St. Paul recorder. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1956-05-18
Is White Rishf7
Is White Rishf7
Do Negroes Want To
Be White? No! Says
American Mercury Article
BY GEORGE S. SCHUYLER
In June THE AMERICAN MERCURY

groes is apt to be true, and the
one that they all want TO be
white is not an exception. At any
rate, it is far less true than it is
thought 10 be, or ever was, or ever
will be. The current widespread
militancy Of American Negroes is
symPtomatic Of something more
serious.
Whatever dreams or ambitions
Negroes may have had once in this
direction have been long since dis
sipated by their painfully disillu-
sioning experiences, and by their
observations Of the lofty Aryan
both at home and abroad.
The general literacy, the influ-
entail Negro press and church, in
creasing knowledge Of the African
background and advances despite
handicaps in every field of en-
deavor have made the Darker
Tenth much less naive. The stud
led and encompassing complex OF
persecution, prescription, ostra-
Cism and insult has considerably
disillusioned the dusky brethren
about white superiority.
In consequence of their pro-
gress, black has lost a tremen.
dous amount of its unpopularity
among blacks. Once ruled by those
with light skins and good" (that
is to say, Caucasian) hair and fea-
lures, colored society has under.
gone a change, Its present leaders
cannot pass" for anything but
Negroes, and none seems unhappy
about IL.
To be sure the national Negro
addiction to Strengthening hail
and Tightening compilations BY
generous use of cosmetics still
persists. Understandably, 1t has
given rise to the not illogical as.
sumption that Negroes are trying
to become like white folks. Startec
a half century ago. this lucrativt
endeavor has enriched numerous
colored and white businesses anc
enhanced self-respect by 'improv,
ing" appearances, especially Of
colored women. A light skin anc
naturally straight hair remain
social assets.
With Spartan courage those pho.
neers, eager to approach the ma
uona standards Of pulchritudt
glazing at them from every maya
zine and billboard, underwent un,
flinchingly the rigors Of primitive
chemistry. The original crude
compounds, caustic and necessar,
lily powerful, often turned kinks &
bright red, SCARED scalps at tn,
hair line and marred dark skins.
One irrate Chicagoan sued his
barber for damages when the hail
came off with the hot towel. Somt
extremists took mild doses Of ar
senic in the hope Of thus attaining
the right" color. Many a fiat nos,
was hopefully pinched in infancy
that the features might grow TO b,
regular" Huge advertisements II
the otherwise race-proud Negrt
newspapers praised a magic ell
ixir guaranteed to turn a blacl
person white in Three Minutes
BY The Clock" Today, similar bu
less harsh compounds are adver
tised more circumspectly in defer
ence to the greater sophisticatior
Of the clientele. With the NegrC
press no longer solely dependent
upon this type Of copy, it doe
not dominate the pages as 1t ono,
did.
In his recent The Color Cur
tain" the Negro author, Richart
Wright relates a hilarious anec
dote in his report on the Ban
dung Conference indicating tina
these rites are not extinct.
white woman writer sharing
bedroom with a colored Bostonial
reporter mistook her acquaintanc,
for a voodoo priestess becaus'
each night in the darkened room
she heated her Strengthening coml
over the eere blue flame from ,
Sterno can. When Wright Ia,
allayed the woman's fears by ex
planning the circumstance, she re
called that her room mate spen
an hour each morning locked il
the bathroom. finally emerging
two or three shades lighter.
For fear erroneous conclusion
may be drawn. It should be men
toned. on the other hand, tina
the huge white cosmetic industr-
is based largely on American fe
male efforts 10 approach neare
TO the wRvy-hAired fair GOODIES
ideal Of gentlemen who prefe
blondes, but no one has cited thes
practices as evidence OF an In
feriority complex Of white Re
males
Nor Is the svidity with whiel
sun tanning. real or artificial, 4
praeticed by millions an indieatior