WPA HEAD BANS DISCRIMiNATtO
f
MAILING
EDITION
K
II
I!
[i
I! ”
ij p
H »
: H
>
5c
jph^BgUTH £iNBRiP6ii5y
VOLUME 22-NUMBER 39
DURHAM, NORTH CAROUNA, SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 1941
LEGIONAIRES THREATEN TO QUIT
Dr. J, C. Austin Not To
Head Nat^l Baptist Split
Cotton Festival Queen
U. s. OFFICIALS
WARN AGAINS1
JIN CROW
Washington, D. C.—“It is im
perative that in the selection and
referral of workers for training:
and employment under this pro
gram ^he Work Projects Admin
istration maintain its established
policy of non-discriittination a-
paifwt workers bec»uM of race
ereed, eblor or nttipj^I oripin.”
A-Jhis the important
points in recent instructions in
a letter from Howard O. Huntr,
Commissoiner of Work Projects,
to State WPA Administratioi’s
thron{»hont the countrj'.
Mr. Hunter also called atten
tion to Section 24 of the Emer-
pency Relief Appropriation act
for the fiscal year ending June
30, 1942, which makes discrimi
nation against workers unlaw
ful and punishable b^’ fine or im
prisonment.
The Commissioner ordered
that his warning of discrimatioii
against WPA workers because
of race, creed, color, or national
orgin be promptly brought to
the attention of all administra
tive and supervisory employees
of the WPA in every State.
Full text of.Mr. Hunter’s let
ter to State Administrators fol
lows :
“An Executive Order issued
by the President on June 25,
1941, directs ail departments and
agencies of the Qoverment con-
cerened with vocational and
training programs for the de
fense production to institute
safeguards against discrifflnp*-
tion because of race, creedrct)l()r,
Or national orgin.
“In this connection, it is im-
erative that in the selection and
referral of workers for traning
and employment under this pro
gram the Work Projects Admi
nistration maintain its establi
shed policy of nondiscrimination
against workers because of race,
creed, color, or national orgin.
Studying At N. C. C.
Chas. M. Alston, assistant su
perintendent of the Oxford or-
phanasre who thas been granted
a leave of absence to do further
sfcudy in the graduate school at
North Carolina College of Dur
ham. Mr. Alston has made an
enviable record at the Oxford
institution where he is expected
to resume his duties at the close
of this year’s school term.
Race Legionaires
Dissatisfied Witli
Place Of IMeetlng
“This will also serve to em
phasize Section 24, of the Emer
gency Relief Appropriation Act,
fiscal year 1942^ wherein dis
crimination against workers is
designated as unlawful and
punishable by fine or imprison
ment.
“The intent of this Commis
sioner’s letter shall be immedi
ately brought to the attention of
all administrative and supervi
sory employees of the Work Pro
jects Administration in your
State”.
According to Alfred Edgar
Smith, Staff Advisor, Federal
WPA, safeguards against discri
mination which would operate
to the disadvantage of WPA
workers because of race, creed,
color, Or national orgin have
been in effect since February
1934. At that time P\>rrester B.
Washington, present Director of
the Atlanta Univei’sity School of
Social Work, was Director of
(Please tarn to Page Eight)
Teachers’ Salary Case Opens In
Chattanooga, Filed By C. B. Robinson
shall, special counsel for the N
AACP will also represent the
complaints.
Chattanooga, Tenn. — Last
Saturday, September 20, in the
District Court of the Ui\ited
States, Eastern District of Ten
nessee, argument was heard on
the teachers’ salry case filed by
Clarence B. Robinson, represent
ing himself and the Chattanooga
Tcjiehers’ Association, against
the school board of this city.
'I'his is a preliminary hearing
to determine if the court has
jurisdiction over this ease. W.
Ileurj' Elmore is local attorney
for the teachera; Thurgood Mar-
On his way back to the New
York office, Mr. Marshall will
stop in Washington, D. C. for
meetings with members of the
na"lional legal committee of the
NAACP and with Attorney
Prentice Thomas on the suit fil
ed agai/ist the University of
Kentucky by Charles Eubanks
and on the Jeffersonville, In-
I diana, school case.
MIIiWAUKEE, (ANP)
The designation of New Orleans
as the site of its 1942 convention
has caused much dissatisfaction
among the ranks of Negro leg-
ionnaries who attended the A-
erican Legipn "«onveution held
here last wefek. I^etters of strong
protest are tb be aent to the hew-
ly elected natioital commander,
Lynn U. Stambaugh, of Fargo,
N. D,, demanding that the Lou
isiana eommittie of arrangement
assure Negro delegates they will
receive every courtesy; that the
color line be. broken to give Ne
gro legiorinaries a chance to sit
with their state delegations and
that every precaution will be
made to safegaurd their liv^s
during the convention.
