Arizona sun., 1949-04-08
HOW LOYALTY PROBERS
VCTIMIZE NEGROES
By John Hudson Jones

What were your Wlte'S DelleIS
prior to the time you knew herr"
"What kind of books did she buy?"
'Do you think she might have been
an extremist about civil liberties
race discrimination of
that nature?'
These are some of the incredible
questions the Truman Loyalty
bloodhounds ask government en-
ployeS as exposed in a 23-page re-
port of a three months inveStiga-
-tion made by the CIO United Pub
lie Workers. Entitled Thought
Control" the report is based on
official transcripts and secret tes-
timony of 20 cases selected from
the 100 examined.
Citing its consistent opposition
to President Truman's Executive
Order 1886, the UPW declares:
eve now present evidence that the
loyalty investigation against federal
employees is nothing but
thought-control inquiry designed
to intimidate any employee who
wants to exercise his rights as an
American citizen to freedom of
thought, speech and assembly,"
The report shows that Trumans
program has been used to dismiss
nearly 100 Negro employees who
were fighting discrimination in the
various federal agencies. "But not
only has interest in civil liberties
been looked upon as subversive,
but union activity has. been the
subject m a ter of disloyalty
charges"
HERE are a few other questions
the probers use to determine "dis-
loyalty" as based on the official
transcripts.
Q. Did you ever go over the heads
of your superiors to complain of
your work?
@. Why did you switch to the CIO?
The UPW charges the Truman
program is FUSED to destroy aca-
demic freedom" citing as evidence
cases where the "FBI have probed
the entire academic life of the ac-
cused employee, and demanded ex-
plantations from the employees as
to their interests in courses deal
ing with economics and social
sciences" Some questions were:
Q. You took all the courses that
had radicalism in them at college
didn't you?.
@. You found the Liberal Club
Tin college) rather congenial to
your philosophy?
In the case of one Negro worker
in a Southern Veterans Admins
tration Hospital who's fought the
Ku Klux Klan, the UPW report
observes that witnesses for the
accused employee, also Negroes,
were intimidated by sharp and in
solent questions such as this from
a Loyalty Board prober in the
Southern city:
Q. Are you opposed to the gov
ernment getting rid of disloyal peo@
pie?
A. No am not opposed.
Q. Then why did you want 1886
A. Because we felt that when
a Negro started fighting against
discrimination this order would be
brought against him.
The prober, interrupting, de-
clared: ut appears to me that
while you are criticizing the Loyal
ty Board proceedings that you are
overlooking what might have hap
pened in Russia where the Com
mum Party takes its orders from
he would be confronted by
loyalty board. He would face fir
ing squad"
Shortly thereafter" the UPW
report observes, "the employee was
found guilty and was dismissed
from his job. He is war veteran
the sole support of his wife and
new born baby"
THE IDIOCY of the entire 10y
atty program is reflected through
out the official transcript. Ques-
tions are based on guilt by s.
sociation, the suspicion of people
with ideas of radical equality or
militant opposition to discrimina-
ton, and a hundred other undemo-
cratic premises. Consider this one:
An employee was considered
queer" by an FBI informant. The
Board charge was "Speci-
fically, that you have associated
with an individual, who evidence
in our files indicates, is a Commu-
mist sympathizer; that you believe
in anarchy and the attainment Of
ends by violence"
The employee answered, "My
life refutes completely this charge.
| have always tried to live as a
Christian. 1 can truthfully say that
since the age of II years I have
never been involved in violence of
any kind because I abhor violence.