St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1943-08-20


to be expressed in a series of COM
plants. Brought up sharply against
the paradoxes of democracy, the
Negro in this initial stage of the
development of a line of action
could do little more than articulate
his discomfort. But in the crucible
of Illustration and despair he is
developing a new and positive line
of thought which holds hope for
black people and for the institution
of democracy. He is adopting a
point of view that is not inconsist-
emit with the expressed aims of the
United Nations.
The change in the Negroes men,
tally has come about so rapidly
that few peOple-even Negroes
realize its extent. 1t is expressed in
his refusal to accept segregation
without complaint even in the
armed forces numbers of Negroes
have gone to prison rather than
fight in a Jim Crow army-in i'm
petuous individual defiance of cul-
tural patterns of racial subOrdina-
ton, in the hysterical Oratory of
excited speakers for Negro rights.
But underneath all this is a deter
mination to become a full citizen,
to plan and think for himself re-
CARELESS of past friends and old
leaders.
The basic issues in the Negroes
struggle have changed. While at
first Negro demands were simply
for Negro rights, now they are for
democratic rights for all peoples
throughout the world. While at
first many Negroes were sullen and
wished to see this country brought
to it's knees and made to realize
that without them the war could
not be won, and while at first they
wished to withhold their participa-
ton until certain concessions were
granted, now they are demanding
the right to participate in every
phase of the war so that they can
also participate in the peace. De-
mands for concessions have given
way to demands for equality.
AS for the white people, many
are reacting to the Negroes new
attitude with fear or hate. In the
South, and often in other parts of
the country too, they fear that their
prerOgatives are being challenged.
They are Infatuated by the Negro
press and in terror of the emotions
which they sense behind the mask
like cOuntenance of their once hum
BILE black servants. Southern Con-
gressmen form alliances with re-
dictionary Northern tories to stifle
all legislation which might help
ease racial tensions; middle-class
people form leagues to maintain
white supremacy; the former
Southern liberals caution Negroes
to be patient; and the 'Lumpen-
prOletariat" whips itself up into
a lynch mood. OF course, the Wen
dell WILKES, the Pearl Bucks, and
the Bishop Shells are trying to cope
with the problem, but they are a
minority.
In the face of these conflicts and
tensions the Administration is
bankrupt. AS a matter of fact, the
government cannot openly take
cognizance of the Negro problem.
The logic of our democratic culture
forbids definitely assigning to the
Negro a subordinate status, while
the Southern poll-tax Congressman
block any positive propaganda of
action for national unity. Officially
the Negro cannot be given even a
promise of liberation which will
make him willing to wait and hope
as the English expect the people of
India to wait and hope. The myth
of democracy is, indeed, often used
to prevent the employment of the
most elementary mechanisms for
racial adjustments. A case in point
was the attempt of Southern Con-
gressmen to eliminate the race
relations division of the Federal
Housing Agency, because ''this is
a democracy and we don't need to
consider the Negro as different
from anyone else"
Many white liberals, North and
South, appalled, at the situation,
have cOunseled the Negro to be
patient. They have pointed out the
gains which have accrued to him
during the last three Administra-
tons and reviewed the progress the
Negroes have made in the past
three hundred years. They assume
that because of their past friend
ship Negroes should have faith in
them and in their analysis of the
possibilities and dangers of agrees
sive action by Negroes at this
moment.
What many white liberals do not
realize is that they are measuring
the gains with an obsolete yard
stick. At a time when peoples are
being iquidated or given equality
overnight, gradualism has little
meaning. With a world revolution
in progress one group of people
cannot be held apart from the
stream of thought and told to have
faith in education and goodwill.