Nebraska Newspapers

    EDITORIAL- COMMENT
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Omaha, Nebraska, Saturday, April 7, 1945
When Our Boys Come Home
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by Ruth Taylor
i “When the boys come home” is one of our popul
ar songs. In every paper or magazine one picks up,
there is an article dealing with how one should treat
the veteran.
Let me tell you how one soldier feels about it. He
had been in the Far East for twenty-six months, and
back here for six when he talked to me, so he had a
chance to talk to his buddies when they came bacf
from leave.
This is what he said: “1 wish. Ruth, you’d write
an article to tell people how WE feel. Maybe they
wouldn’t like it—but we would. We want other
boys that come back to have it more the way we
wanted it to be—and as it wasn’t.
“Now you know how close I am to my family.
1 ’d thought about coming home all those months in
the jungle. I’d been terrified of every flight at the
end of my stay for fear I’d! be shot down before I
could get there. But the first week home 1 thought
I’d go mad.
“You see they tried to do too much for me. They
were with me constantly. If I went for a walk,
someone went with me. I wasn’t allowed to do any
of the chores that had been expected of me since I
was a little shaver. People came and called and
gave parties for me. I didn’t feel as though I was
at home at 11. aThe other boys in my unit had the
same experience. We were actually glad when we
had to go back to camp.
“It was such a disappointment to us. All those
months we’d gone over every detail of the life we’d
lived. The little things became incredibly dear.
What we wanted was for things to be the way we
remembered them, to be AT HOME, not to be com
pany. Wanted t odo the things we’d always done in
the way we’d always done them. We wanted to
potter over the chores we’d always shirked. We
wanted to go downtown alone for a coke. I guess
we just wanted to turn back time until the world
stopped spinning around us.”
He said it better than I could—because he was
speaikng for all boys like him. I told this to a wise
man, who said: “I know what he means. I felt the
same way after the last war. So when we heard our
boy was coming home, my wife and 1 made engage
ments—for ourselves. It took courage to go out
and leave him with a book and bowl of apples as
we’d done before—but the rested, glad look on his
face when we came home was worth it. And it
wasn’t long before he and his mother slipped out to
the movies together and until he asked me if I could
get off to play golf with him. Home means more to
boys than we realize. HOME is what they want.”
Rtmember that on the glad day when your boy
comes home.
Weekly Summary
of Editorials About or Concerning Negroes from
Daily Newspapers Throughout the Country.
(Compiled by the National Association for the Advancement of Col
ored People, 69 Fifth Avenue, New York, 3, New York)
Anti-Discrimination Bill
1. “The people of the State of New York appar
ently are condemned to a period of bedevilment, by
a new State Board charged with the duty of pre
venting discrimination in employment on the
ground of race, creed, color or national origin
Carried to its logical extremity, this law might be
invoked sometime to compel a Catholic parish to
hire a rabbi for its pastor should he be first under
the wire with his application for the job in case of a
vaneaney, or a Jewish family to engage for the dut
ies of butler in their home an unreconstructed ex
member of the Nazi-American Bund with papers to
prove that he came from Hamburg or Munich. Or
a producer of a movie or play could be forced to hire
a colored girl for the title role of “Gentlemen Pre
fer Blondes.' All such proposals and measures in
cluding the national devise improvised for the indus
trial emergency of the war, are the works of the
Communists and their kind whose intent is not to
open opportunity to Negroes but to cause friction
and provoked disorders by creating intlerable per
sonal situations The United States, itself, as a
lit ion, discriminates against all orientals on the
ground of race, color and national origin The
worst of it all is that judgement of character and
personality is denied the employer as a guide in hir
ing. And in the end, lie is not merely forbidden to
rejet an applicant because of certain considerations.
DYNAMITE
by H. George Davenport — *
RANKIN—POWELL
Rankin allegely made a statement that he would
not sit next to Powell in the Hall of Congress. White
Davenport
men are silly individuals. During
slavery and ever since, the white slave'
owner has been socially acquainted
with black women. The oft repeated
accusation that male Negroes want soe
ial equality so they can get next to
white women is true in some cases. In
numerous cases one can trace what is
commonly called heredity in human be
ings—the female usually absorbs the
habits of the father and the male, the
habits of the mother. The colored
mother having strains of white blood handed down
through generations by her great grandparents, in
jects the same habits into the life of her male off
spring—the habits crossfire, hence the desire. 'White
mn art sillv because thev have created a Franken
stein out of the African Negro slave. It has grown
so big that it is now unmanageable. It has grown
so big that the silly white man is attracting the at
tention of white women to the fallacy of his claims,
by denying her the same liberties he has been enjoy
ing for centuries. He has created so many yellows,
high yellows, browns, octoroons and other shades of
people that he himself is afraid of what is going on.
