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Saturday, Dec. 15, 1945 Our 18th Year—No. 45 March 8, 1874. Publ.sh.ng Offices ^ 10c per Copy * at 2420 Grant Street, Omaha. Nebr
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OT
The Author of ^Strange Fruit Talks About White Culture and Her Play.
Weekly Feature Launched To Promote Race Harmony
Every Week, we shall present "Our Guest Column,” a non-profit service of the American Press Associates devoted to furthering
group understanding. _
Edited by Ema P. Harris, noted journalist, our new weekly column will feature prominent gue3t contributors who will review current
developments on the minority group front and suggest local and nationwide action. Coming soon as guest columnists are Pearl S. Buck,
A. Philip Randolph, George S. Schuyler, Dr. Ira De Reid, Rev. How ard Ke3ter, Elmo Roper and other leaders in the fight for equality.
UUK
GUEST
Column
(Edited by Erna P. Harris)
LILLIAN E. SMITH TALKS
ABOUT WHITE CULTURE
AND HER PLAY
•
{edited by ERNA P. HARRIS)
•
Well, "Strange Fruit” is now
ready for the harvest. It is a
fruit that sets some folks’ teeth on
«dge and a fruit that others find
tempting and good to the taste.
Some (white and colored) are so
allergic to it that they walk out of
the theater, and some find it so
fascinating that they come back
two and three times—and pay to
■do so.
If you ask people what “Strange
Fruit" is about, you will get many
■different answers. Many whites
will tell you that it is about the
"Negro problem." whatever that
is. Others will tell you that the
author is in favor of intermarriage
{she certainly has no objection to
it) and that this is her defense of
it. A few will tell you that it is
an insult to Negro womanhood,
and others will say that it is a
sneer at white mothers and their
sons. But a white Baptist minis
ter of Philadelphia preached a ser
mon against "Strange Fruit,” do
nouncing it as an attack on the
Christian Church (white). He sue
ceeded in getting the white Me'h
odist and aBptist Ministerial Coun
«il8 to pass resolutions to ban the j
show, the Methodists asking that I
it be banned, the Baptists asking!
that all line3 be deleted that made j
the white m .-*i -.r gypear to he :>
hypocrite.
The censo- i.T. Philadelpha or
dered all such lines deleted, and
pressure was exerted from the
Mayor’. office. ITa !i_ies were de
leted; many other ministers rose
up in protest against the proposed
•banning, the theatre was packed
to overflowing and—the show
went on. The censor, by the way,
said that it was the first time in
ten years that a playwright had I
refused to make the deletions or-1
-dered. He commented that he had
lost a lot of face, but the author
replied that his loss of face was
better than her loss of integrity.
Then “Strange Fruit” came to
New York. The fight began a
gain. This time the technique was
the smothering process. Three
Broadway drama critics (all white
southerners) used the old and
well-worn southern formula of say
ing the show was dull and boring.
Being a Georgia white woman, I
had a good laugh. The idea of any
white Southern man being bored
with “Strange Fruit” is plain fun
ny. But many readers of the New
York press are not southern white
women who know their old South,
and hence the trick was not with
out its deadly effect.
Yet through it all, from Mon
treal to Toronto, to Boston, to
Philadelphia, to New York, not,
•one critic has said what the play
is really about, and that seems an
incredible thing. It is a play a
bout human beings trapped and
•destroyed by segregation, the pre
vailing pattern of our white cult
ure; but no one has said so. It is
about the deep heartbreaking con
flict between Christianity and
White Supremacy, but no one has
mentioned this. It is about the
white man and his infatuation
with his own importance; it is a
bout a disease of the heart and
AMERICAN LEGION POST NO. 30
To Hold Open House for Members of Armed Forces
Community Response to “Y” Program IP ill
Determine Provision for Adequate Facilities
TALK WITH NEWSMEN AFTER
MEETING WITH G. M.
MANAGEMENT.
Detroit, Mich., (soundphoto) —
R. C. Thomas, president and Wal
ter Reuther, vice president of the
UAW. talk to newsmen after meet
ing with the General Motors man
agement at the General Motors
building here.
WHITE ON COMMITTEE
DRAFTING UAW STATEMENT
Detroit, Michigan—Walter White
Secretary of the NAACP, was a
member of the committee of five
which drafted a statement from
14 representatives who inspected
mind that destroys all our people,
whatever their color, if they come
too close to it. It is a play about
you and me and the profound dif
ficulty we have in becoming sane,
mature human beings, but no one
has mentioned this. Yet the play
goes on, making friends and ene-1
mies, and making lots of them. I
One wonders which will win as
the weeks go by, the friends or
the enemies. For the decision
may be important, not for the
play’s author, nor its producers,
but for white people and colored
people living in this segregated cul
ture of ours.
