The guardian. [volume] (Boston, Mass.) 1901-1960, 1940-05-25
LOOKING AROUND
and BEYOND
By
FRANK R. CROSSWAITH

Al The THIRD session OF the
National Race Congress held re-
Gently at Washington, D. c., Mr.. A.
Philip Randolph, head of the Brother
hood Of Sleeping Car Porters and
unquestionably one of the most out
standing leaders of American labor,
declined to stand for reelection as
President of the Congress and for
mally severed all connections with the
organization. In so doing Mr.. Ran
dolph has once more rendered a great
service to our group.
WHEN THE NATIONAL Race
Congress was born four years ago,
enlightened and progressive Colored
and white people everywhere recog-
niZed in it an agency of tremendous
potential value to Colored America in
our struggle for justice and equality.
The fact that an individual of the men
tai and moral stature of 4. Philip
Randolph was at the head of the
organization served further to impress
upon all and sundry the belief that
the organization would follow an in
dependent, constructive line and not
become the tool of any special group
with a special axe to grind. Because
OF the high esteem in which Mr.. Ran
dolph is held in the arena of organized
labor, quite a number of unions gave
the Congress their blessings and their
cooperation. It can now be said with
out fear of successful contradiction.
that without the prestige and reputa-
ton of Mr.. Randolph behind which to
nh ]
control, the Congress would have been
a stillborn baby to follow the path of
its predecessor the National Race
Labor Congress.
SHORTLY AFTER THE first Con-
gress was held in Chicago in 1887. it
became apparent that the Communist
Party had gotten in on the ground
floor and was determined to use the
Congress to promote Communist
organization among Colored people.
As result of this knowledge, many
individuals and organizations that
were at first inclined to cooperate with
Congress began to lose all interest in
the enterprise. Some of the most pro-
gressive trade unions possessing a
long tradition of racial solidarity, such
as the International Ladies Garment
Workers Union, the Amalgamated
Clothing Workers of America. the
Millinery Workers, the United Hebrew
Trades and others declined to have
anything further to do with the Con-
gress but preferred to follow their
splendid tradition by continued sup
port Of the constructive work of the
N.A.A.C.P. and the Race Labor Com
mittee.
OF COURSE, THE Communist
stooges at the helm of the Congress
became Immediately alarmed and
began to find ways and means of Dor
traying the Congress in a light other
than Red. But the more they tried.
the more obvious became their infu-
ence over the Congress, especially to
those of US who had had some experi-
ence IN the labor movement with Com
munist tactics and duplicity. Indi
vlduals who were not Communists but
who enjoyed the respect and confidence
OF our group and of the labor move
ment were invited to serve on various
Committees of the Congress, Upon
their acceptance of the invitation, the
Communist journals lavished such full
some praise upon those individuals
that even to this day, many of those
individuals are unable to overcome
the stigma.
UPON ONE OCCASION the New