New-York tribune., 1906-06-10

One often hears It said that the Negroes OF the
r-r,ted States are a race without name. as
-. :, f.,, this people has too many names. III
has been called so many different things that ], is
Az q loss 10 know what ii Is Al the ps,. pFesei-'
tts leading educators. ciergyrnen ana 1oNi -
are engaged a spirited controversy Is as = 80.
how thew should speak OF one anothef. Inc h1
- ..rho voice Of the Negro" for instance re-
.sn,lv nublished an article entitled VINO az
Uvao" one by one he took up the many terms ap
plied 10 his folk. and denounced tnelI -, 81 800
The old and simple word Nesro -.
he maintained was the right name ior ms Iaoo- ~
~ !, ,be NSegroes he said. Instead OF pelioa'i-
ing their lot instead OF fretting because 10y o.
Negroes and trying 10 escape theihstIEeS' - -
and wipe the stain from this woro DS s-'''ON'
achievements r. ,yo,r York
Il, - -e.a .KKho Are We?" he sat down and wrote
q long criticism. in which he said the "oiu -.
O,as vulgar II was degraded nc So -
,ho,+ the only writer's OF the English 4aheuas1
.ro.,.5 ~ enough 20 spell It with a capltat
-. ~ b,s own race. His hasnen, he salo' snouiN
call themselves Afro Americans Alo taiA.ns .u .
anai hir.g at the recommendation OF 4He
the Negro" he added:
TT Is Of the highest Importance that we eet
ourselves straightened out on this quesuoh "a
-1-bo are wey UntA get this race deslsAa-
ron properly fixed IN the language and hIersluIs
ps the country. shall be kicked a4u e1'-I o. O.
Fueered Al as a common noun, suThcieh'! o4 -
temptuouslv characterized by the vulgar ter'h'
negro s -, cha
ICesnite arguments such are advanced Dy 'i-o
F,d,tor o.. The New York Age, however thete y
= strong drift Just now among Americans %
African descent simply to call themselves Ne
sroes' with a capital y. Booker l. washington,
president Of Tuske8ee Institute mas hseh one -
tbe leaders in this movement, and whenever ne
speaks OF writes Of his people he uses the Word
Negro with capital y.
~ washington gave his reasons for preferring
s.,-aoro, 20 anv other name for his race In re-
cert letter which he wrote 20 Thetns w sims,
Representative from Tennessee MT sims hau
tel-ed his opinion because Of dispute when hao
arisen IN the Committee on the District OF CO4ulh
tia as 10 whether bill providing that the boaro OF
Education OF the City OF Washington shoulu III
cIu5e three members 'of the oolored race was
,r,.ir7,o,,s M Sims contended that these mem
hers might be Indians Chinese japanese Ms4ays'
Sandwich Islanders or Esqumaus. as all OF theIA
were known ''colored races IN oIoel Ia
there should be misunderstanding' NY sims
moved 10 substitute the word Negro for COZ
ored." other members Of the committee oD1ecteo
20 this change saving that II would be regarded
by the black race as an insult.
TN rarlv 10 your letter OF April 90 wrote Mr.
washington let me say that II has been my Gus
,or, n write and speak OF the members az my !
race as Negroes and when using the term Negro
IS A race designation TO employ the capital y.
To TIE majority Of the people among whom we
live believe this IS customary and what Is termed
tn the rhetorics good usage That being so, am
not disposed 10 quarrel with the use or the WORD
on grounds either OF logic or science.
III has long seemed 10 some Of our people how
over that tie members of my race have been 50
long in this country and have become so closely
identified with IN ali their interests and inspira-
tions that they should be given political rather
than a racial designation, and be called AFRO
Americans
But the fact is-and IN this I think you will
agree with me-our language is not made by either
scientists or logiciaas. Rightly or wrongly, al
classes have called US Negroes. We cannot es-
-cape from that name If would. To cast It of
now would be to separate us TO a certain extent
from our history and deprive US Of much OF the
inspiration we now have 10 struggle on and up
ward. II is credit, and not TO our shame.
that we have risen so rapidly. rapidly than
most other people. from savage ancestors through
slavery 10 civilization. Yet for my part I believe
the memory Of these facts should be preserved in
our and traditions, as IL is preserved in the
color Of our faces. ] do not think my people
should be ashamed OF their history nor Of any
name that people choose in good faith 10 give
them"
wide canvass Of the representative Negroes OF
tie United States which made recently by
The Tribune showed that the majority, like the
president OF Tuskegee, favor Negro" for their
name Yet Il bare majority. OF every
twenty Negroes whose views were obtained, there
were only eleven on an average who were willing
10 be spoken Of in this way The other nine
spurned it. They called il insulting" con
temptuous," degrading Two argued for Afro
American two for ''Negro-American, one for
'colored man." for black man" and one was
Indifferent 50 long as he was not called ''ngger"
Prominent members Of the white race were found
70 be overwhelmingly in favor Of the word Negro"
for the American branch OF tho Ethiopian race
Ten out OF thirteen on average objected TO
spssliug Of il by any other name. All the heads
o southern colleges whose opinions We're obtained
preferred Negro" one. however a Northern edu-
Gator took the ground that the Negro IN this coun
try should be called 'Afro-American," and added:
But ! sincerely hope that the day is not far
distant when the single word American viii be
found as sufficient Cor this people, as It is honor
able"
As shown by the letters from Negroes Drintsd
herewith an especially strong plea IS made FOR
capitahzing the word Negro" According IN the
usage Of most white writers OF the English Ian
glage IN this country at the present time Negro,