MARCH, 1942
THE BENNETT BANNER
Page Two
THE BENNETT HANNEK
Published seven times a year by
llie students ot Bennett College.
Subsci'iption Price.. 50c A year
THE STAFF
Editor-in-Cliief .... Ola Parker, ’42
Associate Editor.. Valena Minor, ’43
Husiness Mgr. . Helene L. Jacobs, ’43
Circulating Mgr.. .Hattie Taylor, ’4 2
Repoiters and Contributors—
Helen Boulware, ’45, Geneva
Powell, ’45, Roberta Favors, ’45,
Cassandra Moore, ’45, Mary
Taylor, ’44, Constance Steward,
’44, Elizabeth Gilliam, ’44
Vashti Warren, ’44, Katlieryn
Davenport, ’44, Dorothy De-
vaugiin, ’44, Hath Everett, ’43,
V'ii’ginia Holder, '43, Catherine
•Johnson, '42, Evelyn McNeill,
'42, Margaret Hoykin, '42, Mar
tha Hawkins, ’42, Hallece Pig-
het, ’42. .
I’hotographers .... Betty Wade, '44
Marguerite Pope, ’44
Faculty Advisors . . Miss Lois Taylor
Mrs. Maggie 15. Daniels
Mr. A. C. Dutton
EDITOKLVL
work done by putting your
stamp of approval on things
about which you should properly
be highly indignant.
So the next time your race is
jokingly insulted on the screen,
aon t laugh! Suppress that ner-
V ous urge somehow! Be perfect
ly silent. Report the distaste-
lul incident to your theater
management—show them that
you RESENT it! In that way
some day m the not too far oif
iUu.re the Negroes on screen
will ue persons that will make
,y'„u proud that you, too, have
a brown skin.
especially during these dark
(lays when America is arming,
both mentally and physically, for
total defense.
Let us allow ourselves to ex
pand, to delve beneath the
realms of mortals and seek ex
perience through the will. As
Schopenhauer has put it, ‘‘It is
only through music that we can
get the most out of life itself.”
YOUR RACE IN THE MOVIES
You’re in a theater— silting in
the balcony, of course, because
thi; i=. the South and you are a
Negro. The feature attraction is
going on w hen suddenly there is
flashed on the screen a fat,
BLxVCK, greasy, grinning char
acter. And what is your im
mediate reaction? You burst in
to loud appreciative guffaws
and think that this character is
probably the funniest you have
ever seen. Why?
Do you like to see your race
represented at its lowest, most
■inattractive level? Do you want
other people to judge you by the
movie reprf'sentation of the
Negro? Do you want to be
ihought of as a peipetually grin
ning, lazy stooge that speaks in
a half-witted dialect? Of course
you don’t and yet as long as you
laugh at them, the cinema pro
ducers will continue to charac
terize the Negro as unbecoming
ly as possible.
The matter of typing the
American Negro as ‘‘the happy
cotton p'cker” has long been a
bone,of contention championed
by the N. A. A. C. P. Advertisers
have been forced to change their
illustrations of the Negro wom
an. Instead of the big, common,
iigly, black “mammy” formerly
seen in the ads, the Negro w^om-
an now is pictured as a rich
brown with pleasing features
and a not-so-elephantine stat
ure. The usual red bandana is
missing from her head nine
limes out of ten new — nor does
she murder the king’s English
so consistently or thoroughly as
before.
The N. A. A. C. P. has fought
a long battle to raise the idea of
the Negro in the eyes of other
races. Yet YOU, the Negro him
self, seek to tear down all the
Don’t Talk"Act!
Newspapers, billboards, movies,
radio commentators, and people who
love America are pleading to in
dividuals and the general public to
lalk less and do more toward win
ning the war. Some one has been
talking too much and thus aiding
enemies in plotting against our
country.
Have you asked yourself what you
might do as a student?
We might remember that the per
son you least suspect may toe one
ol those information seekers who
is willing to risk his lite to destroy
an A)nerican plane or ship.
As college students, we are often
asked to express ourselves on the
war situation. We go on telling what
is being done in our American fac-
lorics, and boasting that our tanks
are well-made with certain metals,
and even describe them if possible.
We like to feel that the colored boys
ai-e using the best equipment to be
found in the army and tiiat tlioirs
is equal to that found any where
else and so w'e proceed to describe it.
