The colored American., 1901-11-09

admit them to individual clubs
| These are composed of persons who
move in the same social circle There
are thousands in town who are eQua
| TO any one on our visiting list Nc
| doubt, but we happen to know these
and not those. We don't come in con
| tact with them. and there is no rea
son why they should join our clubs
/ be it the Wednesday or any other Blu
when it comes to a representative
| meeting, once in two years, of womeT
from all over the country, few OF
whom ever heard Of one another, it is
quite different matter. To draw the
color line there, and not only that, but
| for one State to draw 1t in spite OF
protests of other States. is a steL
destinctly backward, a retrogressioT
to tyranny.
With the consciousness so sympto
matte Of a wrong cause the other side
is there brought forward Far from
being irresistibly attractive, it is
argued that Negro women. especially
in the black belt, are ignorant and
filthy in their personal habits. and
that to see them is sufficient to estab
y Al
course, but what has this to do with
lions Of white folk with whom we
would not wish to come in contact:
Women who live in filthy ignorance
would not be apt to form clubs, nOI
would they wish to join a Federation
nor would they pass the scrutiny of its
| executive committee. No one claims
Of oIo .,
Massachusetts sent to Milwaukee
On the contrary, even the most pre-
JUDGED admit that she was an edu
| Gated, refined woman. So the props
are knocked from under the very arti
| fetal feet of this argument.
Others maintain that coIored wo
men do not care a bit about the mat
| ter; that it is the stubborn Obtsinacy
Of Massachusetts that insists OF
breaking UP the Federation even il
| she has to ranSack the State to finC
| cOlOred delegates.
Isn't it better they plead that hall
a dozen such women should be ex
| cluded than that the good work OF
| 100000 women in harmony should bt
disturbed?
To this the only answer need be
| enc man in the right and God make {
| majority. But it may be added thar
while there are not half a dozen per
| sons in a generation who become presi
| dents, the possibility that they may
| is an immense incentive.
To be barred from any position
| whatever by so superficial and empty
a matter as color is an injustice tha
1 iT7ly~
| calculably.
| It is our fault that the Negroes arr
| among US. They were brought here
by force and kept here under crue
| duress. Now, when they try to climl
| is it our part as women Of a Christian
nation, TO thrust them back saying
Keep away! Don't touch me! II
| have none Of your
| But there are those quite willing t.
| declare plainly that they don't wan
| cOlOred women in the Federation be
| cause they wont have it; that the fac
| of color stigmatiZes a race as inferiO
| and they won't associate with it: tha
it is matter on which their mind
| are made up. and they will brook NJ
| meddling with it. Of course, to thi.
| declaration Of prejudice the only an
| swer is the declaration of principle
| The minds of those on its side ar,
made up to, and they have buoyan
| support in the fact that history pro
claims theirs to be the side of victory
| The great lesson, not only Of our re
| public. but of the French revolution
| has been "All careers open to talent.
Are we women of America, and IT
best eXpOnents as we claim, going t