****
Note to readers: Miss Smith is
much too modest about the merits
of her play. Howard Barnes, re
viewing ‘‘Strange Fruit” in the
New York Herald Tribune, said it
is "a show to make one sit up and I
take notice.” Arthur Pollock,
writing in the Brooklyn Eagle,
called it “one of the most import
ant plays of the season, of any |
season.more bite than a half
dozen ordinary dramas.”
U. S. COAST GUARD SEEKS ENLISTMENTS OF
YOUNG MEN 17 TO 25 YEARS OLD
Enlistment in the United States Coast Guard is now open for young
men of the ages 17 to 25 inclusive. Men who have completed two
years of high school may enlist with the rating of Apprentice Seaman,
while those who have not completed two years of high school but who j
have completed the 8th grade, may enlist as Stewards Mate 3/c. En
listments may be for two or three years, this is optional with the men.
Those interested should contact the Coast Guard Recruiting Repre
sentative, Room 316-A. Post Office Building, Omaha, Nebraska.
Howard C. King, CGM., USCG., is Recruiting Representative for O
maha, Nebraska.
ATTENTION WORKERS! ’
* 4 POINTS “TO THINK ABOUT”
□
1. Don’t hesitate to make suggestions to your superiors when |i
you know better ways and quicker methods of doing cer
tain tasks. £
2. Avoid street car and bus “incidents” by taking showers
and changing clothes completely after a day’s work is done
3. Don't lay off even though you are not feeling exactly weil. :
A. Luck plays no part in success. Seize an opportunity when
one comes your way and remember to practice some of the |
above and your friends will call you “lucky".
OMAHA URBAN LEAGUE, Industrial Relations Dept., J
Duward R. Crooms, Executive Sec’y. O
Arthur B. McCaw, Ass t Executive. |
tne written record in the UAW
General Motors labor dispute.
The committee report declared
that the full possibility of collec
tive bargaining had not been ex
hausted and “we believe President
Truman and his advisers would
have been in a position to insist
more firmly on the full use of the
collective bargaining process be
fore suggesting intervention by
the Government” if they had in
spected the reci rrl of negotiations.
Leon Henderson was chairman
or the committee. Other members
beside White were Profess* r Er
nest W. Burgess, University of
Chicago; Mrs. J. Birdsall Caulk
ins, National President, \WCA;
and Robert Herrigan of the New
Council of American Busin-vs
LINCOLN U (MO. ) CLOSES
BECAUSE OF FLU EPIDEMIC
Jefferson City, Mo., Dec. 8, 1945
What started out to be a series of
colds contracted by students at
Lincoln University (Mo.) develop
ed into an Influenza epidemic
causing the institution to discon
tinue instructional work on Dec
ember 5. Two hundred students
were stricken with the disease
President Sherman D. Scruggs
stated that because of the crowd
ed conditions of the dormitories, it
was felt best for the student’s
safety to scatter them out. About
85 of the infected students remain
ed for treatment. Unaffected stu
dents and teacher personnel wel
comed the additional two-week ex
tension on the scheduled holiday
period, which was to have begun
Dec. 18. All living quarters will
USU BUILDING WILL OPEN
AGAIN SOON UNDER
ANOTHER NAME
The second floor and the south
side of the first floor of the Jewell
Building at 2221 North 24th, re-.
cently occupied by the USO. has
been leased by the Youth Centers,
Inc., and will be made available
for use by the community. A
committee composed of iepresent
atives of the Urban League, YWC
A, and YMCA., and the City Re
creation Committee will work otr
the policies.
Many details are yet to be work
ed out but at least the effort to
bring about community cooperat
ion has resulted in success. First
the agencies above mentioned met
and agreed that these facilities
were needed. Then a committee,
primarily A1 Kennedy and W. H.
Mead, carried on negotiations and
recommendations were approved
by the Youth Centers Board last
Friday and by the Community
Welfare Council last Monday.
It was agreed that Gaines T.