If a member of your family works
in a production plant, you might
keep in mind that discussing tue
.-.mount of material that goes into
a gun or army suit may give some
one the wrong kind of idea.
Let us remember that secrets of
war may be revealed and disclosed in
a very few words. And so let us re
frain from discussing and describ
ing equipment, materials and jobs,
and be aware at all times that there
are many who are anxious to know
what America is doing. Their know
ing -won’t help us win the war, but
may result in an evil plot. And you
want to know wfiat you can do?
DON’T TALK—ACT!
iVlcjSIC
Have you ever given music
a serious thought? No, not
s'wing alone, but all music, both
sw'ing and classical. Music is
the art or science of making
pleasing or harmonious combi
nations of sound tones, the ef
fects of which satisfy or dis-
satisiy us. But before suddenly
deciding which specific type
you like, why not give it ah
a fair opportunity to please
you?
The appreciation of fine music
is not an innate characteristic
with which some few people are
endov/ed; we can all come to ap
preciate its value. A desire to
learn, an attitude of entering
upon a new road of adventure, an
unbiased mind — these are the
simple prerequisites — and a
new world revolves about us,
the world of music. Some few'
people in the universe have met
these requirements successful
ly; Beethoven’s “Sonata Opus
31, Number 3” is to them celes
tial, “The Valkyrce”, a compo
sition by Wagner, knows no
verbal description , Chopin’s
■‘Ecossaises” is sufficient to hold
them spellbound until its com
pletion, and so it goes. Just as
easy as that, you, too, can be
come a cultured member of the
circles of music lovers. We might
liken our sense of listening to
music to a business proposition;
we listen because we feel that
we might profit by something
presented.
Music, in spite of its abstrac
tions, is one of the most pro
found and useful arts to be found
in the realm of civilized people.
■‘It soothes the savage”; it can
heal the sick, if the case is a
psychiatric one, for music can
act as a tonic, relieving one of
many of his w'orries and cares
of the day. It acts in the capac
ity of a stimulus, co-ordinating
group activity, thus, the use of
anthems, hymns, and the like,
when masses meet for a com
mon cause. Not least, by any
means, music may aid in the
building up and maintaining of | nft womanhood, we lift
morale, a thing most vital to us .iviiization.
More Defense Work
For Bennett Students
Letter to the Editor;
Do you think that Bennett Col
lege is doing all it can to aid in the
National Defense cause? I believe
a great deal more could; be done
along this line. My suggestion is
something similar to what was done
recently at another woman’s college.
The committee on Civilian Defense
at the college launched a Victory
Book campaign to collect books for
men in all branches of the service,
with clever posters to attract the
students. They were constantly kept
reminded of the urgent need for
these books and other defense efforts
by posters scattered all over the
campus saying, “LET’S FACE IT.”
The students co-operated w'hole-
heartedly with the Victory Book
campaign by giving to the committee
over 500 books.
Why can't the Bennett girls, think
of the men in camps in some similar
manner?
VOX POP
]5y Constance Steward,
Inquiring Keporter
Many of us, I am sure, have read
the numerous articles appearing in
our current magazines on “Our
Place In National Defense.” These
articles all leave many questions. One
is, naturally, the woman’s place.
What is It? Some authorities on the
subject say that tlie woman of Ameri
ca’s place is in the home', others, in
the defense jobs which many women
hold, and still others contend that
we, the w'omen of America should
be drafted into a standing army,
an army to take the place ot our
brothei’s, fathers, and sw'eetliearts
who are not coming back, one
similar to the one Soviet Russia now
has.
W-'hat do you, the women of Ben
nett College, think? Would you like
to be drafted into this militai'y ser
vice or do you think your place is
still in the home?
Should we, the women of Ameri
ca, be drafted into a standing army?
Anona Blanchet, Freshman, does not
like tlie idea—
“No, who would be home to cook
and to help make machinery to be
used in the war.”
Mary Gregory, Junior, agrees with
Miss Blanchet,—
“No, women can take an active
part along other lines of defense and
it will be just as important.”
Miriam Hart, Senioi-, is slightly
on the fence about the subject—
“At the very end or when the man
power is exhausted, women, then
and only then, should be drafted in
to a standing army.”
Icie- Parks, Senior, has another
view' on the subject—
“I should think women who do
not have any definite contributions
to make to defense on the home
front, should willingly go into the
ai'medi forces, since we demand
equality with men in every other
situation — why not prove it here
by defending our country against
enemies?”
