The Colorado statesman., 1924-03-22
Democrats OPP
pose Education
Llncoln News servicel

AlllltOlIl NEWS CtINlItJ
Washington, March IS, 1924.-That
the Sterling-Towner Bill, a Republican
measure which provides for the crea-
tion of a Secretary of Education, to
be a member of the Presidents Cabi-
net, will be bitterly opposed by the
dominant wing of the Democratic
party is a foregone conclusion, the
first gun having been fired by Con-
gresham st. George Tucker, Vir-
ginia Democrat, who pretends to see in
the enactment of this bill an invasion
of the doctrine of States Rights" and
the establishment of "mixed schools"
When the Lincoln News Service re-
Gently called attention to this proposed
legislation, it urged upon our colored
educators throughout the country the
advisability of studying the bill in or
der that they might intelligently sup
port the measure, the passage of which
will open up to our youth educational
facilities now so generally denied them
in certain sections of the country.
Ignorant of, or purposely disregard
ing the benefits the South has received
and is now receiving through the ap-
preparations made available by the
Smith Hughes and by the Smith-Lever
acts, this Democratic congressman
calmly questions. the constitutional
power of the Federal Government to
appropriate money for school purposes.
and stoutly maintains the position that
the Standardization of education can
never be as effective in meeting the
wants of the people in the various
parts of the country, or in its effici-
ency, as that adopted by the people of
the separate states. But his view or
the educational requirements and eff
tn, frfr if,fa fnr.
not shared by the thousands of inter-
ested educators most of the other and
more progressive states was nothing
but a tangled wilderness. 1t is largely
due to these outstanding facts that
Virginia Democratic efficiency of the
Tucker brand does not appeal strongly
to the Republican members of Con-
gress, who, in consideration of the fu-
ture requirements of American citizen
ship, are trying to wipe out the curse
of illiteracy by extending to all child
ren in all states and without regard to
race, color or creed, system of edu-
cation that will contribute to their use
fulness as citizens of the Republic
The Republicans believe in the doctrine
that nothing more essentially benefits
our country than the proper instruction
and direction of the minds OF our
youth, while the Democrats appear to
cling to the idea that for the masses
even an elementary education is a
dangerous thing.
Emphasizing this Democratic policy
of educational retardation, and forget
ting that it is difficult to hold the
other fellow down unless you stay
down with him, Congressman Tucker,
during his speech of opposition to the
bill said: "Only seventeen states of
the forty-eight provide for separate
schools for the whites ana blacks
With the power to fix conditions upon
which the money shall be spent, will
not thirty-one states control seventeen
in eliminating the separation of races
in the schools? The seventeen states
that demand separation of the races
have in the House of Representatives
1872 members The thirty-one states
that make no such requirements have
2S3 members, leaving a majority of
131 from states that have no such re-
auirements. In. the Senate the pro-
position would be thirty-four to sixty
two The preponderating influence
would certainly be felt by the Secre-
tary of Education. To allow our school
systems of the South to be put in this
position cannot be de
Tended"
The colored people of the South are
not asking for "mixed schools" but
they do want a fair distribution OF the
school funds, extended school terms,
and compulsory school laws.