The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1951-07-20

banner reading "Friendship, Peace
Pacts, Trade". We did indeed have
such a banner along one side of the
Coliseum but it was quite small and
completely insignificant by COMPARE
son with the principal banner which
extended completely across the stage
in the front of the Coliseum. This
banner was at least fifty feet long
and the letters were not less than two
feet high. The size may be realized
better when I tell you that two lines
were required to display the slogan:
PEACE IS AMERICAS BEST DE-
FENSE".
This slogan was ignored because
it is a subversfve thing to speak or
work for Peace. The idea that
Peace is Americas best defense is
dangerous to those who are hell
bent for world domination which
must be accomplished by war. Those
who do speak for peace and tell the
people the things they need most to
know, are being prosecuted and dis
credited and destroyed.
DR.. w. e. B. Dubois, the noted Negro
scholar, is one of those who is being
prosecuted for speaking for peace
and the fair treatment of his race. He
made a very fine and moving speech
at the congress. He faces trial for
failure to register as foreign agent"i
Harry Bridges, the great leader of
maritime workers. also spoke at the
congress. Probably few do not know
that he has been under attack and has
been the victim of deportation pro-
ceedings and prosecuted and prosecut-
ed because of his unrelenting fight for
the longshoremen.
Howard Fast and Albert Kahn were
among the other speakers who have
been honored for their literary and
other efforts by legal persecution. Mr..
Fast had the honor of being present
at both Peekskill riots in August 1949
and tells the story in his book "Peeks-
kill, USA'
There were many other speakers and
if mention is not made of their names
1t is because of lack of space and per-
haps my memory is Inadequate. While
the great Negro singer, Paul Robson
and family were present and spoke to
us, he felt unable to sing at the con-
gress. Too much speaking and sing
ing were credited for firing his voice
until he declined to sing at our Satur-
day night concert. However, there were
some very fine singers and musical
talent was not lacking. There were
some well executed dances too includ-
ing a quartet of Puerto Ricans who
danced their own peculiar and inter-
esting dance.
$500 in attendance but the number
may well have been wrong because a
group of men who picketed the meet
ing the first evening was listed as 49,
l25 and 200 in three newspaper ac-
counts. There were actually Ga or IS
OF these men. They were practically
all Displaced Persons, which means
they are unwanted or fearful of re-
turning to their own countries under
present
picketing was a complete failure and
they were laughed off the job No
more was seen of them after the first
evening.
Friday afternoon we divided into
panels for discussion of various sub
lets. Some of the subjects for panel
discussion were: Colonialism and
Peace, Standards of Living and the
War Budget, the Negro Citizen and
Peace, the Education of Our Children
For Peace or WARP, Battle for the
Mind, and the Pulpit and Peace.
Saturday afternoon we had work |
shops on seven subjects as follows |
labor, Women, Community, Farmer
Cultural, Veterans, Youth.
Faced with having to choose a panel |
'r workshop from so many equally |
interesting subjects I attended the
PANEL, The Battle For the Mind" and |
he workshop on Farmer.
The thing that made the congress
most worthwhile was rank and file
by farmers and working
people from the entire nation. Every
occupation and faith were represented
'ut all had one thing in common-the
will to work for Peace
In nation fast losing faith, where
latred and suspicion are destroying
oc1al sanity, such a mass meeting of
itizens of good will cannot escape
icing called "subversive". The meet
ng and those who attended will be
led about and discredited by our pros
itute sources of public information,
tut the fact remains that thousands of
Genuine peace-loving people gathered
n Chicago from all over this nation
n the most laudable of all efforts, to