New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-11-18
Race Prejudice and the War

The war is gong 10 leNV'u
American life on an undreamed-of scare
Old habits Of thought, economic prepoS-
sessions, inherited prejudices are oelhg
swent away. We cannot now gauge the
transformation which is coming It's proc
esses are silent But some day we snail
wake I'D and find an amazing readJust-
ment accomplished. .u
The war will work many miracles WIN
o,o ~ them be an amelioration OF the
violence of American race and color
.reiudice? That is one Of the hardes'
things in the world to combat, because II
&c bevond the pale of reason. VIII the
war force US to reason about it? II so, IL
will have performed the miracle OF
miracles. -.
II is our claim that we are fighting TINS
war to make the world safe for democ-
racv. Democracy implies equality OF
privilege and equal obligation OF ser
vice. If we fight for this for the world IN
general we ought to be prepared to prac-
tise il among ourselves. At present we
ro;nole democracy with determinations.
All the elements Of our citizenship do not
Stand on the same level. But there IS no
way of evading the fact that under a
modern military regime-one OF universal
seryice-all elements Of our Citizenship
must stand on the same level.
No distinction can be drawn in applying
the military code between white soldiers
and black soldiers, between white officers
and black officers. They are all fighting
for the same cause and deserve the same
credit for doing so. Yet only the other
dav q negro officer revisiting his home
in Vicksburg, Miss, was counselled oy
friends to put on civilian clothes, for rear
that he might be mobbed If ne appeared
in the streets in a United States uniform,
Also. in a Kentucky camp recently, TWO
white non-commissioned officers refused
TO salute a negro commissioned ofncer'
They stood on their sense OF caste, 1orVi-
fed by the precedents Of civilian HE.
They were wrong, and the military au-
thorities could not do anything but decide
that they we're wrong, since the salute is
always to the uniform and not to the IN
dividual who wears it.
Here is the sort Of test which our race
and color prejudice will have to meet as
the war progresses. We must have negro
privates and negro officers. they are
Americans, and when they go abroad they
will receive the respect due to American
soldiers. How can we excuse ourselves
for withholding from them here at home
the respect which is their right? In peace
we have lodged this question. Now we
can no longer dodge it. If the war lasts
two or three years longer and we call
hundreds Of thousands of negroes into the
ranks and commission some thousands or
negro officers, these men and officers will
enjoy under the flag an equality OF status
which they have never enjoyed before in
MANY parts of the United States Can we
denriye them of that status when they are
honorably mustered out? That is the
problem which those of us who are most
imbued with race prejudice might as we'll
begin to face honestly.
The government is telling ali Americans
that they have an equal stake in the war.
All are invited to put their energies and
resources into common pool But if the
enterprise is common and the burdens are
common, the glory must also be common.
Nationality, patriotism, unity-these may
be found to be the exorcisers Of race and
color prejudice, itself only relic of that
past with which we are now breaking at so
many points with an ease which only a
few years ago would have seemed in
credible.