Evening star., 1943-05-20
Women 10 Do Part
In Postwar PLANNING,
P-TA Congress Told
Commissioner McMiIIin
Speaks at DinneE.
Closing 2-Doy Session

conversion OF war plants TO civil
ian industrial basis will require
the continued labor of millions of
persons now performing defense
work, Lucille Foster McMillin, civil
service commissioner, told the Dis
trict Congress of Parents and
Teachers at the annual fellowship
dinner at Hotel Statler last night.
ITO enable these millions to con-
tinue In useful jobs is one of the
many aims of our Governments
postwar planning" Commissioner
McMillin pointed out. II think
emphatically that women are pre-
pairing now to do their part in post
war adjustment and peace. OF the
more than 100000 working
women in this country today, many
are mothers, wives and sisters of
the men who fight this war. Can
they ever forget? I believe not.
Sees Postwar Influence.
with women leagued together,
nothing is impossible" Commits
sioner McMillin continued. That
such vast number of women will
be influential in determining which
OF the roads will be Travelled in the
postwar period, I have no doubt"
Guests Of honor were DR.. James
Harold Fox. dean of the school of
education, George Washington Uni
versity, and Mrs. Fox; DR.. Henry
Grattan Doyle and Mrs. Doyle, the
latter president of the Board of
Education, and former congress
presidents, Mrs. C. D. Lowe. Mrs.
Walter B. Fry and Mrs. Mary V.
Rowe. Mrs. E. R. Seal was toast
mistress.
Sex Education Endorsed.
Invocation was said by the Rev
James P. Rogers, minister of Pet
worth Baptist Church. The follow
ing students from jefferson Junior
High School presented a skit: Helen
Potts, Bill Wood, Dorothy Leland
Pete PAUL and Alice Bedrosiam
Mrs. Helen Springman was director
OF the group and Mrs Seal had writ
ten the skit. Mrs. Wilson Ewart gave
vocal selections.
Meeting earlier in the day in De-
partmental Auditorium. the congress
had passed resolutions indorsing the
coming OF public Fairgrounds so as
TO separate young children from
older children in order that the older
children shall not injure or maltreat
the younger ones: advocating fran
chise for District residents and rep
resentation in House and Senate
and sex education in the public
schools.
The dinner last night, attended
by more than 300 members and
guests. closed the two-dav, Both
annual convention of the District
congress.
Recent occurrences at Twin Oaks
Playground, Fourteenth and Taylor
streets NV, where high school BOYS
reportedly have molested 5-year-old
girls in the girls comfort station.
were cited by Mrs. John Bittner of
1854 Taylor street NV, as she ad-
vocated city-wide zoning of play
grounds into strictly segregated sec
tions for elementary school children
and high school students.
9 Mrs. Bittner, president OF the
W. B. Powell Elementary School
Parent-Teacher Associa ton. intro
.duced the. resolution which was
pa sscd by the congress and will be
submitted to individual parent
teacher associations representing
some 10000 members throughout the
city.
shocking" Occurrences.
I'VE have had several extremely
shocking occurrences at Twin Oaks
Playground" Mrs. Bittner said, land
I am actually afraid to let my little
daughter out to play Small girls.
5 to 7 years of age, are being mo-
Tested by older boys.
"One part of the Fairgrounds
should be set aside for elementary
school children, from kindergarten
age up to about II years, and other
sections or other Fairgrounds should
be used exclusively by junior and
senior high school Students" she
declared.
Mothers in the Twin Oaks area
complained to Maj. Edward J. Kelly,
chief of police, Mrs. Bittner ex-
planned, and police captain sent
to investigate revealed that similar
diflculties have been experienced
on other Fairgrounds.
Claims Children Trampled.
"The older boys in effect chase
the smaller children off the play
ground by their rough, hard games,"
Mrs. Bittner continued. They play
baseball with hard balls and small
children are trampled and knocked
down. AS 1t is now. all children
from 5 to 18 years of age play to-
gether on the same Playground
Mrs. Bittner pointed out that
there are many junior and senior
high school Fairgrounds which may
be used exclusively by older chill
dren.
Playground teachers, most of
them women, have no real jurisdic-
ton over the Fairgrounds, she said.
They can order disorderly boys of
the grounds. but they cannot legally
keep them of the grounds perma-
nently. This situation is known to
the boys who take advantage of it.
When playground teachers instruct
older boys to leave the grounds, they
often meet with a stream OF pro-
family and verbal abuse, against
which they are helpless, Mrs. Bittner
said.
DID,