The Michigan chronicle. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1936-current, 1943-03-06

In four statements, one puolished
each week in February, have
tried 10 give the public picture OF
racial discrimination and segrega-
ton as have know them in the
Army Air Forces for more than
two years. 1t ~has been an ugly
picture o. wasted manpower and
undcmocrstic action.
Thus at given time. there
have been more Negro applicants
for appointment as weather Srrd
engineering officers than there
we're existing vacancies in Negro
units At the same time, there may
be less Negro radio mechanics
available than are required for ex-
listing Negro units. II has been
shown that service pilots do a type
OF work which does not fit into
the segregated pattern. II is too
wasteful OF men and money TO have
segregated training in all phases
OF aviation work. so the individual
Negro Is assigned, not where he
fits best, but where there is \
Negro vacancy. Negro flyers are
ready. but insufficient Negro
ground crews have been trained.
New white units are balanced
by the mingling Of experienced and
inexperienced men But since all
Negroes in the Forces are new
and inexperienced. and since the
Army insists upon segregation,
there Is no leaven Of veteran pi-
lots or enlisted technicians in these
Negro organizations. Thus the
goth Fighter Squadron will 60 into
combat without a single veteran
pilot and with no mechanics who
have years OF Army experience. II
is for such reasons that the seq
rcgated training and assignment
program cannot make the most ef-
fective use OF available manpower.
Moreover. il is tremendous job
trying TO get up the segregated
scheme. An unbelievably large
amount Of time and energy is spent
\ the War Department and in the
field trying TO work out and 10
carry out plans for using Negroes
and al the same time keeping them
separated from whites.
A year and a half was wasted
making and sdiscarding and re-
making and discarding again va
rious schemes for the segregated
training OF Negro mechanics and
other technicians for aviation
ground crews. More than two
years have passed since the Tuske-
gee training plan was announced
and not one man trained there is
yet in combat. Truly the mountain
labors and brings forth mouse
Wars arc not won this way.
The difficulty Of the segrer
gated program is increased by the
fact that the Negro has had less
opportunity for education and
skilled work experience in civilian
lie than has the white man. Thus,
relatively less Negro soldiers than
whites ere fitted by prior train
ing the experience for technical
work. But the same Is true of
white men from Mississippi=era Ar
kansas as contrasted with white
men from Wisconsin or New York
II all white Arkansans were put
into separate organizations dispro-
portionatcly large numbers OF I'M
trained and unskillcd men would
create a problem. But white Ar
kansans and New Workers are so
mingled so that the individual ca
pacity OF each man can be used
where he will fit best. Only with
the Negro is the uneven distri-
button OF skils made problem by
putting all Negroes together.
Many OF the above observations
apply 10 the entire army, not just
10 the air forces Some people have
wondered why l have confined my
public statements 10 the air forces.
In the first plsce. discrimination
and segregation have been much
worse in the air forces than else