Dorothy Devaughn, Sophomore, is
slightly in favor of enlistment—
“If absolutely necessary, 1 would
be glad to enlist in the army. Re
member I say if “absolutely neces
sary.”
Ruth Van Hook, Sophomore, is
definitely in favor of enlistment—■
“Women should be drafted be
cause if there is a shortage of man
pow'er, we could still liave a ’.veil
trained army.”
Ruth Harvey, Freshman, her view
point on the subject is this—
“At the present, I see no need for
women to be drafted into a stan
dardized army. I think that there
are too many other positions that
we can fill. I think we should be
drafted into training for mechanical
and technical instructions so that we
w'ill be able to take the places of the
men in industries, research labora
tories, etc. — When the war situa
tion has reachedi the place where
our service is greatly needed then,
I see no reason why we should nol.
be drafted.”
Now fellow students, what is your
opinion? Should you like to be
drafted?
A recent survey at Dickinson col
lege revealed that more than a third
of the freshman class are related
to graduates or former students of
the College.
ELEVEN YEARS AGO
Bennett Wins City Basketball
Tournament.
Senior Day was observed on Fri
day, March 18, when the Seniors
named their tree after Mary JIcLeod
Bethune.
The Phi Beta Kappa fraternity of
Wesleyan University, the alma mater
of David D. Jones, saw' fit to initiate
him as one of its members after
tw'enty years of absence. Mr. Jones
was a member of the class of 1911.
Bennett College hald its fifth an
nual Home-Making Institute Week.
Information
Please
Did you know that approximately
$2,0 00 has been spent to add a thous
and new' books to the Tliomas F.
Holgate Library during the present
school year? The library budget, in
cluding $1,500 from the Carnegie
Foundation and' $500 from the col-
eige, has been used to make it prob
ably the most up-to-date college
.ibrary in the state. These expendi
tures do not include the Carnegie
Art set whicii will be reviewed in
.his column next month.
A full reference collection has
been made possible from the Car
negie donation. Expensive general
and specific reference volumes have
been added this year. For recent
general information, see the 1941
editions of the “Americanna An
nual” and the “Britanuica Year
book”. These volumes supplement
the encyclopedias by giving the
marcli of events tlrrough 19 41. The
Coluni'bia Encyclopedia” and the
‘New Funk and Wagnall’s Diction
ary” will aid you in your search for
jnformation.
In the field of literature, valuable
additions have been made. E'er
those English term papers, the fol
lowing volumes are recommended:
Lhe 17-volume “Library of Southern
Literature”, the “Cambridge Biblio
graphy of English Litei'ature ’ and
the “New Variorum Edition of
Shakespeare”.
Information in the field of his
tory is also included in the refer
ence additions. Siignificant facts
about the United States may be
found in the “Dictionary of Ameri
can History.” Brendon’s “Dictionary
of British History” offers the,same_
type of information about Great
Britain.
Do you know about the index ser
vices offered by the library? These
indexes direct you to sources of
specific materials in various fields.
For educational information, see the
new “Educational Index.” “The Es
say and General Literature Index”,
an index to essays in volumes ano
miscellaneous w'orks is one you need
to know better.
If you wish to trace world events
as given in issues of the New York
Times, use the New York Times In
dex. You will find many more help
ful indexes at your service in the
library.
The library budget from the col
lege has been used to secure material
to make the library serve the func
tional needs of the curriculum. Be
cause consumer education is im
portant in the present crisis, ap
proximately 50 new books in this
field have been purchased. Why not
read Gaer’s Consumers AH, McCaw’s
Fifty AVays to Save Money and Rich
ardson’s AB(.^ of Co-operatives for
information on these popular sub
jects?
Ever mindful of the achivement
of Negroes, the library keeps its
Neigro book collection up to date.
Most outstanding among recent ad
ditions are our own Miss Virginia
Simmons’ rich collection of original
poems, Wliitecaps, W. C. Handy’s
Fatliei' of the Blues, Twelve Million
Black Voices by Richard Wright
and Arna Bontempts’ Golden Slip-
ipers.
The library gratefully acknowl
edges the gift of 9 88 books by the
family of the late Mr. and Mrs. D.
C. Suggs of Greensboro. Including a
collection of poetic, religious and
miscellaneous works, this Igift is
valuable.
A w-ealtlr in books is at your ser
vice in our own Thomas F. Holgate
Library, why not make tlie greatest
use of it?