Despite segregation, despite birth ceritificates, and
other restricted covenants, people of mixed blood
are m every branch of the United States (.Tovern
ment and big business of the country. Social equal
ity is not as open as the white men practice it with
colored women, but it is gaining ground fast, because
wdiite men go out of the way to prevent their women
from associating with Negro men, thereby creating
a desire in the wdiite women to investigate; where,
if she wasn’t reminded, she probably wouldn't care.
Rep. A. Clayton Powell is a victim of this mixed
blood fantasy. IVwell has color, looks, hair, featur
es, and habits of the highest type of white man, not
of the low beastly type, who are always searching
for racial trouble. In Powell, Ranikn can see the
predictions of his predecessors come true, “give a
Negro a book to read and it is equivalent to giving
him a baseball bat to beat out the white man’s
brains.” Well, my friend Powell, you see you have
been given a splendid idea as to how to handle white
rattlesnakes when they interfere with you in the
performance of your duties. The Negro has come a
long way—his path has not been strewn with roses,
like all races, being a mixture of every blood on the
face of the globe, it is therefore excusable that they
never seem to get along together, and are always
causing the white man so much anxiety. Remem
ber, white folks, whatever wTe are, you helped to in
ject the venom into us since 1619. We are a mon
grel race, sometimes called Negro, but when a white
man or a ew wants to get your vote or skin you a
live, they refer to you as colored people. In Powell
(unless lie has changed considerably) the Negro or
colored people can expect to be ably represented—
he will not be afraid to speak out, he can take care
of himself, physically, morally, and intellectually.
In closing, remembre a good stiff punch in the nose
wrould be good medicine for Ranikn or Bilbo, when
ever they go on one of those racial tirades.
I— - —— -11— 11 - -■*
but required to hire him because of them.”
(Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph, February 27, 1945.
Column by: Westbrook Pegler.
2. “While Congress is working on a permanent
fair employment practices law to govern interstate
commerce, llinois should not lag behind in the adop
tion of a comparable law applying to purely intra
state industry — A bill now pending in the General
Assembly to set up a state fair employment practic
es commission. It deserves the support of Gover
nor Green, who in a campaign speech last October
115 promised the administrtion’s ‘utmost power and
influence’ in behalf of such legislation, in the name
of tolerance, humanity, and democracy.”
(Chicago Sun, February 27, 1945.).
3. “The important thing about the Ives-Quinn
bill against discrimination is that it is addressed
forthrightly to discrimination in employment. The
depression taught a great many men what it meant
to be denied the opportunity to work, to maintain
one’s self-respect and to get ahead by one’s own ef
forts. Yet, that opportunity is traditionally den
ied o Negroes in many fields. Employer after em
ployer in firm after firm has decided that he could
run his business or his factory more smoothly if he
hired only whites, or if he hired Negroes only for
certain tasks This employing pattern is, of course
shifted whenever the demand for labor exceeds the
supply. Thus, in war time, even without new leg
islation or without employment practices commit
tees, Negroes would have been hired in greater num
bers and tried in harder jobs—It seems to us that
the provision of the Ives-Quinn bill offer a temper
ate and hopeful means of changing the custom
whereby “No Negroes” is widely accepted as a law
of hiring—The bill is scheduled for prompt action
in both houses of the legislature. Its passage will
be a break with custom, but with bad custom. And
of that Americans should sot be afraid.”
(New York Herald Tribune, February 28, 1945).
