The Colorado statesman., 1911-12-09

WORKERS THAN WHITE AMEKl-
CANS, SAID PROF. r. r. WRIGHT,
JR, AT BIG CONFERENCE OF
CHARITIES IN eosToN-PREJU-
DICE AND DISCRIMINATION Ac-
COUNT FOR RELATIVE INEFFl-
cIENcY-LABoR UNIONS WORST
FOES, BECAUSE IN THEM THE
COLOR PREJUDICE is MOST EF-
FEcTlVE.
Boston, Mass-At the final section
meeting of the National Conference of
Charities and Corrections The Negro
in Industry" was the topic discussed
at the Standards of Living and La
Dor" section in Kingsley hall. The
speakers were Prof. Kelly Miller OF
Howard university, Washington, and
r. R. Wright of Philadelphia. Pa.
Professor Wright said in part:
The negroes have been workers in
the north ever since the days of the
first colonies, and though they never
have been a great factor, except in
the large cities, where rs per cent. OF
the northern engroes now live. they
form a great mass of domestic and
personal workers. In Pennsylvania,
for instance, where the greatest num-
ber of northern negroes live, 3d.
per cent. of the males and 92.7 per
cent of the females were in domestic
and personal service in 1900. 1t Is
sometimes said that negroes do not
work, but statistics show them to
comprise a much larger percentage
of workers than their percentage OF
population would warrant. Negroes
were, for example, only 2.5 per cent.
of the population of Pennsylvania,
but were 3.3 per cent. of the work
ers.
Negroes have made slow progress
in the north, but this is due to two
reasons-the low standard of eff
cheney among southern negroes, who
have immigrated north, and the atti-
tude of organized labor.
Low efficiency might be overcome
more quickly if the unions were
more friendly. The result is, If the
efficient negro would go up, it must
be in opposition to the labor union.
| This, of course, tends to make the
negro a strike-breaker, but am sure
an unwilling strike-breaker Outside
of the miners union and those OF
hod-carriers, the negro has but little
chance. In Chicago, for example, the
negroes in the building trades have
made their way in spite of the unions.
| The same is true of the stockyards,
where practically all the negro has
gotten has been in opposition to the
union In Pittsburg, each step that
the negro has made upward in the
steel works, has been done as strike
breaker. This is unfortunate. But to
be fair, the trouble is not in unionism
per Sc, but in the growing race pre-
judice which tends to make a farce OF
American democracy. Only unionism
organizes its men and therefore their
race prejudice has the force which or
ganization always gives. But white
non-union workmen strive as vigorous
ly as union men to shut the negro out.
The result of this is, that to get
foothold, the negro must work for a
lower wage This lowers the stand
ard of living and tends to drag that
of the white workman down.
Still, under the condition. the
negro worker is gradually growing in
importance in the north, especially
as waiter, porter, domestic, worker on
the streets, in municipal construction
work, and in the large industries need
ing a large unskilled force. In the
steel works they are distinct force,
also in the mines. In skilled mechan-
| ical pursuits the number Is growing
gradually, each census showing an in
crease in northern cities.
The immigration of large numbers
of negroes to the north and their seq
regation in large groups in certain
sections of our cities has given rise
to negro business men and profession
al men. So that Today many OF the
| largest churches, hospitals and stores
are in the north, and a much larger
percentage of negro business men and
professional men are in the north than
in the south, in spite of the difficulty
the negro faces in the north of high
er standard of efficiency to reach. than
he has in the south.
While the Industrial progress of the
race has been great during the past
40 years-great enough to command
the praise of the severest critic, yet
the handicap of race prejudice cannot
be overestimated. 1t is the greatest
drawback of the negro. for 1t put be-
fore him double standard-not mere
ly efficiency which he can reach, nut
also a standard of race which is I'M
possible for him to reach, and which
must discourage and demoralize him.