The Michigan chronicle. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1936-current, 1944-09-23
THE FACTS
m OUR NEWS

SCHOOL DAYS ARE HERE
AGAIN With the opening OF
schools all over the country Q,
this time OF the year. II Is importan,
| for parents and their children "a
think about the meaning Of school
Because Of the necessity OF war
young people have been able "a
make a lot Of money doing some
very important jobs. As import
ant as these Jobs are. II Is much
more important that Young people
continue their education. There
should not be any question In any
parents mine about his child's re-
turning to school. BY all means
every child OF school age. should
find himself In some school.
Il will De harder for Negro par
entS 10 make the decision 10 send
their children back 20 school, than
for the parents Of other racial
groups in our population The Ne
gro young person has been denied
jobs 50 long because OF his color
and race. that now. he has the
opportunity 10 work, il would APP
pear on the face OF il, that he
should work In addition to this.
the Negro breadwinner has been a
marginal worker so long that he
will feel the added income from
his children cannot be spared. II
must be remembered by Negro par
ents especially. that much Of the
progress made by us as a race has
been made because we have con-
tinued TO improve ourselves. The
basis for anv real Improvement Is
education. Education is the learn
ing OF new skills which we call
knowledge. and an application Of
those skills to better ones way
Of life. which we call wisdom. Ne
grOes know that democracy has a
way Of passing by people who are
not fitted to carry on with meaning
and purpose the struggle to nave
democracy unfold for all of Its
people.
A Negro child starting out In
the first grade, has about one
chance in three hundred OF gradu-
ating from high school. To me.
your correspondent this should not
be. for getting more young Negroes
through high school, and into COL
lege. or other professional training.
is primarily the responsibility Of
the parents.
When we say the responsibility
Of the parents. we do not mean
just the immediate parents alone;
we mean all of the adult institu-
tons that 60 TO make up a COM
munity. should point toward hav-
ing young people fulfill themselves.
first by adequate preparation and
then by getting into a job or ac-
tivity that will lend itself to the
development OF community.
whether that community Is local,
statewide, or national. Parents
must see to II that the young go
to school. Without proper school
ing this democracy of ours will
lag.
People OF college age will have
a much harder time deciding to go
back 10 school. Their arguments
will be, that they can put off get
ting their education until after the
war. They argue that they can save
money and be ready for school
when the war is over Such a pro-
gram is Stiffness and a parent Is
being "foolhardy" 10 listen TO such
an argument from a college age
person who should be in college.
In the first place. students do not
save money when they are out Of
school. as general rule. They
usually have no more after a year
or two Of work, than they had
when they started saving" There
fore parents should see to it. that
children Of college age drop their
jobs and return to school
Your correspondent has been con-
cerned for some time about the
mediocrity displayed by the average
Negro college student. There seems
to be little effort on the part Of
many college students to learn any
thing In college. These students
barely get by In many instances.
Many Of them have superior minds.
but they seem to major I'm being
college student, rather than in the
material given at the college. This
can partly be laid at the door of
Negro college people I'm the COM
munity. II Is surprising and sad
dening In many instances. to see
how irresponsible many adult Ne
gro college people are. This ire
sponsibiIity on the part of Negro
adults. who have had college en-
perience. gives the young college
student the idea that the end and
aim of going to college is, to gradu-
ate, become a member of one or
two of the social groups of college
people. and continue to act a fool
the rest Of his life.
A college education should give
person knowledge enough TO live
creatively with his neighbors, and
to carry out line of activity that
will make it easier for ones neigh
bors TO find happiness in this world
of ours. A college education should