to fur- j
ther the war effort.” He disclosed |
that there are now more than 75,- .
000 Negroes in the various over- 1
seas theatres of operations. This
number includes not only service
troops, he said, but combat troops
as well, such as coast artillery and
infantry.
(Negro tank units are reported
to be engaged in action now going
on at the Tunisian front where
they are credited with having tak
| en an important sector from the
! axis.)
! ‘‘Negro troops of all the princip
al arms are now under training,”
Stimson said. “Typical of these
are the following: two infantry div
-isions. one cavalry division and a
number of infantry regiments and
field artillery battalions.
"The 93d divisions is now under
going maneuvers as a division.
This is an advanced stage of train
ing for this unit. I think that
! these evidences give clearer indic
1 ation of our policy to utilize the
| Negro soldier in combat as well as
[in active theatres of war.”
ernor Dewey to act against his ex
tradition because it was feared
that his life would be in jeopardy
if he returned to Mississippi. De
wey received a pledge from Gov
ernor Johnson of Mississippi th-it
Burrows would be given safe con
duct to the jail and that he would
be accorded a fair trial.
Dental Chr.
DR. L. A. HOWELL
Of Tampa, Fla., chairman of the
executive board of the National
Dental association, who i;, caning
a special meeting of the board in
Cleveland April 17-18 to tompkte
Iplans for the 30th annual conven
tion scheduled for the Ohio City,
August 9-13. (ANP)
HASTIE ACKNOWLEDGES
1942 SPINGARN AWARD
New York, N. Y.—Judge William
H. Hastie formally acknowledged
this week his designation as Spin
garn Medalist for 1942.
In a letter to the NAACP Hastie
who in protest against War De
partment policies on the Negro,
resignel from the post of Civilian
Aide to the Secretary of War. said
“I deeply appreciate this honor
and the responsibility which goes
with it. I hope that the award
will serve to symbolize the union
of a great number of Ajhericansft
white as well as oolored, in their
uncompromising opposition to rac
ial bigotry, segregation and dis
crimination.”
For the past twenty-seven years
the Spingarn Award, a gold medal
has been given annually the Am
erican Negro who has made “the
highest and noblest achievement
during the preceding year or
years.”
I
MISS. SOLDIER IS AWARDED
GOLD WATCH
Portland. Ore., April 12 (ANP)—
A* the regular monthly dinner of
the Portland Footprinterrs club,
held at the Portland Army air base
last week. Staff Sgt. Edward U. j
Audley of Shelby, Miss., received
a gold watch in recognition of his
record as an outstanding soldier, j
Audley’s commanding officer,
CaPt. Eugene G. Smith, compli
mented him as a “good soldier and
absolutely dependable.” Capt.
Smith also mentioned the fact that
Audley, of his own initiative, at
tended night school to prepare
himself to assume responsibility of
his present duty.
19 ID i ruzvCT-DOi xu.
WASHINGTON, April 14 (ANP).
The senate committee on military
affairs will bold preliminary hear
ings into the charges of racial dis
crimination in the armed forces
preparatory to th eappointment of
a five man Subcommittee to un
dertake a lull dress investigation
into the matter.
This is the procedure which will
be followed as a result of a resolu
tion introducing in the Senate last
Thursday by Sen. Sheridan V. Dow
ney (D) of California calling upon
that committee to conduct a full
and complete study and investiga
tion with respect to he status of
the Negro and other minority
groups in the armed services as
well as the WAACs, WAVES,
SPARS, and marines, women's aux
iliaries.
Introducing his resolutoin Sen.
Downey declared on the floor that
complaints of violations of th®
nn-disc rim (nation provisions of the
Selective Training and Service act
of 1940 had been made by respon
sible persons, notably William H.
Hastie. the civilian aide to Secy,
cf War Henry L. Stimson who re
signed in protest, which complaints
have created “anxious concern a
-mong large segments of our peo
ple.”
The senate made it clear in M3
remarks that he is not now attemp
ting to judge the veracity of the
charges but rather to point out
the intent of the President and the
legislation establish selective jer
vice that the objective be attained
without racial discrimination. He
pointed out tha Negroes ayt great
ly restricted in the armed forces,
particularly in the air corps.
"By the end of this year there
will be more than one million Ne
gro Americans serving their coun
try in our armed forces,” he told
the senate. They will represent
more than 10 percent of all Am
ericans under arms. Their hero
ism, their loyalty is unquestioned.
The Records of such Negro heroes
as Dorie Miller at Pearl HarbVr
offer living testimony of the vn
of the Negro people to defend the
heritage of freedom and democracy
birthright of all Arn
i
‘■-H; becomes vital fc tha s«om»s
ful prosecution of American's war
of survival that the morale Of the
Negro Americans in our armed
forces and of the 12,000,000 more
who are working on the home
front, be not impaired by failure
of any government agency to live
up to the letter an dspirit of ex
isting laws against discrimination.
It is essential that there be full
and unhindered use of all Amer
ica’s manpow-er iu the conduct of
the war."
Senator Robert Reynolds (D) of
North Carolina is chairman of the
military affairs committee. It is
customary that when a committee
is to be appointed in accordance
with a resolution, the sponsor is
generally consulted on its mem
bership. Sen. Downey was expect
ing to leave for the est Coast
where he was scheduled to delve
into manpower problems in Cali
fornia. It is therefore unlikely
that the sub-committee will be ao
pointed before his return about
May 8.
The specifications of the resolu
tion call for the committee to as
certain the extent to which there
(Continued on page 3)
Mrs. Gladys Councellor
W igington Succumbs
BURIED IN FAMILY LOT
AT FOREST LAWN
Mrs. Gladys Councellor Wiging
ton. age 52 years, died Thursday
evening April 8th at St. Paul.
Minn., where she had been making
her home the past several years.
She was the eldest daughter of the
late Mr. find Mrs. Lee Councellor,
and was horned and reared in O
maha. She is survived by her
husband, Mr. Frank Wigington of
St. Paul, Minn., sister .Mrs, Helen
Bell, aunt Mrs. Josephine Holmes
both of Omaha. The body lay in
state at The Thomas Mortuary
from Sunday morning until the
| funeral hour, services at 2 p. m.,
! Tuesday from Zion Baptist church
with Rev. F. C. Williams officiat
ing. with burial in the family lot
at Forest Lawn Cemetery.
Congressman Howard Buffett Named
[Representative to Food Study Com’ittee
Howard Buffett, member of Con
gress from the Second Congress
ional district, is the Nebraska rep
resentative on the Republican Food
Study Committee. This committee
was set up last week by Minority
Leader Joseph W. Martin Jr., to
! investigate various phases of the
serious food problem that confronts
the nation.
Sub-committees have been sel
ected to go after the facts on vari
ous aspects of the food crisis. Buf
fett is a member of the committee
on livestock and meat products
and was also chosen for the group
investigating farm machinery and
farm labor.
In connection with these assign
ments. Buffett issued the following
statement:
"Food comes first in the list cf
I critical materials and industries,
j The Administration is slowly learn
' mg this basic truth. Upon fair
and just solutions of our farm
problems depend both our success
in the war and our national weil
being. I hope that I can this im
portant work in a constructive
way. Toward that end I invite the
help and suggestions of farmers,
labor and good citizens generally
throughout the District.”
Congressman Buffett is planning
to come home for a few days dur
ing the latter part of April.
“I am anxious to get back to
Nebraska and absorb again some
of the genuine sense of the Mid
dle West and enjoy once more the
wholesome atmosphere of Cornhus
ker Land," he cncluded
Invest the Fruits of Your Labor for A Rainy Day— buy More War Bonds & Stamps!