The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1949-07-28
Jackie Robinson Knows
Score On Race Prejudice
BY BRADFORD V. CARTER
LPA COlumnist

-
LPA COlumnist
When Negro ballplayer Jackie
Robinson agreed to comment be-
fore the House Committee on I'm
American Affairs on Paul Robe
sons insistence in Paris speech
that the American Negroes would
not fight in any war with Russia,
neither the committee members nor
the public anticipated anything
startling. Ballplayers just don't get
mixed up in political questions,
certainly not during the season.
But Jackie Robinson came into
the hearing as if it were ball
game in st. Louis during the Sept
ember pennant drive. To use base
ball lingo for a moment, he sur
prised the committee by hitting to
the opposite field and dashing
around the bases to score a run al
most before the game began. OF
course, before he was through he
took care of Paul Robson without
any difficulty. BY pulling the un-
expected play, much as he does re-
peatedly in National League COM
petition, Robinson turned routine
hearing into what may turn out to
be some kind of a minor milestone
in the history of race relations. At
the very least, Robinson served
notice that he himself is going to
be a leader on all fronts in war
against discrimination. VIA
No comment on Robinson's state
ment to the Un-American Activi-
ties Committee could be so eloquent
as. that statement itself, Accord
ingly, we take the liberty of re-
printing several telling excerpts
which follow:
g. | don't pretend to be any
expert on Communism or any other
kind of a political ism, But
you can put me down as an expert
on being a colored American, with
30 years of experience at it. And
just like any other colored person
with sense enough to look around
him and understand what he sees,
| know what life in these United
States can be for people who are a
little different from the majority
in their skin, color or the way they
worship their God, or the way they
spell their names. Pm not fooled
because I've had chance open to
very few Negro Americans.
"We're going to make progress
in other American fields besides
baseball if we can get rid of some
of the misunderstanding and con-
fusion that the public still suffers
from. know have a great desire
and | think that | have some res
possibility for helping to clear up
that confusion. As | see it there
has been terrific lot of misunder-
standing on this subject of Com
munism among Negroes in this
country, and it's bound to hurt my
peoples cause unless it's cleared
up.
"The white public should start
toward real understanding by APP
preciating that every single Negro
who is worth his salt is going to
resent any kind of slurs and dis
elimination because of his race.
This has got absolutely nothing to
do with what Communists may or
may not be trying to do.
"And white people must realize
that the more a Negro hates Com
munism because it opposes demo-
cracy, the more he is going to hate
any other influence that kills off
democracy in this country-and
that goes for racial discrimination
in the Army, and segregation on
trains and buses, and job discrim-
ination because of religious beliefs
or color or place Of birth. :.
"Just because Communists kick
up a fuss over racial discrimina-
ton when it suits their purposes,
a lot of people try to pretend that
the whole issue is a creation of
Communist imagination. Ne
groes were stirred up long before
there was a Communist party, and
the'l stay stirred up long after the
party has disappeared-unless Jim
Crow has disappeared by then as
well.
"I've been asked to express my
views on Paul Robeson's statement
in Paris TO the effect that Ameri-
can Negroes would refuse to fight
in any war against Russia because
we love Russia so much. | haven't
any comment to make, except that
the statement, if Mr.. Robson