The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1883-10-04
THE NEGRO'S DEMANDS.

L
yille last week amounted to moth
ing. That is to say, it will amouD
TO nothing. II was significant only
in the fact that the negroes dis
played sufficient enterprise AMI en-
ergy to get themselves together anC
talk over their grievances, or what
they claim as causes for complaint
The only really interesting feature
Of the proceedings was the speech
ofFred Douglass, and that was in
teresting simply because it came
from the most prominent
figure in the black race in America
and the most eloquent darkey
II the land. The address would
have been Insignificant coming
from a white man, but ifs author
being the champion of his fellows,
it excites comment and considera-
ton. The speech was q protest
against the wrong s that negroes are
still subject to in this country, the
chief of those wrongs being that
they are lynched with too great
freedom in the south, whether or
not they are guilty of rapes; they
are not received as equals Of the
whites in hotels and theatres or On
railroad trains; they are not re-
eeiVed as fellow laborers by the
trades-unions, and more than all
they are not elected TO Office as
frequently and numerously as they
would like. What is Mr..
Douglass going to do about all
this? One plan that he proposes is
The passage of more laws, and an
other is to "bolt" the Republican
party in case things are not done
differently. Douglass shows greater
ignorance than a man occupying his
position should display. III asking
for more laws. There is law enough,
If not 100 much already. There is
law for Furnishing those who hang
negroes without, the form of law;
there is the Civil-rights law which |
goes as far as any statute can to-
wards making the negroes the social |
equals Of the whites at hotels and |
theatres; the law covers the whole |
domain of the pretended wrongs,
throwing around the blacks more |
statutory protection than any class
ever before had in any country. It |
is true there is no law to compel |
political conventions to put the |
names of negroes on their tickets, |
and if there were, there is no law to |
prevent voters scratching the tickets. |
In that respect, this country hap-
pens to be so free that it is beyond |
the reach of lawmakers to inter
fere, otherwise the colored people |
might be assured there would have |
been a law for compelling the vot-
ing of only variegated tickets. The
party that was built upon the negro
and has made all the laws since
the black became a man in the
political and social senses, has gone
as far as it has been possible to 60
in providing laws for the protection
and elevation of the race. All that
is done hereafter must be the work
Of the negroes themselves. They
have the right to buy and occupy
sny seat in any theatre in the land,
and can compel the most aristocratic
hotel keeper in the country to pro-
vide them accommodations. Before
ihe law they are the equals of the
r. F. ", and that is as far as Con-
sress can go in the matter. It now
remains for the negroes to do the
remainder, and make themselves the
social equals of the whites. If they
want the offices they must show
that they are qualified to fill them.
Il is no outrage" for an educated,
refined lady or cultured gentleman
30 refuse to occupy s seat at a hotel
table or in theatre by the side of
an ignorant, offensive black. If the
negro wants to associate with the
whites socially he must become
educated and refined, and develop a
brain capacity and culture equal
% those he would mingle with.
He mustn't ask the law to do this
'or him, for it cannot do it, and he
mustn't allege an outrage if the
tatutes do not perform impossibili-
les.
Instead of finding fault with his
OF the negro should congratulate
aimself that his race has made such