Arizona sun., 1953-08-14
Letters To The Editor
Famine, Fame
And Divorce
To the Editor of
The Arizona Sun:

-
There is a great unanswered
question turning over and over in
my mind. This question has gone
for years and years without a sat-
isfactory answer. When I was a
student in school, some days my
whole class and teacher, would
spend a whole period kicking. this
question around from one point to
another. 1 though just because this
class was a class in Sociology, all
the answers would be there. All
right, here comes that unanswered
question::
Why does fame lead so many
people into the divorce court? 1t
appears that some of us can get
along better an Man and Wife in
a famine than we can in wealth
and fame. Let us turn back the
pages of history, if you please. Let
the records speak for themselves
in this case. Do you know we have
but a precious few Negro men who
have the same wives after they
have reached the top, they had
while struggling at the bottom of
the ladder of fame?
This is true in every walk of
life. Since the writer is Minister,
let us take a look, back upon the
record. I had Minis
ter school Mate who had hard
working, faithful wife, who had the
attitude that because her husband
would be the one who would have
to stand before the social guns in
this modern age, she would push
him to the front educationally, and
she would stay in the background.
This Woodworking wife went into
the White Woman's kitchen,
cooked, washed and ironed, to help
her husband get an education. For
four long years, she worked like a
slave, did without. Made herself
contented with made-over dresses,
and refasnioned hats, helped to pay
the house rent and bought most of
the food. Just as soon as this min
lister finished his training and got
his sheep skin, he began to find
all kinds of fault in his wife.
People begin to call upon him to
deliver special ermons, big
churches began to bid for his serv-
ice as pastor. Finally, he walked
off from that Woodworking wife
who helped him to fame, and mar
ried another girl who had made no
to his struggle to
reach the top.
I fear for what is coming to this
man who could not live with the
one who invested so much to his
success as Minister.
This same thing has happened
in the lives of ministers, teachers,
lawyers, doctors, undertakers, So
cial workers., bankers, farmers, and
people of every walk Of life. 1t just
appears to me that the same two
who struggle side by side in the
valley, should find joy and comfort
in living side by side on the noun
tain.
Last week the famous Billy Eek
stine and his pretty wife June,
made headlines by going into the
Divorce Courts seeking a way to
become disconnected as husband
and wife. One of the most disgrace
full things about this divorce busi-
ness, is that. in the final end, the
lawyers get the meat, and leave
the divorced with only the gravy.
1t looks like all nonsense for a
man and wife to struggle together
while they have nothing, and just
as soon as they are able to own a
home. buy a fine car, and get their
names into the newspapers, lay
aside few dollars, they must
break up, and slide back where
they were, before, starting up the
ladder of fame.
Men, place much of the fault
at our; door steps. Men should be
men, and not men-children. read
just this week where mother was
trying to give away her two chill
dren~ all because her husband was