St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1941-01-10
THE
MILE-POST
Minnesota Defense
Force
By Samuel A. Reed

(HOme Guard). The extremely EN-
barrassed recruiting lieutenant
fidgeted, hardly knowing what tt
say. Then he blurted out meaning
less words of cOmmendatiOn fol
the boys fine patriotic spirit, only
to follow his words of praise with
a curt refusal to permit them t.
ill out application forms. He sale
that he was simply carrying out
orders. THE BOYS WERE NE.
GROES!
| AS a result of this incident
strong letters of protest were sent
to the governor of the state re-
questing an audience with him in
order to discuss this problem and
urging him to exercise his execu-
tive authority to end discrimina-
ton in the Minnesota Defense
Force. The heavy silence which
emanates from the office of the
governor is the only answer the
Negro people have received.
Apparently our state admins
tratiOn does not consider this
fundamental violation of citizen
ship rights of sufficient political
consequence. Or perhaps the pres
ent administration feels that it has
discharged its obligations to the
Negro people by employing a few
Negro political leaders" and by
opening up summer camp OppOr-
tunities for a few Negro children.
TWADDLE! Pure unadulterated
twaddle!
Now the Minnesota Defense
Force is in no way connected with
the U. S. Army. 1t is strictly a
state organized and state operated
organization, and there is absolute
ly no excuse for the institution or
existence of a policy of racial dis
elimination unless it is the
policy of the state administration.
Let me here inject a word to
those shallow-thinking people who
smirk at the Negroes desire to
participate in state and national
defense. They say that Negroes
should be thankful for the discrim-
ination and segregation in our de-
tense units-that because of it Ne
groes won't have to fight or die
on the field of battle, if it comes
to that. With those words they
wash their hands and their con-
science clean of this vital problem.
But is it as simple as that? Can
we that easily forget that a citizen
has certain obligations to his gov
eminent which are as sacred and
as inviOlable as that governments
obligations to him? Balanced one
against the other, these two CON-
Elementary responsibilities form
the warp and wool of a true de-
mOcracy.
We cannot justifably demand
equality of opportunity from our
| government if we are not willing
and equally insistent in our de-
mands to share in fair distribu-
ton of the responsibilities of citi-
zenship. On principle there can be
no equivocation on this issue either
by a government or it's citizens.
Having established the serious.
ness of this issue, we must decide
how to combat this particular evi.
dence of racial intolerance on the
part of our state administration.
We have seen that the ordinary
and orthodox methods of voicing
our disproval have failed dismally
to even arouse response. Words
have had no effect. Letters of pro-
test have been disregarded OF
thrown contemptuously into waste.
baskets.
Let there be an end to time-cOn,
suming dalliance! Let every Negro
rally behind the banner of free
dom! Let there be a general mobil
izatiOn for action! Let us prove t.
all that We will fight as viciOusly
for the right to be of service as W.
have for the right to be served
Negroes throughout the nation
shall know the attitude of Mime
sofas governor toward his cOloret
constituents. We will see to that.
| We, as Negroes and Americans
if we be men and women worthy O.
the names we bear cannot let thi.
threat to democracy this insult
to our race pass unchallengeC
or unanswered.