St. Paul recorder., 1943-04-23
ore refrained from citing specific

ment to any of the officers them
selves. But now that the discrim-
ination is publicly denied, l believe
cases should be cited. Nothing ex-
cept racial discrimination can ex-
plain the retention of an expert
enced Negro chemical warfare Of
ficer in subordinate position while
a white officer of considerably less
experience was made Post Chemical
Warfare Officer. This case is made
more glaring by the fact that the
Negro officer had demonstrated his
studious application to his spe-
cialty by writing an elementary
handbook on the subject of Chemi-
cal Warfare. There can be no ex-
planation except racial discrimina-
ton for the refusal to assign a
veteran and experienced Negro of
ficer of the finance department to
the responsible position of Post
Finance Officer after he had been
detailed to Tuskegee, or the assign
ment of a Negro officer to super
wise the post restaurant when he
was sent to Tuskegee because OF
his unusual and outstanding ex-
perience in organized recreation
and physical education. When a
white Lieutenant fresh from CCC
Camp advances rapidly to be a
Lieutenant Colonel and second in
command at the post, one must ask
why a Negro Lieutenant also fresh
from commanding a CCC Camp
and actually trained by the Army
for an Adjutant's work, finds him
self, nearly two years later, merely
a Captain serving as Provost
Marshal. Certainly racial discrim-
ination is shown when not one OF
the half dozen Negro graduates OF
the Adjutant Generals School, now
stationed at Tuskegee, has been as
signed to an Adjutant's duties in
Post Headquarters. There can be
no question that race has been a
large factor in promotions in the
post administration.
It is ridiculous that the War De-
partment now explains that the use
of Negro service pilots is under
study" This matter has been "un-
der study" for a year. The real
trouble as have already pointed
out is the practical impossibility of
working out a Jim Crow plan for
using service pilots.
The Department also states that
sufficient Negro weather officers
and meteorologists are now in train
ing for the present Negro fighter
group. So far as / know, this
means seven Negro weather off
GERS. Yet the War Department has,
within the past few weeks, expand
ed its plan for training a thousand
weather officers to the training Of
ten thousand such specialists. The
few Negroes who were trained all
finished near the top of theil
classes. Yet they and men like
them cannot be used to fill any o1
the prospective ten thousand vacan
cies. This, Of course, is because
they would have to make weather
calculations for white pilots.
The suggestion of the War De-
partment that Negroes are trained
only for single engine pursuit fly
ing and not for bombardment "be-
cause of the technical and other
features present in flying" is sheer
nonsense. The single engine pur-
suit pilot has the most difficult and
exacting aerial task. The fact is
that the Air Forces do not propose
to give the Negro any greater op-
portunity in flying than they are
forced to give.
The excuse now advanced for re-
stricting technical opportunity as
mechanics, radio men, etc., is that a
much smaller percentage Of Ne
groes than white pass the mechani-
cal aptitude test. But in 1941 and
1912 when white volunteers by the
thousands were allowed to qualify
for technical training, Negroes
were being rejected, not because
they were incompetent but because
they were colored. The fact that
fewer Negroes than white were
qualified was no excuse for exclud-
ing the Negroes who could qualify.
I understand that very recently the
Air Command has begun seeking
qualified Negroes in various non
technical units to be transferred for
technical training and assignment.
This, of course, is an important and
gratifying new development.
The history of the Aviation
Squadron (Separate) bellies pres
ent War Department claim that
these units were established to
provide a place for men in the Air