Bradford, the “Y” Secretary,
would have his headquarters in
the building and would be respon
sible for the scheduling and the
general management of those por
tions leased. This does not mean,
said Mr. Mead, that this buildii1..’
is to be the YMCA. building. It
is merely a temporary headquar
ters for its Secretary and some of
its program. The “Y” is attempt
ing to carry on a cooperation pro
gram and will work with the other
agencies in meeting the greatest
needs of this community. The se
curing of these facilities is only a
temporary measure until the city
plans go forward for the develop
ment of Burdette Park with a new
school, gym and swimming pool,
and until such time as the YM.
and YW. can build their new
building.
The degree to which the comm
unity responds to the “Y” pro
gram and provides voluntary lead
ership for its many group activit
ies will determine how soon more
adequate facilities can be provid
ed.
be treated for occupancy before
the students return to school on
January 3. The president said the
lost time will be made up at a lat
er date.
All administrators, administra
tive assistants, full time cafeteria
workers, and maintenaince em
ployees have continued at their
posts.
Dr. R. N. James, State Health
Director, said the epidemic sprang
up in the southern part of the
state and is spreading rapidly.
Sale of War Surplus Autos,
Trucks, Trailers, and Scooters
To Be Held at Ft. Crook, Dec.19
The Reconstruction Finance Corporation in Omaha announced that
a sale of War Surplus automobiles, trucks, trailer and scooters will be
held at Fort Crook, Nebraska, at 8 30 a. m., December 19. No Jeeps
will be on sale, as a special sale of such equipment to veterans only is
now in progress. No lists or catalogs are available, but all equipment
may be inspected December 17 and 18 at Fort Crook.
Prespective buyers attending the sale will be given an itemized list
of all equipment showing the ceiling price of each item. Equipment
will be sold in single lots; none will be sold in quantity lots. Before
each item is offered for sale, buyers will be given a card on which they
will write their bid. When bids are all received, the sale on that par
ticular item will be closed, and the highest bidder announced. No bids
over the ceiling price will be accepted. In case several bidders of fe ■
the ceiling pric thy will draw lots.
U. S. NAVAL LIEUT. RESUMES LAW PRACTICE
Peter E. Marchetti announces that he has just been released from
the U. S. Naval Service as a L'outenant in the United States Coast
Guard and has resumed the practice of law with offices at 1037 Omaha
National Bank Building, where he is associated with Shotwell and
Vance, JAckson 7250.
STATE ORGANIZER OF NATL.
BEAUTY CULTURISTS’ L'GE
MRS. CHRISTINE ALTHOUSE j
of the Althouse School of Beauty
Culuture, 2715-2717 North 24th
St., who recently returned from
Chicago and parts east, has been
appointed State Organizer of the
National Beauty Culturists’ Lea
gue.
Watch for her column, each
week “Health, Beauty and Suc
cess’ which will soon appear in
this paper.
HERE DECEMBER 19TH
LIONEL HAMPTON
Sponsored by our Ace Dance
Promoter, Mr. James Jewell, Mr.
Lionel Hampton and his famous
band will appear here next Wed
nesday evening at the Railroad
Men’s Benevolent Club, 24th and
Miami streets.
SHARP PROTEST TO NAVY
ON BARRING RETURNING
SOLDIERS FROM CARRIER
Washington, DC_The refusal
of Navy officers of the aircraft
carrier Croatan to allow 123 Ne
gro soldiers to come home on that
vessel, solely because they were
not white, drew a sharp protest
last week from the Naacp to Sec
retary of the Navy, James V. For
restal.
Citing an incident from World
War 1, where a Negro regiment
was barred from returning to the
United States from France by a
battleship captain who declared
Negroes had never ridden (except
as servants) on a battleship “and
never would,” the NAACP letter
declared:
"It is 27 years since 1918 and
despite the progress that has been
made in many areas of human re
lationships, we find the United
States Navy in 1945 no farther a
head in its attitude than it was in
1918.”
“Pointing out that thousands of
Negro fighting men have return
ed from both the Pacific and Eur
opean theatres of war on other
than Navy combat ships, complet
ely without segregation, Roy Wilk
ings of the NAACP wrote:
“It remained only for the Navy
to say to these men that the-'
could not return on a Navy vessel
because of their color. If the Uni i
ted States Navy is to leave as > |
final memory in the minds of Ne
» Urge All World War II
Vets to Attend
Roosevelt Post No. 30 of the A
merican Legion, 24th at Parker
streets (upstairs), will entertain
all members of the Armed Forces
in World War D on Thursday,
December 20th, at 8 pm. All
Soldiers, Sailors, Marines, Wacs,
and Nurses are cordially invited to
free eats, drink and entertainment
No matter if you have been dis
charged or are still in the services,
you are welcome. Come out and
get acquainted with your Comrad
es.
gro American soldiers the bitter
thought that because they are not
white, they cannot receive at the
hands of their country’s Navy the
same treatment as other veterans
who fought the good fight, then
the war against Hitlerism has not
been won. This Association calls
upon you to issue orders to all
commanders of Navy vessels be
ing used to return veterans to the
United States to accept conting
ents as scheduled without regard
to race or color.”
