The Dayton forum. [volume] (Dayton, Ohio) 1913-1949, 1938-06-10
What Shall They Do?'

Thousands or Negro young
men and women are beng |
graduated from various col
leges throughout the land.
Since they entered college
four years age new depres-
sion, or recession if you please,
has come upon us. There are
less Jobs now than there were
last year or even two years
ago The wheels Of industry
are almost at standstlll.
When times were good the
Negro graduate had much
difficulty to get a job. Now it
is almost impossible for him to
find employment. It is now
conceded that the surest way
for the Negro to find new
avenues Of efployment is to
use his tremendous buying
power to obtain jobs. This
will be done through organi-
cation and mass action.
IN his second article on the
Negro in the Saturday Even
ing Post, Stanley High makes
the following observations:
'.The effect of the leadership Of
such purposeful organizations has
been not merely to lift the level OF
Negro seriousness but also to carry
rapidly forward the education Of the
Negro in all the techniques of mass
action. Far more than ever before,
the Negro of the North, when he
wants something, joins up with his
fellows to get it. Increasingly he
gets it.
Some Of the things he gets are
not particularly momentous. But the
process il a significant sign of the
times. Tn st. Louis, for example,
forty-fve Black Belt blocks have
organized by the Urban League into
block units. Each unit has in II
from SO to 100 per cent Of the resi-
dents Of the block. they have re-
peatedlv closed out local gambling
establishments and houses Of pros
titution, and cleaned up offensive
taverns. Recently, when white
owned chain store whose business
was almost entirely with Negroes
refused to employ Negro help, there
was minor block-unit uprising, a
boycott was organized, the store.
sales dropped toward the vanishing
point, its management capitulated
Negro clerks were hired and the
local housewives returned. content,
to their knitting.
Housewives Rampant
Even those organizations which
start out with more broadly civic
purposes generally turn economic
before they have gone far. The
Pittsburgh courier, which is owne
by the Democratically renowned
Robert L. Vann, recently formed
Negro Housewives League. Mr..
Vann, aqp4reat!y, did not intend to
start anything. All that he wanted
was an Q. g ..zation to demonstrate
to advertisers the buying power OF
Pittsburgh's Negro women. But the
idea caught on. The alert industrial
secretary Of the Pittsburgh Urban
League figured that it had possibil
tiles. So did the housewives. As o
result, its aims were broadened and,
at present, it is part of the local
Negro campaign to force white
companies which do business with
the colored community to employ
Negroes. In fact, helped by the
Housewives League, boycott re-
Gently got under way against large
dairy company which serves the
Black Belt. Negro sales fell at an
alarming rate until the white presi-
dent Of the company arranged for i
Negro delegation TO visit his plant
to see for themselves that he diG
employ some Negro help.
Diaries, apparently, are particu-
larry vul' erable to these pressurs
tactics. In st. Louis, after having
first ascertained that the Blaci
Belts largest milk company did no
have any colored employees, ths
Urban League appealed to the COM
pany officials by letter. Nothina
happened. AS the head OF the league
reports ii, 1--WE were only pushes
around" A formal call was made
on the president Of the company.
We were pushed around some more
The next call was Mt the Office Of his
competitor. Things began to hap