The Northwest enterprise. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1931-1952, 1937-01-22

WASHINGTON The complete
text of the address of Mrs. Frank
lin D. Roosevelt to delegates at
tending the National Conference
on the Problems of the Negro and
Negro Youth, Wednesday morning,
follows:
81 have seen a great deal of
Youth Administration projects in
different states during the past
year. because whenever I have the
opportunity 7 have tried to see
them. IN msJiy cases I have seen
projects whe e colored young peo-
pie were working on the different
things that were being done, and I
have been very much impressed
with the good work which ! think
the Yout administrator is doing
and by the especially good work
which your young people are do
ing. But / have a feeling that, if
we are looking to the future for
long time program, We have to
consider the problems of these
young people first as they begin
with their parents.
I'VE have to try to devote our
selves to improving housing for
them the recreational facilities
that exist as well as the education
al facilities that exist-and l think
that is true of all parts of the
country. Fundamentally think
housing is most important thing,
because with housing goes GER
tain standard of living,
1T happens, of course, that you
must be as interested in this as
/ am, because It Is probable that
many of your children do not re-
ceive the type of education that
would suit them best. Now that
is true of a great many children
because our education as a whole
fails, l think, to study carefully
enough the aptitudes of the chill
dren when they are small and to
try to develop the things that they
are best fitted to do. OF course,
all children must have certain
fundamental things, but back of
that lies the ability of any child
to face life, to get to school, to
profit by it when he gets there;
and that means proper surround
ings at home, a mother who is ca
pable of feeding her children prop
erly, who is capable of taking care
of them as they should be taken
care of, and proper medical care.
"A big question which all of us
have to face is how we are go
ing to get medical care for people
in low income groups. I don't
think we have been facing it in
the past. l think we are going to
have to face it now because our
future citizens depend on really
getting good advice and proper
care tol their children, and the
mothers and the fathers of the
children, who are going to be born
into the world either with a good
chance of health and strength, or
doomed beforehand never to be
reall yhealthy children.
"All these questions are not
questions just for your children.
They are questions which we. all
of us, face together; but in many
cases there are groups of Negroes
who, because they have not had
muc opportunity in the past, are
in this under-privileged group, and
it is those children, and their pa
rents that I think the N.Y.A. and
all of us are chiefly responsible to
in the development of the different
agencies that are being put ct the
service of people today.
II hope very much that you will
thin kef the problem of the child
rem as a family problem and not
think Only of education, but think
of the entire question of how chill
dren can be brought into the world
SO that they get a good start, of
how they can be housed so that
their standard of living will be a
better standard than it has been in
the past, of how their recreational
facilities can be so increased that