New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-08-30
A REVIEW OF THE THIRD, FOURTH AND
FIFTH ARTICLES OF THE PLATFORM
OF THE PEOPLES PARTY.

The third, fourth and fifth resolutions
Of the White Peeple's platform reads al
follows:
3. That the rights of all men under thu
constitution and laws OF the land must on
respected and preserved lnvloiate, IRE
/ spective of race, color or previous condl
| ton, but we deny that Congress can con
1 stitutionally enact laws to force the two
| races into social union or equality.
| 4. That the white people Of Louisiana
have no desire to deprive the cOlored people
| of any rights to which they are entitled
| but we are convinced that the reforms I'M
| peratively demanded can be effected only
| by electing to Office white men OF known
| capacity and integrity, and we believe thal
! large numbers will vote with us to secure a
| government which must be beneficial alike
| to both races.
| s. That we disclaim earnestly any lnten
| tion of carrying or attempting TO carry the
| approaching election by violence, and that
| charges to this effect, emanating from our
Radical enemies, are without foundation,
and are falsely made for the purpose OF
obtaining the aid of the military force OF
| the United States, in order to Overawe the
people and perpetuate the existing usurpa-
| ton, and subvert the true principles OF
government.
Each one Of these three sections OF the
"white peoples platform is intended to
deceive and mislead. The seemingly just
position taken in the first part OF each is
neutralized in the latter, which covertly
indicates the injustice intended to be per
petrated. Let us look at each separately,
and see where the cat in the meal sack is
In the first of the above sections it is
declared that the rights Of all men under
the CONSTITUTE on and laws must be re-
spected and preserved irrespective Of race,
color or pre- vious condition. This all
reads very we'll, but then follows the
declaration denying that Congress can
constitutionally enact laws to enforce
those rights. 1t is true they clothe this
declaration in false light, as though
Congress were endeavoring to enact laws
to force the two races into social union
or equality when there is no such attempt,
but express power is given in the consti-
tuition to enforce the rights conferred by
the amendm ents. Now, we would ask,
what use is a right conferred by the con-
stitution when such right is practically
denied, unless there is power to pass
the laws requisite to enforce it,
which is all that Congress under
the civil rights bill, which is
struck at in this resolution, is attempt
ing to do; so we find this White
Peoples" cow ention acknowledging all
the rights conf erred by the amendments
to the cons titution, but in the same
breath denying the right to pass laws to
enforce these rights. Now the very fact
that laws to enforce these rights are
necessary, shows that these rights are
not respected, and the opposition of the
arhite people to the passage of these laws
shows that they do not concur or allow
those rights to be enforced, else why the
opposition to the passage of those laws.
We think these considerations clearly
show that this resolution is intended to
deceive; it is jesuitical in the strict sense
of the word.
Now for the second of the above resolu-
tons, which declares that the ochite people
have no desire to deprive the colored people
of any right to which they are entitled.
This is, to sa y the least of it, very patron
izing. 1t assumes that the arhite people
have the cont rol or dispensing to the
colored peo pie of their rights, and that the
lohite people have rights the colored people
have not. They then go on to say, "but
We, the uhite people, are convinced the
reforms imperatively demanded can be
Effected only by electing to Office achte
men Of known capacity and integrity"
Now, the 1rhite men here alluded to are
not white Republicans, but white peo-
oie's party men. Now, this assumes
hat no colored man should be elected to
office, hoaoerer capable or honest he may be,
md that no arhte Republican has capacity |
or integrity, hence neither should be |
elected; and that, therefore, the colored
should vote for white Peoples |
party men. This is certainly nice. If |
his is not supremely impudent, what |
Gould be? Saying to the opposite party |
hat you have no one in your ranks ca
Fable and honest enough to represent you.
Certainly, if comparison of the Legisla- |
ure of 1866 and 1867, almost unanimously
Democratic and all white men, were had |
With any subsequent Legislature, the
after would not suffer much by the COM
oarison. But what caps the climax is the |
asst part of this resolution, saying that we !
believe that large numbers of colored |
citizens will vote with US to secure gov
which must be beneficial alike to |
both races. This is softly put and very
1ice, taking the action of the Demo
,cratic white Legislature of December,
1865, composed Of many Of the same men
Who passed this resolution, when they |
RENTED the colored men
nto state little if any short of Mexican |
In this we have an example Of |
What they consider 'government aehich |
must be beneficial alike to both races" No
'ct Of this achae people who compose the |
Peoples party has ever shown that they !
we're willing to do justice to the colored |
people. They have unanimously opposed
every act that gave them freedom or civil |
u political rights, and are now violently
opposing the civil rights bill pending be-
ore Congress to enforce the rights guar