St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1944-04-07

Friday night, March 81. The meet |
ing, attended by 1000, was held at
the First Baptist church.
Randolph spoke in defiance to
"Boss" Ed H. Crump and Crump's |
stooges, which include the city ad-
the city police, the
sheriff's police and last but not
least the Crump Brown Nuts, a
group of local Negroes who jump
at the crack of Crump's whip.
All these with the help of Lev
Loring, rabid Negotiating presi-
dent of the Memphis Trades and
Labor Council and who is referred
to as 'Who Told You I Was A Jew"
Loring; Mayor Walter Chandler,
Vice Mayor "Holy Joe" Boyle who
also is commissioner of fire and po-
lice and who brings the Catholic
vote into the Crump camp; E. W.
Hale, chairman of the county COM
mission; Sheriff Perry, William
Geber, attorney general of Shelby
county, County Attorney Charley
Crabtree had left no stone unturned
to keep Randolph from making
public speech in Memphis.
Friday night, Randolph soundly
denounced Boss Crump and his
methods. Randolph declared that
eff Crump's policy on free speech
was permitted to prevail one could
only exercise the right of free
speech when he said what Crump
wanted him to say. This is dictator
ship with vengeance. Indeed, the
Memphis political boss out Hitlers
Hitler"
Randolph insisted that white
workers and black workers in the
South and everywhere should join
trade unions, the same unions,
where they may work, fight, suffer
and sacrifice together for common
goal. He advocated the placing of
Negro history in every public
school, white or black; the enforce
ment of the 14th and 18th amend
ments of the constitution; the par
ticipation of Negroes in the peace
conference, and the spread of edu-
cation, scientific, technical, profess
sional and cultural among all of the
people in the SAME institutions.
And after Friday nights meeting
at which no uniformed policemen
were seen in the audience, no secret
service men or any who might have
been taken for such were in evi.
dence, Memphis went about it's
business as usual. Beale avenue
sidewalks were crowded to the edge
with its Saturday visitors from the
country who mingled with the
townfolk; downtown Memphis was
quiet and nowhere were there any
signs of racial disturbances such as
"were feared by Crump, his stooges
and his Brown Nuts"
Every now and then on Saturday
a city police car or a car full Of
sheriff's uniformed police would
round corners on Beale avenue anC
its cross streets. There are no Ne
gro police in Memphis, which has /:
population of 10000 colored PEG
pie. There are no Negro firemel
either, despite Boss Crump's asser
lions that he helps to elevate Ne
groes in this city.
Backed By AFL President
Randolph came here with tn
backing of President William Greel
: of the American Federation O
Labor with headquarters in Wash
ington, D. c., who instructe,
George Googe, white southern or
ganizer of the A. F. of L., wit
, headquarters in Atlanta that Ran
dolph was to speak. And Randopl
was prepared to speak at a publ
mass meeting in Memphis if no on
else was there other than Ran
dolph, Googe and some reporters
\ The New Yorker spoke under tn
, auspices of the Brotherhood Q
Sleeping Car Porters, the Team
, sters Union, No. 667; Longshore
!. mems Union; United Textile Work
ers; Laundry Workers, Local 26s
), Freight Handlers, Coopers, Tobat
CO Workers, and others. He spok
y over the protests of the Trades an
. Labor Council although "a locaI
of the council signed pledge
support Randolph's coming an
President Green's move in backin
up the A. F. of LIS policy of fire.
7 speech and free assembly which Il
A. F. L. has upheld since its fount
i ing in 1868.
" T. ]. Johnson, former scho
principal and now a drug stol
" operator at Mississippi and Wake
= and G. L. Young, who nobody in Il
!, Bluff City could be found WI
could attach his name to a regul:
business, were two of the Crun
= Negroes who went all the way
Washington to present to Presidel
: Green the Negro protest again
Randolph making any address he.
now or ever.
We were told that johnson W,
% given 5000 to make the trip Wi
It Young. But as to who passed hi