The Northwest enterprise. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1931-1952, 1940-08-02
Mobilize Negroes
Best Minds
by A. Philip Randolph

ful hour OF crlslA through which
the world and America arc pass
ing. Negroes. along with all ME
nority groups arc troubled and be-
wlldored. In very truth. they are
distressingly unwilling OF their
way.
Myriad. complex. difficult and
dangerous problems confront and
challenge them.
What Is to be done Is the ques-
ton on millions OF tongues What
is to be done about the relation
ships of the Negro people. in At
RIGA. the West Indies and these
United States. to the present war?
Does 1t mean anything to them
whether the Battle of Britain is
won or lost by England or Ger
many. and II so. what? What eff
feet would the sweep of totali-
tartan relationships over Europe
have upon the future fortunes of
the black men of the world?
Assuming that the world. Eur
ope and America, will not be the
same when the war ends. what is
TO be done by the Negro people
when peace comes? What of Me-
gro labor. II totalitarian barter
supplants the bourgeois-demoeratic
gold standard as the worlds sys-
TEN of exchange? Can the modern
trade-union movement survive I'M
der a barter economy? What will
be the effect upon the Negro, the
first fired and the last hired, in
competition with European slave
labor standards
But today here in our own land,
what is TO be done by the Negro
on the movement of national de-
tense? Should Negroes seek to be
integrated into every phase of this
plan, or not? Should Negroes OPP
pose universal. compulsory mill
tary training? If so. why and how?
If not. what should be done about
it?
What is to be done about or
ganized labor? Should Negroes
support or oppose. the American
Federation of Labor or the Con-
gress Of Industrial Organization,
or support. or oppose, both?
Should Negroes support, or OPP
pose, legislation to outlaw trade
unions that ban Negro member
ship?
What have the Communists done
for, or against, the Negro, and
why7
Is Fascism, Communism and Ma
zism a promise, or a menace, to
the Negro people and the darker
races?
Are there any movements for
Negro liberation that should be
wholly under Negro leadership,
control and financial support? If
so. why, and If not, why not?
What do the tendencies of the
Capitalization and decentralization
of federal government control over
education, relief and political prob
lens mean to Black America?
How viii the European refugees
affect the Negro? What if any
thing, should be done about it?
What of the rise of anti-Semi-
tism among The Negro peoT le?
What is it's cause and cure?
These are but few of the
questions that clamor for an an
swer from the Negro people. What
are the answers? Who knows?
These questions suggest prob
lens that cannot be settled by
snap judgment. The answers can
only come as a result of calm, dis
passionate inquiry and discussion,
and the discussion must be con-
Quoted by the best minds in the
race. They are questions of theory
and practice. Without a broad,
clear, theoretical understanding
of modern social forces, world
revolutionary movements, right,
center. and left. capitalist, Fascist,
Nazist, Socialist, trade union and
Communist correct action is i'm
possible.
But the answer smust be given.
They viii not wait. Upon these
answers, the fate Of Negro Ameri-
ca depends. When, and how, should
the Negro people approach them?
! suggest a small conference of
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