The Wrangell sentinel., 1945-02-02

6ots lo lHt senate. voting against
 were Liuck. shattuck, Walsh. Dia- mond and Hoopes
 The bill would prohibit public places such as hotels. theafers
 beauty parlors. etc. from barring natives
 JUNEAU. Jan. 3O-Native rights and discrimination against Alaska natives flew thick and fast in the house this afternoon when the fer. ritorial house of representatives sal as committee of the whole 10 con. sider House Bill 14 granting Alaska natives the same right to patronise bars, hotels, restaurants and places oi public gatherings in Che same manner as white citizens
 Roy Peratrouch lead argumen.s tor the natives. speaking as grand president Of the Alaska Native brotherhood lie cited instances Iu which signs appeared In pubic places of amusement prohibifin- natives, and pointed out Douglas. Alaska, as one such place reraro- flch said his organization had aB- peaieu To Governor Ernest Grueu- Ing Tor removal oI such signs anu the governor had conferred vim one ot the pruprietors of d Douglas nlghl cub, the proprietor promis- Ing To remove the objectionable sign but to date had not done so.
 Peratroyich further pointed out that despIte the very tempting otrer oI Interior department through hearings held recently 10 restore certain large tracts uI lana to aI- legged aboriginal owners, the Alaska Native brotherhood III Us eonreu- uon held at Rake some time ago went on record as against sucu le- stofaJion on the grounds that IDo Indians uIu not want reseI.uuuus but would rather JaAe luelr chances as any other peUpIe. he said some ot the natives uId not agree because the IegisIa,ure two years ago had defeated u Dill simi- lar to that of present H.B II and if the current legislature again de- feated their equal rights bin he could not answer for the conse- quenees. He closed his plea with a quotation from President Roosevelt in which the President said. Man finds his freedom only when he shares it with others"
 Raprbeava fo i,.- NE1,I.h ond division, spoke against the bill on the grounds that he had failed to discern signs of racial discrimin. ation around his home town of Nome and raised the point that pas sage of the bill might raise the question in the minds of his Eski- mo neighbOrs that there Is actual need for such a bill to eliminate a barrier where no sucn barrier now exists. He was called to task by vet eran Senator o. D. Cochran of Nome, who attended the meeting as a spectator, also of the fourth diyi- sion, who stated specific instances of racial discrimination in the far north town and said that as an at- torney he had had many such cases brought to his attention and that he himself was offering a similar bill in the senate and ugred it's pas sage.
 Mrs. Bess Cross, widely known business woman of Deering. also spoke in favor of the bill. urging it's passage to give all persons of Alaska equal rights.
 Mrs. Alaska Linck, representing the Fairbanks area, took the floor and while emphasizing that she was "all for the bill" quoted the fourteenth amendment to the con- stitution which gives equal rights to all citizens of the United States regardless of race, creed or color. She maintained that house bill 14 was entirely unnecessary.
 Andrew Hope, J. F. Krause and Frank Peratrovich. all from the first division, urged passage of the bill and Andrew Hope said that his own daughter, a college graduate, had been refused admittance to U.S.o. activities although she was a member of the organization and the refusal was admitted to be be- cause of native blood. He cited other instances of discrimination in which he had personal experience, as did Frank Peratrovich.
 After various others spoke in fa- vor of the measure, Representative Johnson moved that H.B. 14 be sent back to the house from the committee of the whole with the recommendation that it do pass. Roll call followed in which there werr five dissenting votes Repre- sentatives Shattuck, Walsh, Linck,