Evening star., 1948-12-10

The Washington Cathedral is not
one Of the churches which discrimi-
nate against Negroes. People OF all
races may attend services without
segregation"
Public Policy of YMCA.
Segregation is the public policy
of such Christian organizations as
the YMCA, the report states. It
says the YMCA and the YWCA in
sisted that Negroes among group
of students from Ohio State Uni
Iversity be housed at segregated
branches:
Negroes may eat at the YWCA
cafeteria, but not even white friends
can get a Negro into the YMCA
coffee shop, according to the re-
port.
Concerning the schools, sum-
mary of the report issued by the
committee, said:
Schools for colored children are
inferior to those for whites. Most OF
the buildings were built before the
first World War: a third were
built before the Spanish-American
War and another third acquired
since 1900 have been old buildings
formerly used by white students.
Fairgrounds, gymnasiums, ath-
letic fields, auditoriums, class rooms,
desks, maps, blackboards, shop fix
tures-all are inferior, according
to the rerport." The Negro schools
are too few in number and too small
in size.
Part time instruction.
"In 1947, Is per cent of the city's
colored children were getting only
pa-t-time instruction. In the same
year, the schools for white children
were only three-fourth filled. In
addition, Negro shcools are short
of teachers. From elementary
grades to high school, the pupil load
of Negro teachers in 1946 was IL to
80 per cent higher than for white
teachers"
The report says that, "in many
ways, the color bar in the public
schools Is basic to discrimination
elsewhere"
On the question of the increase
in discrimination, the report says
that Negroes still living in Wash
ington can remember attending
downtown theaters where there
was no absolute color bar such as
exists today.
During the administration of
Grover Cleveland, well colored
people were served at some OF the
best restaurants run by whites. Oc-
casionally Negroes were in the role
of hosts. One of Washington's
most exclusive hotels was the
Wormley House, which catered to
family patronage and the Congress
sional and diplomatic set. 1t was
owned and managed by a colored
man, James Wormley."
Role in Construction.
Negroes once played an important
role in the construction industry
and made a living on their own
merits in many fields, according to
the report. The census of 1890
showed that 10000 Negroes were in
business in Washington out of a
total colored population of $4,000.
Nine out of 10 BARRIERS in the city
were colored. But in. 1910, the
colored BARRIERS had dropped to three
out of 10. Similar losses have been
sustained in other specialized fields. "
Colored employees were not segre-
gated in the Federal agencies from
the time of the Civil War down
through the administration OF
Theodore Roosevelt, the report says,
continuing:
During the last term of Grover
Cleveland, when Southern Demo-
Gratis held positions of leadership in
both houses of Congress, the num-
ber of Negro clerical jobs actually
increased.
Jim Crow seems to have been
first recognized in the administra-
ton of William Howard Taft
But segregation did not
become general Government policy
until the presidency of Woodrow
Wilson. His election in 1912 brought
to power in Washington new kind
of Southern Congressman, politicians
who had won Office on The pledge
to maintain and extend white su-
premacy.' Immediately they set
about putting the Negro in his
place in the Capital.
The colored people of Washing
ton have never recovered from the
blow that struck them in the time
| of Woodrow Wilson"