4. “New York State debated last week the prob
lems of racial and religious discrilination. The spur
was the Ives-Quinn bill, introduced in the State
Legislature, to outlaw discrimination in employ
ment for reason of race, color or creed. This bill
would set up a permanent five-man State Commis
sion Against Discrimination, which would attack
the problem in two ways: (1) it would carry on an
educational campaign among employer and employ
ee groups in an effeit to ease racial tensions by ar
!Aews-letter
^ WHAT’S HAPPENING IN
| Washington
HISTORICAL LIGHT ON VE DAY
Most Americans think Civil War
ended with Lee’s surrender at Ap
pomattox on April 9, 1865. But note
what General Grant wrote in his
Memoirs:
“Lee .Haiti to me that the South
wax a hi»t country ami that we
miiurht have to march over It three
or four time* before the war ended,
but that we would now be able to
doit, a.** they could no longer resist
u*.”
Thennote this sequence:
April 26, 1865: General Joe K.
Johnston surrendered to General
Sherman in North Carolina.
May 10, 1865: President Jefferson
avis was captured at Irwinville,
Georgia. He was trying to join
General E. Kirby Smith’s forces a
cross the Mississippi and continue
the war.
May 26, 1865: General E. Kirby
Smith, ^surrendered — tralns-MIssiss
ippi department, ■leaving no other
Confederate army to continue the
war, “according to General Grant’s
Memoirs.
The Civil War didn’t end until
seven weeks after Gee’s surrender.
The European war likewise may
nd in a V-SITGTATION.
DETROIT GAHOR: Three months
ago, the very mention of reconver
sion was blamed for labor shortag
es in critical war plants; it made
war workers over-conscious of the
desirability of permanent peacetime
jobs.
Many observers at hearings on
“chaos in Detroit labor-manage
ment relations” held by Mead Sen
ate War Investigating Committee
are veering to the opposite conclus
ion. Since Battle of the Bulge,
armed services have successfully
stoped not discussion of, but even
planning for reconverpiorj. Si
lence, isntead of being helpful prov
ed harmful. Workers — not so
dumb as Washington thought_in
stantly recognized that a sudden
ending of European war would
cause abrupt stoppage in many cas
es; reconversion would then have
to start from scratch.
Sopke’mfn for automotive inaus
try now urge WPR encouragement
of reconversion planning to mini
mize transitional unemployment.
Second decommendation: that De
troit’s designation ns No. 1 critical
labor area be changed to No. 2.
Through new war business thus
made posMible. management could
conquer “contract termination jit- -
ters” which has slowed up many
workers.
POST-VE DAY: Complying with
secret Byrnes order, each war a
gency has submitted report on prob
able economic situation in its field
after VE Day, with recommendat
ions for future regulatidns. Gov
ernment doesn’t wan- to be caught
without blueprint in case of sud
den ending of European war.
NO EVEN STARTS: Numerous re
quests that industries be given ‘‘ev
en start” in reconversion have been
rebuked by WPB. War Mobiliza
tion and Reconversion Act declares
that when facilities, materials, com
ponents, and labor are not needed
for war production, WPB shall per- j
mit expansion, resumption, or init
iation of production for non-war
use; such production must be per
mitted even though competitors
are still in war work.
“NAMELESS” CAR: To relieve
automobile shortage, a single manu
facturer may be ordered to manu
facture a “nameless” or “victory”
car. WPB says one producer would
utilize labor and materials more e
conomicaUy than all producers op
erating a small but equal percent
age of their facilities. Such a car—
an economy model—would be as
sembled from parts produced where
ever there was available capacity.
No picking of preferred sources of
supply. The maker of this car
would be just as interested as his
j The Omaha Guide
I ★ A WEEKLY NEWSPAPER JL, 1
Published Every Saturday at 2)20 Grant Street
' OMAHA, NEBRASKA—PHONE HA. 0800
Entered as Second Class Matter March 15, 1927
at the Post Office at Omaha, Nebraska under
Act of Congress of March 3, 1879.
C- C- Galloway,.... Publisher and Acting Ea.toi
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Jl
competitor in keeping it "nameless'’
WOODROW WILSON’S STRIKE
FOILING METHOD has been called
to FDR’s attention. When an im
portant strike was about to be call
ed during World War I, leaders
were summoned to Washington.
Tumulty, Wilson’s secretary, greet
ed them: “The morning after your
strike is called, the President will
make the following statement to
the American people.” The state
ment, if issued, would have branded
the strike leaders as traitors. The
strike did not occur.
