Evening star., 1946-07-28

set us men hne example, said
one of my friends so years ago. We
men yearn TO divide our forces
Some of us like to pull out from
something just to form something
else"
This man was referring to the
decision to unite their forces made
by two national organizations OF
colored women-the National Fed
Grafton of Afro-American Women,
of which Mrs. Booker T. Washington
was president, and the National Col
ored Women'S League, of which
Mrs. Helen Cook of this city was
president
Both groups agreed that it would
be impossible successfully TO main
tain two national organizations at
that stage of their development and
that much more could be accom-
plished by putting all their energy
and resources into one body. The
Colored Women's League and the
Federation of Afro-American Wom-
en- had held separate conventions
here in July, 1896.
Was Committee Chairman.
On the first day of the federation
convention, a committee Of seven
was appointed to confer with seven
from the league with view to unit
ing the two groups. The writer
was elected chairman of this joint
committee. The merger was accom-
plished with comparatively little
friction and the committee, after
much discussion, decided to call the
new organization the National ASSo
citation of Colored Women.
The first convention of the new
association was held September Is,
l6 and IT, 1897 in Nashville. Tenn
The first biennial meeting in Chi
cago, August IA. IS, l6, 1899, with its
las delegates, attracted widespread
attention. The newspapers devoted
columns to reporting its proceed
ines, making favorable editorial
comments on its work and present.
ing pictures of the speakers and
officers. An editorial In the Chi
cago Daily News stated of all
the conventions that have met in
the country this summer there is
none that has taken hold of the
business in hand with more good
sense and judgment than the
National Association of Colored
Women assembled in this city. The
subjects brought up. the manner of
their treatment and the decisions
reached exhibit wide and apprecia-
tive knowledge of conditions con-
fronting colored people
Press Praised Members.
During the second biennial meet
ing in Buffalo, N. Y. July s to IA.
1901. the press of that city praised
the members of the association both
for the manner in which they at
tackled the problems confronting
them and for the skill with which
they dispatched business. There the
association elected as its second
president. Mrs. Josephine Silone
Yates of Kansas City. Mo. woman
admirably fitted by education, char
acter, culture and experience to
serve in the position she had been
chosen TO fill. Since then, with one
Or two exceptions, the National As
sociation has been meeting bien-
nially in various part of the United
States.
There are now sffiliated clubs in
43 States With approximately so 1000
members
Each club affiliated with the Ma
tional Association chooses the kind
of work 1t wishes to do, so that
there has been a variety of activi-
ties in which the members have en-
gagged. Many years ago a hospital
with training school for nurses was
established in New Orleans, which
gave such striking proof of its
yellow fever epidemic that there
after the municipal government
made an annual appropriation to
help maintain it.
Here and there homes for the or
phaned and aged, for unfortunate
women and girls have been founded
or maintained. The association has
tried to impress the dignity of labor
upon its group. 1t has urged its rep
reSentatiVes, SO far as humanly pos
Sibie, TO remove the difficulty of OBJ
tanning employment, due to race pre-
judice, by establishing racial repu-
tation for reliability and proficiency
in whatever occupation or vocation
they earn their living.
Domestic Science Schools.
The necessity for providing
schools of domestic science has been
emphasized Women who have en-
joyed superior advantages of educa-
ton and training are constantly
being urged to come into closer con-
tact with the masses of their wo-
men, many of whom make mistakes
and depart from correct standards
of living, not because they are nat
urally vicious and depraved. as their
detractors and traducers claim, but
because they are ignorant and poor
and have never had a chance.
There has been a goodly number
of f1ourishing musical and literary
clubs and some of the art clubs have
sent fine exhibits to the biennials
from time to time. Glasses have
been organized by some of the clubs
to study subjects in which the men,
bers were especially interested.
Ever since women were enfran-
chised in 1920, the association has
urged it's members to do their duty
as citizens. and to use their vote
to elect just, capable, broad-minded
women and men to represent the
nation, the state. the county, the
cities and towns in which they live
In various ways efforts have been
made to improve the legal status
of the race. The Tennessee Legis-
lature has been petitioned to abol-
iSh the Jim Crow Car Law, The