Semi-weekly Louisianian. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1871-1872, 1871-08-03
THE NEGRys FRIENDS.

The negro's color is a badge OF
his past condition, and though there
may be Individual members OF our
race who are ablet 70 escape the pen
atty of African descent, the effort
to do so and the social agreement
which allows it are altogether excep-
tional., IN nine cases out of ten Q
colored man 'spedegsee il accessible !
and it is always used to his disad-
vantage despite the blue eyes and
sandy hair he may possess,
OF course the social aspect of this
r1uestion carries with it the doom
eff exile from spheres Of wealth,
culture and power; but the political
evil of colored skin exceeds the
social ills of orr past condition.
White Republicans exact Of MS feal-
ty to the party which gave us all
we possess politically, and white
Democrats despise us for our ingrat-
itude if we fail to riss to the natu-
raj level of manhood t
On this account we, as a race, are
between the hawk of Republican
demagoglism and the buzzard OF
democratic prejudice. The aspirants
for position in our party threat
en- us with accommodation if we
do not follow every jack o'lantern
who raises his feeble and uncertain
light, and the Democrats invite US
to humiliation if we turn away from
these Republican jacks o'lantern.
Truly ours is great risk. There
are great many of our people
whose memories are keener than
their perception. who because 9
= man was once true, are unable to de-
tect the attitudes of falsehood HI
Q may afterwards assume.
Now it seems to us that there ar,
: one or two tests by which to try tn
professions of the most loud-mouth
e ed among those who claim to b.
disinterested friends of the neer'
race. One is the test of cOnsisten
g cy. t.5
II If man claims to he the ffien,
) of the negro, the first demonstra
ton of it should lie made in tn
sphere of his morals. He shout
aid by a consistent example, pee
pie who are struggling out of tn
!, enforced concubinage of SLAYER
" into the voluntary sphere of matri
mOnial relations. .. '4 b.
!, He should honor the effort of
q poor people to rise from casut
cohabitation to. conjugal relation
= for life. But when, as we know
:. the case with some of our professe
o white friends, they not only live
- concubinage with colored womel
:, but even try to thrust these SAN
6 women upon the wives of colore
8 gentlemen-men who do all the
can to increase the host of colorf
ne concubines by Aattering attention
70 to colored girls who are injured
/. the estimation of their own ra
~ if they accept such attentions, the
90 we say that such whitemen be tn
~ ever so loud mouthed, in their pr
.. LESSONS of friendship to our rae
- fail in the first and most essenti
of test of friendship to our people.
he The other test is polite
al equality. We take an illustratio
his that ofpolitical conferences. Whei
,s- man undertakes to lead, whether
mt be white Pcolored, if he is fit
of lead, his fiitt object sshould he
lis command the sources of inAuen,
Of If he aspires to be called t
of negroes friend, his first effort Dug
I'D y be to put colored men qualifi
it. for the task, in such a relation of
IL least assistant leadership, as will q
7as him in securing the confidence a
lle respect of his own race, who fro
TO. long habit believe in the natu
of superiority of white men, Ifin {
Tue position to this natural course
1st true friendship we find white m
pretending to care more for I
m colored people than the promint
,b- men of the colored race do, VIII
or at the same time they prey up
tho vnvooo'S froiltioo on6 roiaot