The Michigan chronicle. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1936-current, 1943-08-14

CHURCHES AND GOOD CON
DUCT-A great many Negroes are
becoming disturbed about the con-
duct Of some Negro people. II is
charged that many-Negroes riding
street cars and busses conduct
themselves in such a manner that
race conflict Is hound TO continue
i'm a very aggravated form. They
say this bad conduct takes the
form OF cursins. playing the doz-
ems" and use of knives to settle
minor arguments. No doubt these
charges are true to some extent. II
is also no doubt that the same thing
can be said about many whites.
The Negro is apt to become sem
sitive about what another Negro
does, or is accused OF doing. We
have 10 be very careful not to over
state the case OF bad conduct as it
relates to the masses OF Negroes.
There has come TO the attention Of
the write rexamples Of bad tenn
per. bad judgment. and provocative
aggressiveness. on the part of Ne
groes working in factories. If the
matter Of bad conduct is as wide
spread as some of us think il is,
then we must plan some concrete
way of reaching the people respon-
sible for such conduct. We ought
to ascertain however. how wide
spread such conduct is. One fight
carried on by some Negroes in a
given situation. does not Warrant
branding OF the Negro community
with bad conduct stigma by Ne
groes. any more than il does by
whites. Ii there needs 10 be a
concrete program the churches
are the logical place TO start.
The churches can begin to re-
vamp their conduct OF worship so
that the individual worshipper can
recapture through worship a feel
ing OF personal dignity. This all
means that rather than permitting
frustrated and emotionally insecure
people to go away from church
more confused. without having any
idea Of the basis of their confus-
ion. VIC must plan to give them
some insight into themselves. and
their conflicts. For the most part
worship In Negro churches covers
up temporarily the emotional con-
flict. II does not take into account
many of the factors i'm COmmu-
nifty. where segregation. disCrimi-
nation. and oppression are the order
for Negro life.
To put it bluntly there is too
much 'jumpin' i've religion,
among our people, + in the name
Of God. we jump and shout and
treat religion in its organized form
as Il in attendance a; a cabaret
party. what can you expect Of TIC
youngsters. A casual observer
trained in religious techniques. is
apt TO be appalled, at the lack of
dignity i'm worship in The average
Negro church. Youngsters reason
ably argue and sense that there is
no point for emotional stability.
They notice that the parents lives
arc just as confused as theirs The
paren: uses religious emotionaliSm
u give vent 10 their confusion and
Illustration; child more logical and
intelligent about il uses the gang
fights dawn parties and cheap
liquor 70 express their emotional
conflic: and Illustration. In other
words what the young people are
doing is not greatly different TO
what great many OF our adults
are doing. The results arc the
same. The parent actually produces
in the child the feeling tAa; makes
the child act as he does. Organized
religion produces in the community
at large the emotional confusion in
many cases that expresses itself in
some o, tho dan gerous overt behav-
ior now being witnessed in The
community al large.
Negro churches with their lead
ers should study the behavior and
patterns OF Illustration i'm youth.
They could see how definitely the
young boy who talks loud and
makes q scene on the street corner.
is related to the worshipper. who
gets up I'm church and yclls and
jumps. or yells through microphone
some incoherent mutterings about
God and his soul. They are one and
the same thing. One Is accepted as
a distinct pattern for Negro life,
with tolerance. The other Is &C.