Negro veterans threaten to se
ver relationships with the legim
because they fear the policy of
soutlrern posts of discriminating
against them. Lousisiana has no
Negro legion posts Negro legion
posts and the state commander
has refused repeatedly to grant
charters for their formation.
Hence Negro legionnaires have
no 9r^anidation to act as host
and' as.slire them of the usual
round of entertainmeiit they are
accustomed to. If, however, the
national commander refuses to
support them, rumoi’s have it
that the Negro legion will hold
a grand reunion in Atlantic City
N. J. opening on the same day of
the New Orlcaas convention.
In addressing 3,000 legion-
nares of both races at Borchet
field here, Atty. Euclid L. Tay
lor, president of the national
Bar association, flayed the south
ern white man for liis prejudices
and likened him unto Hitler. He
asked why the color bar should
not be broken for the good of all
concerned.
Said Taylor, “The best hearts
among Negroes yearn for unity.
They extended their hand to the
Italian mIio is a good American,
to the German, the Englishman
the Prenchn^an, the Pole, the
Jew, the Irishman, to all the
stalwart contributors to Ameri
ca as a nation who are willing
to join hands with them against
the common foe.”
Conspicuous in the parade
Tuesday in which 50,000 or more
persons marched fl*om nine o’
clock in the morning until that
night, were Negro legionnaries.
Special honors Avent to the
George L. Giles Post No. 87, of
Chicago! the Charles Young
Post of Detroit; and the James
Reese Europe Post Washington.
Navy Bias
Is Being
Studied
WASHIN^TOJil, ,D. C.—Foll
owing on the heels of the Presi
dent’s recent order calling for
the abolition of discrimination
against Ngroes in all Federal a-
gencies and independent estab
lishments, officials a fthe Naty
Department admitted today to
the National N^ro»Congres that
a study of the discrimination
practiced by the Navy again.^t
^Negroes is being conducted ih
|hc; lij^ht' of President Roose
velt’s order.
The Navy Department, through
itS|Public relations official. Com-'
mander Berry issued the follow
ing statement on the matter.
“The subject is being reveiw-
ed carefully by the Navy Depart
ment. No public announcement
has been made of this study to
date .A thorough review of this
problem is being made from
W’ithirt the Navy Depar.tment in
accordance witlf the recent pro
nouncements of the Presidient
of the Thiited States.”
The statement indicated that
the review will include a study
of job discrmination against N«|i*
groes in Navy Yards throughout
the country. It is understood
that thei Navy Departinept plans
to employ more than 1()(),00()
men in tlie Naval exj)ansion de
fense program, during the com
ing months.
Congress officials understood
that Assistant Secretary of the
Navy, Ralph Bard, is in direct
charge of the coterie of Navy
officials who are conducting the
study.
Succeeds Dr Williams I Famous Minister
Balks On Disunity
Among Baptists
Rev. J. H. JACKSON, D.D.,
is the new pastor of Olivet Bap
tist, church, Chicago,'.called by
many the greatest protestant
church in America. Dr. Jack
son w^o succeeds the late Dr.
L. K. Williams as pastor of Oli
vet has been serving the Nation
al Baptist Convention as Secre
tary of its . F\)reign Mission
Board. He begins his duties in
a rebuilt Olivet, the church hav
ing 'been rehabilitated after be
ing partially destroyed by fire
the day of Dr, Williams’ funer.
al.
OIL SHORTAGE?
The special Senate committee
investigating the alleged gaso
line shortage on the Eastern
Seaboard has reported that
there was no shortage and that
the confusion of the past few
months might have been avoid
ed if there had been “an ade
quate analysis" of the situation.
'^Iph K. pavies, acting Petro
leum Coordinator, replsring to
' the Seante report, reasserts that
there is a shortage and that the
condition does not warrant com
placency.
NORTH AM. AIRCRAFT
REVERSEts RACIAL POLICY
Ni’iii York, N. Y.JNegro skilled
workers will be employed at the
Ni>hi|h Abierit'iin AvjiaVion Cor-
oroatiou’s i)ant in Kansas City,
Kansas, the .Urban .League .of
Kansa.s City, Mo., annoneed in a
report received today at the of-
ficeof the National Urban League
Negro Citizens all over the coun
try were arosed last winter by a
public statement is.sued by J. H.
Kindelbergor, President of North
American Aviation lo the effect
that therq was no place in his
CojKirntion’s plants for Negroes
ex.eept as janitors, even though
some of he Company’s .plants
were .erected .through .defense
WORST PUNISHMENT
OF ALL
New York—Referring to a
Southern Congressman’s blast
against Charles Lindberg for
his injection of racism into
his recent Des Monies, la.,
speech, Walter White, NAA
CP executive secretary wrote
to the editor of the New York
Hearld-Tiibune last Friday:
“A member of the Texas
legislature yesterday shouted,
‘Lindberg ought to be shipp
ed back to Germany to live
with his own people!’
