Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-05-31

vKTASHINGTON, ID. e., May 2i.--TherG are
Wv thousands OF organizations in the United
States which nave been uyin- In different
ways and without cooperation, 10 carry on the
work of "Americanizing' our foreign population
BY the plan which the bureau OF education Is now
putting into effect, through its division OF lmml-
grant education, all OF these organizations are being
united into great national system, which will WORK
by uniform and scientific methods teach our
toreign-born population English, and the American
viewpoint and ideals.
The bureau Of education is aided in this work
by the Council of National Defense, and also by an
advisory committee OF one hundred representative
American citizens. The state councils OF defense
nave appointed committees on +Amerlca1lZaJIoh'
which the executive heads of the work in the
various states and engaged in unifying ana
directing the work Of all of the other organizations
that help. These include state and municipal
legislative bodies, womens clubs, industrial con-
GERMS church societies. newspapers, libraries, labor
unions, boards OF education and schools, chambers
OF commerce, bureaus OF Immigration, l. M - A ,,
and variety of other patriotic and social Organl
cations. Many Of these organizations have already
been working at the problem in their own ways.
The bureau of education is helping them by pub
fishing and distributing programs adapted to each
type OF organization. and by acting as an expert
adviser to all of them. This is a work in which
almost any patriotic CITIZEN in community which
includes aliens, may take useful part.
At present this work is dependent for funds
upon state and municipal appropriations and the
various organizations engaged in the work. But II
is quite commonly believed that the federal govern
ment should assist n this large and important
work, and bills providing for such assistance are IN
preparation
Meantime it is being carried with enthusi-
by many local organizations. The country IS
fully aroused to the need for unified nation be
hind the fighting lines Industrial concerns which
in the past have been Indifferent to the fact that
many of their wOTkmen could not read English, and
knew nothing of American institutions, aroused by
the destruction of property which disloyal aliens
have caused and the labor troubles which have been
fomented among ignorant immigrants, are eagerly
cooperating with the bureau of education. State
legislatures and city councils passing without
opposition laws necessary to the work of American
izatOn, which have been defeated or pigeOn-hoIed
at former sessions. Patriotic citizens everywhere
are Offering their services; hundreds of thousands
of natives and foreign born have Joined in this
movement 10 make united America.
The New York state department Of education,
which has cO-Operated with the bureau of educa-
ton in it's AmericaniZatiOn work for many years,
has just obtained the passage by the state egisla-
ture of three measures which considered ideal
The first of these apprOpriates twenty thousand
dollars for the training of teachers TO teach mmi-
grants English and civics the second makeS school
attendance compulsory for all ilterate and non
Englsh-speaking persons between the ages of six
teen and twenty-one years; the third provides that
local boards of education must maintain day, eve
ming or industrial classes for immigrants wherever
there are twenty of them who apply for instruction
The bureau of education believes the passage of
such laws in each of the fifteen principal mmiSra-
ton states will be a great step toward giving lmmi-
grants greater educational advantages
The first and chief purpose of the Americaniza-