The Enterprise. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 192?-1930, 1928-06-07
De Priest Fears
Bill Harrison
lContinued from Pace N

(Continued from Page
clans, among whom was Mr.. De-
Priest, and job holders.
"rhey were all on the Thompson
Grove ticket, therefore we could not
get him on that ticket either be-
cause of the ambition of those op.
posing him or they did not want the
l4th and 10th amendments en-
forced. We were finally permitted
to place him on the Deneen ticket
and every Thompsonite fought him
for dear life, and | want our group
throughout the nation to know that
Chicago has some of the shrewdest
and most clever politicians in the
world. If they would use their in-
fluence for the race instead of self,
they could do wonders.
LET me digress here to give a
little BACKGROUND to the story. to
show how Bill Thompson has Allied
the Negro in Chicago. For instance,
Oscar DePriest had been essaying
to regain his power since his trou-
BILE in 1917, but the black people
refused to place faith in him. My
ward, the Third, gave Thompson the
largest plurality, and to show his
gratitude Mayor Thompson set aside
our ward committeeman. George +.
Kersey. and appointed DePriest to
the position. Next, Mr.. Thompson
set aside Edward II. Wright, the
greatest and fairest political leader
of Illinois, of all times, and one of
the best trained politicians in the
United States and placed in his
stead, Dan Jackson, whose record
stands for itself.
"Thus in our efforts we found Al
derman Jackson and Anderson, Will
liam f. King, George kersey, Dan
Jackson, Senator Roberts, and Oscar
DePriest. Their cry ut that time was
the time is not yet ripe and De-
Priest is credited with the statement,
When a Negro is named for Con-
gress will name him, and will be
the man.
Scores Press of City
81 regret to tell my people of the
U. S. that not only could we get any
of the leading politicians TO help us
but neither could we get the sup
port of n single Negro newspaper in
Chicago. The Chicago Defender, the
Whip, the Bee and the Light all re-
fused TO help the cause. The Doug
las Civic League and the Baptist
ministers under the leadership of DR..
l.. X. Williams, with the exception
of Rev. Austin, of the Pilgrim Bap-
list Church, stood by us and were
busy nightly speaking in behalf of
Dawson's candidacy.
money poured into the black belt
and as the world now knows, Dawson
was defeated. We regret to say that
few days later Congressman Mad
den passed away and DePriest was
named candidate for the honor.
want the Negroes to know that we
did not name Oscar DePriest. From an
educational standpoint we question
his ability. Constitutional law, we
are certain he knows nothing of and
fear that his hands are unclean. l
am told that in 1917 he was indicted,
by the grand jury on graft charges.
j have heard him speak. | was not
impressed. The Chicago Tribune
says before he went into politics and
the real estate business he was q
painter and a decorator. do not
know whether this is true, but do
know that the colored citizens of
Chicago have been especially kind to
him. and / feel that l speak the SEN
timents of the best citizens when
say he could have redeemed himself
with us if he had appointed someone
else, if Mayor Thompson permitted
It, rather than grab it for himself.
81 am not thinking of myself or
of the Negroes in, Chicago, but Of
the millions of black people who live
below the Mason-Dixon line. have
not yet forgotten my duty to them.
New York and Missouri and Penn
sylvania must soon send Negro con-
gressmen to Washington. and ! hope
those states will profit by the expert
ence of the First Congressional Dis
'trict of Illinois. Those who once said
the time was not yet ripe, are now
.proclaiming that the time is ripe, but
| want TO add that the time is not
yet ripe to send a political boss Sc
'lected by white bosses who do not
have the interest of the Negro at
heart"