The Colorado statesman., 1912-08-03

ference on the Negro, as published in
The Southern Workman for June, was
that on Education and Racial Traits"
by Mr.. William /. Thomas, professor of
sociology in the University of Chicago
Prof. Thomas takes no stock in race
superiority or inherent intelligence as
an inheritance. The children of every
race have to be taught all that their
fathers knew, and any break in the
education from sire to son starts the
child back from the highest to the
lowest point of cultural education and
refinement. That is to say, education
and culture are not transmissible, as
an inheritance, from the father to the
son. These are locked up in the son,
and require the same long cultural
process to unlock them as was re
quired in the case of the father. The
same theory holds in the case of en-
vironment and social status; these
must be continued unbroken from
father to son or relapse is reasonably
certain. Talking about handicaps to
individual success or unsuccess, Prof
Thomas says: 1t may naturally oc-
cur to some of you that race prejudice
is the most serious and oppressive
form of isolation and cause of mental
backwardness in the case of the Ne
gro, and l am certainly not inclined to
make light of prejudice. At the same
time do not regard 1t as profound
ly serious matter. 1t Is something
you can get by-it may even be
stimulation. Compared with slavery
or serfdom, 1t is trivial. l am now
making some studies among the
Slavic peasants of Europe, for the
peasant was and is mentally as back
ward as the Negro is or as he was in
slavery. 1 have found even more
backward cases. But my main rea-
son for speaking lightly of prejudice
is that 1t does not successfully isolate.
One of the gentlemen from Jamaica
who excited your interest here by his
mental poise and the nimbleness of
his wits confessed that he had studied
in some of the most important centers
of learning in the world. The point
worth emphasizing is that race pre-
judice as "the most serious and op-
pressive form of isolation" need not
be drawback but may be made
stimulation" to mental, physical and
material development and growth. The
imitator of anything is not the origina-
tor of the thing, and that which may
be good for the originator of it may be
destructive for the originator of it.
Mr.. F. G. Peck, in the same number of
the Workman, talking about "Conser-
walton for the Indians" says that the
difference between the Negro and In
te hot ho J,I{ I{a,, ho. tafr r1I
his mental attitudes, his social isola-
tion and his manhood independence,
refusing to relinquish his own for
those of the white man, and is the
stronger for doing so; while the un-
enviable present social position OF the
Negro masses is undeniably partly
due to the way in which they have
faithfully allowed their native origin
ality to become annihilated. Sure
ly the experiment In mild submission
has not proved an advantage to the
Negro. SO far as his social rank is
concerned" while in the same issue,
talking about Education Among the
Bantu of Southeast Africa" Mr.. Mau-
rice s. Evans of the African Society of
London, takes the same view of the
matter as Mr. Peck does. He says:
1t seems to me that In breaking down
this life we, the Europeans of South
Africa, are placed in a position of re-
sponsibility we must whole heartedly
accept To leave the native subject
to the corrupting influences of our
civilization In his present unprepared
state, is to leave the door open to
disaster for him and for us. And If
for no other reason than to act as
counterpoise for this destructive pro
cess now going on, 1t is imperative
that some influence for good should
be brought to bear upon him. To go
back to the old life is impossible, the
new is full of danger to race so
unprepared for change; the Europeans
of South Africa are responsible for
this and 1t is our palpable duty TO
take steps to minimize or remove the
danger and give the native guidance
and opportunity for higher and bet
ter life. And must confess, the only
method | can see is education in its
broadest sense, which includes moral
and religious instruction. II is proble-
matical. however, If the broadest Eng
lish education will ever make out of
the Bantu as good and strong a people
as would have cultural education of
him along Bantu lines. He was sim
pie pastoral people, and education
along his lines of thought and habits
made him a strong African Bantu
and not weak English Bantu, think
ing in Bantu and talking and working
I'm English, as many American Ne
groes do even now, some centuries re-
moved from their African habitat. Ian
guage and religion. Far from allow
ing race prejudice and segregation to
affect them disastrously, American Ne
groes should make them serve as op-