“I suggest a far more ter
rible punishment. Make Lind
bergh’s skin black and con
demn him fa live in Texas.”
(’LEVELAXD, (By Herman
Clayton for ANP)—Contrary to
rumors afloat, the Dr. J. (’. Aus
tin, Chicago unseeeessful candi
date for president of the Xat-
ional Baptist convention. do(s
not i)lan any effort to start n
new body of Baptists nor t» in
stitute court action in contest
ation of the election, in which,
according to Rev. Austin, only
a my.sterioas “hand full” olijWi*
than 12,000 mcii^engcr.j
who had .streanied froril"all parts
of the country for the express
purpose of voting, were so per
mitted.
Instead Rev. Austin stiys he
plans to form into pornran‘i)t
organization the 1,(MK) ministers
who in Mt Zoin Baptist church
while in Ceveland voluntarily
])ledge themselves to fight with
in the convention the flagrant
abuses which have “for too long
a time shamed the Bapti.st con
vention.”
These abuses. Dr. Austin said
expressed themselves in the re
fusal of what he terms the mach
ine-run convention to register
opposition delegates and in what
Dr. Austin says is the fraudulent
practice of issuing non-negoti-
able cheeks to eover the expens
es of non-eligible machine dele
gates, in the gros.s disregard of
constitutional provision, and in
the “un-christian, and undemo
cratic gagging of opposition
sentiment.”
Proof of some of these abuses
Hev. Austin furnishes in the fol
lowing cases:
The machine, having fraudu
lently re’dstered most of the
lingh Alaliama delegation, upon
being challenged, feverishly
sought to cut the nximber down
so as to wipe out the disparity
between the number of delcg.ates
anil the amount of njonej* col
lected. In order to nullify the
rising avalanche of opposition
votes, the machine totally disre
garded the constitutional clause
granting to churches additional
delegates at $5 per delegate, and
arbitrarily limited the church
delegation to 10. When opposi
tion sjH'akei-s sought to correct
irregularities they were howled
and heckled down.
“However, these are not mat
ters to drag into court,” the mi
litant Chicago pastor said.” T
shall continue the fight I started
in St. Louis in 1922 for a clean
orderly, democratic, progressive
and Christau convention
Though the one past was a far
cry from that ideal, I am not
dismayed, or discouraged. I
have the confidence to believe
that those of us who fight on the
side of right will in the end
triumph.”
Miss Helen Wise, beautiful young Charlotte social leader,
who will be crowned Queen of the Negro Cotton Festival to be
held in the Queen City, October 16. The festival is beinfe spon
sored by the Carolina Times and the Negro Chamber of Coni-
merce.
Evidence Of Discrimination Piles Up
Against Chrysler, Gaims N. A. A. C. P.
Detroit. Mich.—Through the i ^^groes. Winegar wo«ld make
efforts of (iloster B. Current, ex-1 no etmirtiitments as to what
ecutive secretary of the Detroit | fhry.sler plans to do to offset
branch NAACP, damning evi- this dist“rimination.
deuce of discrimination in en-
ploynient by the Chrysler M»)tor
eorp»ration has been gathereil
and sent to the Committee on
Fair Employment Practice.
Affidavits from James Phelps,
Etldie Kanip and John Stevens,
all of Detriot, substantiate the
I'act that at the Dodge Truck
plant. Mound and Eight-Mile
Road here, no Negroes have been
lyred since 1937 and the few
who were hired prior to that
time have not been promoted ac
cording to seniorit}-. Dodge is a
C’hrysler subsidiary.
An affidavit from William
Kennedy of this city, charges
the N. A. Wollworth Company
Wanda and Nine-Mile Road,
Ferndale, Mich., of barring Neg
ro workers. Kennedy answered a
newspaper advertisement placed
by the company asking for tool
operators, grinders and machine
hands, and was told by the em
ployment manager that-“It k
the policy of the company not
to hire colored.”
It was also learned in an in*
terview by officers of the local
NAACP with C. T. Wihegar,
personnel manager of the Chrj^
ler corporation that the {NPcanit
training program ig opt open to
Advertisii^
To Be Moved Bad^
From Highways
Advertising signs within
than SO feet of highway is
State, except in perticater
cumstaaces as set forth
der. will be unlawful in
Carolina, after Nov. Ist,
cording to a resolattQa
by the State Highway and
lie Works . Commission at
meeting m RaJogh, AriAqr.
The resolution
vertising signs akmg tikg
ways provides that
riiall Mt awplr t«
of^ ttt»~
^light-of-nai
of buiin«*„te‘