The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1921-11-26
President Harding and Social Equality
(F'rom The Nation, New York;

(From The Nation, New York;
Find fault with the President after
he has gone straight into Southern
territory and come out plump for the
colored mans political and economic
rights, and the necessity of giving
him an education equal to the White
mans? .-.--.
Why then cavil at any single phrase
Of the President? Why not overlook
his one unfortunate utterance in Or
der to bestow upon him unqualified
praise? Because that one reference
- to social equality-"men of both
races may well stand uncompromls-
ingly against every suggestion OF So
cial equality" like a lash upon
every thoughtful colored man and off
set much of the good Mr.. Harding
did. Even in far-off Buenos Aires it
called forth protests; the national Ar
gentine Socialist convention at once
Interpreted Mr.. Harding as meaning
that the condition of "the ten millions
of colored population in the great re-
public will be eternally one of infe-
riority and subordination," and en-
phatically protested against it.. True,
the phrase quoted sweetened the rest
of the dose for the South and saved
the President from endless coarse
abuse and fanatical denunciation as a
"nigger lover" and from the charge
of 'insulting the South" Yet it
would have been far better had he
never uttered it, for by it he played
into the hands of all who justify any
discrimination against the colored
man.
At least he should have defined just
what he meant by social equality. II
he had in mind intermarriage only, he
should, in justice to himself and to
the colored man, have said so. Unfor-
tunately the phrase covers multi
tude of sins. 1t is the excuse for end
less aggression and wrongdoing by
the superior race" In the final
analysis in the South social equality
invariably whites down to the rela-
lions of black men with white women,
and in order to prevent them multi
tudes of our white Americans in the
South honestly think themselves JUS
titled in resorting to any measures
down to torture and burning. So GER
tain are they that this must not be
tolerated that they seek to prevent
any approach to it by even forbidding
colored people the use of public libra
ries, to say nothing of public car
riers. Hardly an hour goes by in the
life of a black adult without there
being driven in upon his conscious
ness realization that in republic
which hypocritically boasts of the
freedom of all it's citizens and their
equality of opportunity he bears upon
his brow the badge of shame and of
deliberately classified inferiority.
So President Harding ought to have
informed us whether he meant by his
words on social equality to approve
of the iimcrow car, the denial of all
cultural opportunities in theaters, in
concert and lecture halls to colored
people, and the unending discrimina-
ton against them in restaurants and
hotels and in practically every walk
of life. He has not even stated that
he is opposed to that precious bit of
Wilson wrongdoing, the segregation
of the colored man in the departments
at Washington. Until Mr.. Harding
does speak out on these questions.
which mean more to the colored man
than anything else, which daily bend
his back, scarify his soul, and make
every educated colored mother look
upon her children and ask whether
she can Justify to them their being
called into existence, he cannot have
thought through the problem nor can
he render the full service which we
believe he desires to render, which
we honor him for seeking to render
Without in the least urging inter
marriage we must protest against the
Presidents propaganda of "funda.
mental, eternal, and unacceptable race
differences We have no quarrel
whatever with those of either race
who urge what they call racial purity
But the true method of control in
this matter is by sound social pub
lie opinion and not by laws, nor by
the branding iron, nor that slow fire
which in the Middle Ages was relied
upon to prevent the spread Of Pro
testantism. These measures are as
Ineffective as they are cruel and de-
basing.
The laws against intermarriage ir
the South are the most effective pro.
motors Of immortality and of con
cubinage and they place the black
woman at the mercy of the white mar
without redress. AS matter of fact
statistics prove that where marriage
is permitted the amount Of it is neg.
hgible. We may rest assured that II
racial intermarriage is socially un
wise and racially destructive, nature
herself will take hand and control il
without mems having to resort tx
crime to check it. But in the las
analysis anyone who believes in in
dividual freedom and liberty must be-
lieve in the right of every sound in
dividual to seek his mate where h,
will and if necessary to pay the price
for his deed in social ostracism tt
which there is no need of adding lega
penalties. Once more we repeat tina
if racial admixture is not prevente.
by the instructive Discrimination Of tn
races, it will not effectually be pre-
vented by denying to one of them tn
ordinary courtesies which individual
earn by their conduct or deserve b,
their essential humanity.
What Mr.. Harding has yet to Sc
is that if the colored man obtains tn
economic freedom, the political free
dom, and the boon of education whic,
he Graves for him this whole question
of race relationship will at once ad
just itself on a far nobler and bette
basis; that as long as the question O
social equality is made the excuse 70
abuse, i'll treatment, and the denial Q
rights sacredly guaranteed by tn
Constitution it works infinite harr
to the whites who thus make of thei
republic an hypocrisy and defile thei
.oxTn so111e h1y :.