St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1943-07-30

pastor of the Camphor Memorial
Methodist Church, in the Halle Q.
Brown Community House Tuesday
night, July 20. Rev. Nelson, who
was sent to Sioux Falls to make
the investigation by the local
branch, spent two days, June "a
rs, in the South Dakota community
and returned to Sioux Falls on
July 8, at the invitation of a group
of white and Negro citizens who
wanted to do something about the
unfavorable conditions faced by the
Negro soldiers in the Sioux Falls
community"
In his report, Rev. Nelson re-
vealed the'fac that Negro soldiers
were refused service in almost ev-
cry eating place in Sioux Falls,
except the Rose Room and Twenty
Century Club, a restaurant and
night club operated by Negroes for
Negroes. Negro soldiers are served
courteously in the K and K Depart
ment Store, the Sweet Wine Shop
nd are permitted to bowl and eat
at the Sports Bowl, a fashionable
recreational center. A Negro soldier
reported that he went into a res
taurant and waited to be served for
several minutes. Finally, he was
told that he would not be served
and when he did not get out at
once, he was ordered out with a
black jack.
Girls attending a class in race
relations at a white Methodist
Youth Institute, reported that they
had been given orders by the man
ager of a ten cents store in Sioux
Falls, that when Negro soldiers
came in to be served to "just let
them sit" It is reported that preju-
diced southern white soldiers told
the proprietors of several Sioux
Falls restaurants and cafes that
they would not patronize their
places if "they served n----rs."
Although there are four Negro
instructors at the Air Base, none
of the Negro soldiers are being
given any technical training.
Negro soldiers at the Air Base
are there as flunkies and menials
only. A white major is reported
as telling white soldiers that they
are not to take an order from a
Negro soldier. A Negro sergeant
in the motor pool can not give an
order to a white private. When a
Negro soldier went to his COM
handing officer, a 1t. Shannon, and
requested an order for a pair of
shoes, he was told "Boy, where I
come from only mules and bosses
wear Shoes" He did not get the
order for the shoes. This command
ing officer of the two Negro units,
the 927 and 85th, rarely ever calls
his soldiers including the non-com-
missioned officers anything except
"boy."
Lock RecreatiOnal Facilities
Negro soldiers complain of the
lack of recreational facilities since
they are not permitted into the
two large, well equipped USO CEN
tiers in Sioux Falls, but go to the
jim-crow USO in the basement of
the little St. Johns Baptist church.
They say that they are not well
coined into the Service Club on the
post. Most of the Negro soldiers
come from eastern states, notably
New York and New Jersey and
protest the various determinations
they suffer both on the military
reservation and in the civilian COM
munity. When asked by Rev. Nell
son chow he liked it here" one
soldier said, "Mister, there isn't
much difference between here and
in Georgia" This soldier was a
native of Georgia.
Place Blame
Many Sioux Falls citizens blame
the present discriminatory prac-
tees on the authorities and preju-
diced white soldiers at the Air
Base. When Rev. Nelson asked
Capt. Wosk, who was then COM
handing officer of the Negro I'M
it's, whether it were true or not,
that Col. Cote Commanding Of
ficer of the Air Base) had suggest
ed to the Sioux Falls businessmen
that Negro soldiers be discriminat-
ed against, Mr.. Keys, the warrant
officer, a Negro, answered the ques-
ton. 81 do not believe that Col.
Cote ever made such a suggestion"
he declared. When white captain
went out to the Drake Springs mu-
nicipally-owned swimming pool and
saw several Negro soldiers and CT
villains there, he complained to the
supervisor in charge who paid no
attention to the protest. The en-
ragged officer then went to the chief
of police with his complaint, declar-
ing that such would cause a riot.
he chief Of police and the mayor