ANTI-ROYALTY BILL: ( Senator
Josiah W. Bailey (Dem.—N. Car )
has introduced a bill to forbid un
ions from exacting payments of
any kind from employers (check
off except as a collection from wor
kers via management). Bill would
prohibit Lewi^' proposed royalty
of 10c a ton, and Petrillo’s royalty
on recording.^ as well as Dubin
sky’s (International Ladies’ Gar
ment Workers) collection from em
ployers of an amount equal to 3%
to 5% of payroll set aside for un
ion’s welfare fund.
Proponents claim such payments
to unions are already forbidden by
Wagner Act which makes manage
ment contributions to financial
suport of unions an unfair labor
ractice. Union leaders say no, in
tent of this provision is to outlaw
company unions.
Itniley liiil bn* no ehnuee unless
coal "trike Inflames public. Labor
bitterly antagonistic} royalty de
vice uppeals to many unions New
Dealer* will follow union wl*he*.
Republican attitude: “Curbing la
bor helps Administration. Our best
chance to get back Into power Is
through the renctiou when and if
labor goes too far.”
Bit; BILLS: Banks may soon be
ordered to take down names and
addresses and to require identific
ation of all persons presenting bills
larger than $20. Bills of $50. $100,
$500 $1,000 denominations have in
creased far more rapidly than the
smaller denominations in general
use. FBI will get clues for income
tax evasions and black market op
erations. Obstacle: banks claim
insufficient manpower.
“BUSINESS MEN OF AMERICA.
INC.” is being organized by for
mer Democratic Congressman How
ard McMurray of Wisconsin. With
Administration bles'sing. it will
compete with U. S. Chamber of
Commerce and National Association
of Manufacturers Wallace-minded
business men are being encouraged
to join. Wherever expedient, it
will represent business on govern
ment sponsored committees
In fields where old wine organi
zations prove obstinately anti-New
Deal, Administration policy has
been to fifeer opposition organiz
ations. Thus, although the Farm
ers’ Union is the smallest of four
major farm organizations, is pres
ident, James Patton, often repre
sents farmers at government or
labor meetings. National Lawyers’
Guild was organized to counter the
American Bar Assoliation. New
national physicians’ organization in
in the making to offset American
Medical Association. American Vet
erans' Committee is being groomed
for liberal minded veterans of
World War II
HAY IS TURNS “TOUGH”! The
opening declaration of former WLB
Chairman William H. Davis con
firms our recent prediction that,
as Director of Economic Stabiliz
ation, he would carry on Judge Vin
son’s "tough” policy:
“A person brought up as I was
on the Maine coast does not let go
the wheel heading 'ito a squall.
Every understanding person will
be doubly alert in this eleventh
hour to guard against the tragic
evils of inflation Now is no time
to relax either the price controls or
the wage controls under the Stab
ilization Act of Oct. 2, 1942.
bitration and mediation; (2) it would have power to
investigate and bring charges against employers ac
cused of discrimination. Violators of the code
would be liable to fines up to $500 and or imprison
ment dp to one year —Representatives of labor,
Negro, Protestant, Catholir and Jewish organiz
ations spoke in fafor Spokesmen for the opposing
groups approfed the educational features of the bill
and centered their attack on the punitive provisions.
These, they claimed, would foment rather than
ease tensions.” (New York Times, Feb. 28, 1945).
5. “There are at least two amendments to the
Ives-Quinn bill that ought to lie acceptable to the
great bulk of its supporters. They would clarify
the bill and assure a more just adtministration with
out in any way impiringa its declared purpose to
prevent and eliminate ‘discrimination in employ
ment and otherwise against persons because of race,
creed, color or national origin.’ The first of these
amendments would merely remove any possibility
of misinterpretation of the meaning of the word
‘creed’—The second amendment is more important
because it would apply to the organizational set-up
in the bill. At present the proposed State commis
sion against discrimination, consisting of five mem
bers, would be in the dual position of acting as both
complainant and judge against an employer or union
In addition to a commsision with compulsory
powers of judgement, there should be a separate
commission or administrator whose agents should
make the first efforts at conciliation, with power to
pass on the complaint to the judging commission if
these efforts at conciliation failed, or if they were
convinced that discrimination was being practiced”
(New York Times, February 27, 1945).
DO’S AND DON’TS
You usually try on dozens of hats before you find
the one, so DO be careful that your handling doesn’t
soil the merchandise. Greasy hair and dirty hands
soil hats. Use sample hats when requested.