St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1944-08-18


are against dis McALPIN
elimination and prejudice. But
some of the 5000 whites who tied
I'D the war production effort in
Philadelphia until last week were
members of the CLIO. Of course,
the CLIO officials were violently OPP
posed to the unauthorized strike.
But some of the men participating
in that travesty on democracy
"smelled" no sweeter because hey
belonged to the CLIO.
And the anaogy goes over into
government agencies, too. For eX-
ample the Army took fortnight
and commendable stand on the
Philadelphia "tie-up." It's deter
mination to operate the transpor-
tation vehicles and support the new
hiring policy toward Negroes was
affirmed by reopening of the train
ing course last week for the 8 Ne
groes over whom the 5000 would
be Americans walked out. Still, it
was a member of the Army who
almost precipitated a real riot when
he sought to enforce his Southern
patterns on Philadelphia by sepa-
rating the whites and Negroes on
a bus he was "protecting."
But the most illustrative example
of the "rose" smelling the same no
matter what you call it, is the War
Manpower Commission.
1t was the insistence of the Phila-
delphia regional War Manpower
Commission that the priority refer
raj plan be followed in that area, in
volving hiring of workers without
discrimination because of race,
creed, color or national origin,
which brought the Philadelphia
Transit Company around to hiring
and training Negroes. The Com
pany previously had defied direc
tive of the Fair Employment Prac
tice Committee to do the same
thing.
In Washington, however, wear
ing the same "cloak" of the VINO,
the regional office of that agency
has exempted the Capital Transit
Company from compliance with the
priority referral plan regulations.
The Capital Transit Company has
been defying the FEPC for almost
two years now. 1t has bluntly re-
fused to hire Negroes as operators
and platform men. 1t has admitted
to the Labor Management commit
tee of the Area VINO that it knows
the regulations but that it is not
abiding by the portion on indiscrlm-
mate hiring.
But the area VINO, through its
Labor Management committee and
the Area VINO director, Ernest V.
Connolly, voted down all sugges-
lions of holding Capital Transit to
compliance with the VINO priority
referral rules and regulations. They
have given the Company carte
blanche permitting it to hire with
out clearing through the Employ
ment Service by using its own re-
cruitment methods and program.
Of course, the Capital Transit in
tends to hire only white men and
women as operators and platform
personnel.
And so-even though the Wash
ington area VINO is called the
agency for obtaining maximum
utilization of manpower for the war
effort, it still smells like what it
really is-and that doesn't mean
like a rose.
The question is whether the gov
eminent and the people are going
to let them getaway" with it.
They are as guilty of sabotaging
the war effort through combating
full labor utilization-at a different
stage-as McMenamin, Carney,
Thompson and Dixey, who led the
Philadelphia Transit employees
strike in a five-day unauthorized
walkout.
Collision with the Capital Tran
sit to keep Negroes out is a mild
charge to place against Connolly
and the members of the Labor
Management committee. Derelic-
ton of duty could be added, and
several more serious ones probably
could be proved.
1t will be interesting to see what
happens!