YOUTH LOOKS TO THE
CSURCH FOR CHRISTIAN
LEADERSHIP AND SPIRITUAL
GUIDANCE
On the third Sunday morning,
the young people will be in charge
NO MEANS AS YET PROVIDED FOR FUTURE
OF OUR YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN IN THE
RECREATIONAL AND SOCIAL FIELDS
★★★
3115 Miami St.
Omaha, Nebraska,
December, 1945
To the Editor of the Omaha Guide:
DEAR SIR:
When the former U.S.O. was first established I
wrote an article making an appeal to the people of
Omaha to form a committee for the purpose of pur
chasing the U.S.O. for a future YMOA.
In last week’s Guide 1 notice that you too are
fighting for such a project, and through your paper
I would like to appeal to the Negroes of Omaha
once more to help in this worthy cause.
In a recent survey statistics showed tiiat 30% of
the increased population in Omaha were Negroes.
Statistics also show that the Negro has made at
least 25% more money during the war.
We have built up our churches, and formed new
clubs, but no means has been provided for future of
our young men and women in the recreational and
social fields.
It is alright to set back and let the downtown YM
CA secure a building for us, but it would be far bet
ter and more profitable to us as a race of people, to
purchase the U.S.O. ourselves.
We owe it to the young men who have gone out
and fought for their city and country, to provide
them with some place where they can find rest,
peace and contentment.
I hope that the Omaha Guide will continue its
fight for this worthy cause and in doing so will en
list the aid of some of the organizations of this city.
Respectfully yours,
__L E. A. MASON._
of the services at Zion Baptist
Church rendering as usual splen
did spiritual services to their
| church. On this Sunday, Mason
Devereaux Jr., is to deliver the
short talk before the regular ser
mon by the pastor Reverend Wil
liams. He has chosen "Youth
Looks to the Church for Christian
Leadership and Spiritual Guid
i ance” as the subject of his brief
address.
NAACP TO HOLD REGULAR
MONTHLY MEETING SUNDAY
AT CLEAVES TEMPLE CME.
The NAACP’s regular monthly
meeting will be held at the Cleaves
CME. Temple Church, 25th and
Decatur Streets on Sunday after
noon, Dec. 16 at 3:30 pm.
All members are urged to attend
and bring a friend as the member
ship drive was a success and the
local branch hopes to reach the
2,000 membership mark in Omaha
and to make as good a showing
as most other /cities with their
drives.
^Expired memberships are hoped
to be renewed at this meeting.
Are you a member of the NAA
CP? If Not, WHY NOT?
• AN IDEAL GIFT
FOR XMAS...
“The Omaha Guide”
Just Call HA-0800
USO HOSTESSES REWARDED FOR SERVICE
! Hempstead, L. I.—Five-star USO pins
in recognition of between 4500 and 5500
hours of volunteer service are awarded
(top left) by Colonel Edward E. Hil
dreth, Commanding Officer at Mitchel
-> Field, L. I., to Mrs. Elizabeth Bass
Golding, vice-chairman of the Nassau
|| USO Operating Committee, and to Mrs.
I Florence Fuller, chairman of the inter
* racial information desk committee at a
ceremony recently held at the Nichols
Court USO here. Only four of these
high honors were awarded. Above left, a
small group of the 440 Hempstead USO
hostesses to whom Colonel Hildreth
presented pins of from one to four stars
in recognition of between 500 and 3000
hcurs of volunteer service. From left to
right in the front row are, Dorothy
Schlaer, Mildred Gentry, Thelma Bau
man, Erissa Gentry, Eloise Mills. The
picture at left shows some of the junior
hostesses and the men they serve. The
occasion is one of the weekly USO
dances held at the Lido Beach Naval
Center. Attendance at these dances is
still more than 5000.
SISTER ELIZABETH KENNY FOUNDATION.
>23 Omaha Loan & Building Assn. Bldg. "
Omaha, Nebraska .
I want to help in the good work that Sister Kenny is doing
tiding infantile paralysis victim?.
Enclosed is my contribution for $.
i'Jame ....
Street .
Town......State .
(Please Print Name)