The Detroit tribune. (Detroit, Mich.) 1935-1966, 1943-08-28

prejudice affects, IN short.
the whole life Of the nation.
A lot of people are wasting
a lot of time and thought
and energy and emotion on
something which is sheer
nonsense. But there il is.
| What are we going to do
about il?
What are you going 10 do about
~ You can DO one OF TWO things
You can accept The situation as
it is. Won can consider that n viii
he safest for you 70 stay inside
your own nation The Negro ma
ton ~ a white America that will
gradually cease 70 develop IN rs
growth toward true democracy
because OF It's own division Or
you can determine that you are
going 70 help America 10 be that
true democracy Of which We
cream.
II IL more than dream n
has now become necessity-fha,
T. we are 70 win the war and TO
achieve the peace. our country
cen do 80 only as Democracy
and united democracy tell
you frankly that since this war
has swept tho world into lts blaze
have stopped thinking about The
rights of the colored people here
II am asking today only one
question how can every citizen
IN this country fulfiu his respon-
sihiliiy as a citizen Of our deraoc-
racy' ! repeat Il is as democ-
racy that We will win This war
" We cease 10 be democracy.
We will NOT win this war. and there
will not be any peace II We do
not win the war.
Therefore Il is no, enough mere
1 ~ 70 Join the Army and the Navy
and the air forces n they VIII
have us. and 10 do nothing II they
will not II is not enough 10 pour
cur savings into war bonds II Is
not enough 70 put our lives into
factories and war work 50 lar as
we are allowed We will not win
this war unless we win Il as a
nation where human beings are
equal and human rights are re-
specied The peace viii be no
peace unless It is based upon the
principles ~ human equality
DISCRIMINATION IN our country
must 20 because until Il does
we will not have won the war
We cannot fight for freedom nm
less we fight for freedom FOR all
We are no better than fascists n
we fight for the freedom 81 one
group and not another for the
benefit Of one race and not an.
other for The NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. 81
a part and not the betierment Of
the whole And we must he bet
ter than fascists We cannot al
low IN our nation the evil root
n something which Hitler has
developed into a system az slav-
cry the like OF which the world
has never seen. where the indi-
vidual Is nothing hut piece ~
property seized and used and
tossed aside by rohhcr govern
ment Japans militarists go
have for generations conceived the
individual 70 he nothing bur
tool the history % Japan dur
Ing the last four generations has
been the history Of the struggle
between the individual and the
possessor state And tho begin
ming Of tha, struggle anywhere IS
always in the degradation Of
class. the condemnation for some
trivial cause Of group q indi-
viduals
There are nations in the world
and great peoples. who may be
cur friends or our enemies IN
wears soon 10 come depending up
or whether or not We can be-
lieve in the practice OF human
equality speak OF The peoples
~ Russia and China and India
These three peoples, combined
make most of the worlds popu-
lation Combined they hold the
future Of the world among them
Two Of them China and Russia.
are already resolved on the
equality Of races. and india wants
Ter freedom They have suffered
two Of them India and China
severely India disasfrously -
from the effects Of race prejudice.
In world whore these nations
Will have power. and that Is al
ready today. they Will not toll
crate discrimination between peo-
pies II Is essential that these ma
lions be friends with US. and not
our enemies But they cannot Do
wholly our friends n within our
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