St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-05-17
AFRo-AMERIeAN ACTION.
The ColOred Race should Begin
to 3 iiinlS for itself a

The ColOred kace should Begin
to ;iiinlS for itself. ~
To the Editor of the Globe.
Now that the municipal election is a
thing of the past, and before your read
ers become interested to any extent in
the fall contest, thought that it would
be advisable to lay before the citizens
of this city and state a statement which
will demonstrate the fact that the Afro
Americans in other portions OF the
country are assuming an independent
position in politics as the only means
whereby the final solution of the yeXed
problem can be attained. And the
position of the colored citizens union
is in keeping with the clearly an
nounced principles of the American
Citizens Equal Rights association, as
set forth in the following interview of
Hon. z. s. B. Pinchback. president
of the above named association, which
appeared in the Times-Democrat of
New Orleans, La. OH the 26th of April.
He is reported saying:
For twenty years or more the negro
question has been leading topic of dis
cuSsiOn in this country, and THEORIES re-
specting its solution have occupied the
IultuS anu dOSUlUCu tHO dItCIitiOH VI
the statesmen, ministers, representa-
tives of any class, creed and political
faith, and, in fact, everybody except
the negro himself, who, above all,
should be the most Interested. Thus
far the question is problem without
solution, and is likely to so remain I'M
less the negro comes forward of his
own volitiOn and manifeStS DISPOSE
ton to assist the country IN arriving at
the ADOPTION of some plan that will
prove mutually advantageous to both
races, and which may be
agreed OH and successfully oper-
ated without material sacrifice of
the principles or rights of the represent
tativeS of either side. Now this is the
object of the present grand organize
ton. Hitherto colored people, beyond
their political affiliation with the Re-
publican party, have had no Organiza-
ton or fixed principle by which their
actions might be directed and governed
as body. Now this is TO be changed.
or, at least, we hope so. While the
movement under consideration is to be
non-polItical in character, yet the as
sociation represented by it will en-
deavor to exert lively influence in all
public matters, local and otherwise.
when the welfare of the colored people
is directly concerned. We propose,
as an organization, to occupy here
after. as it were, an independent
position in politics, and TO vote in
dependent, for Republican or Demo-
crat as the best interests of our people
may suggest. As an organization we
will affiliate with no particular party, be
it Republican or Democratic, that will
not concede to the negro the recognition
to which he is legally entitled. On all
public measures we propose to vote in
solid phalanX. and where one party de-
MES, we will endeavOr to secure by
favorable and hearty alliance with an
other what we deem right and just.
This movement, instead of making the
cofored man the seryile creature of the
Republican or any other party, as he
has been for more than quarter of a
century, will render him all indepeDd-
ent and powerful element in the politics
of his state and the country at large; it
will secure to him his right of ballot,
protection at the polls; he will thus be-
come a speaking and active force on
all the important local aud national
questions OF the day, and, in fact, will
become. in all that the moral implies, a
man. 1t will be our endeavOr to bring
into the organization, il possible, every
colored man in every village, city. coun-
ty or state of the United States, and in
this wise to make the organization not
only large as to numbers. but thor
oughly representative institution. And
when this shall have been accomplished.
together with the other aims of the Or
ganization in the matter OF education,
the negro problem will, in my judy
ment, have reacheda solution" Thank:
ing you for space for the reproduction
of the above for the benefit Of the Afro
Americans In this section of the cOun-
try, so that they will bestir themselves
to make the organization all that we
hope for it, am, respectfully,
T. ID. PARKER.