Minneapolis spokesman. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1959-08-14
Popers Were Leaders
In Securing Job
OpporaWnifies Here
(COntinued from Page ~

Opportunities Here
(COntinued from Page ~
Spokesman and Recorder job pro-
gram, when economic threats
failed to silence the papers, finally
resorted to encouraging the es-
tablishment Of q rival newspaper,
in an effort to counteract the
growing influence Of the Mime
apolis SPOKESMAN and st. Paul
RECORDER. These forces claimed
the papers were too radical and
did not represent the feeling of
Twin city Negroes.
Enemles Turn To Friends
BY this time however, fairmind-
ed community interests began to
perceive that all the papers sought
was "a fair shake" for the Negro
resident Of the Twin Cities In the
job market and all other areas Of
community endeavour. Most Of the
substantial interests who were at
first antAgonistic to the papers
later became good friends and
supporters and helped improve the
opportunity for the Minnesota Ne
gro.
Big Break For Negro Community
The big break in the employment
picture for the Negro community
came when the first mail sub
scriber to the Mime polls
SPOKESMAN, Charles L. Horn,
president of Federal Cartridge
Corp. secured the prime contract
to build and operate the huge arms
plant at New Brighton, MINI.
Horn always quietly interested
in people. including Negro people,
had encouraged Cecil Newman of
the Spokesman & Recorder pub
Usher for years, even while he
was working as editor of the old
Twin City HERALD. When he
secured the huge contract he told
the Spokesman and Recorder news
paper editor he planned to live UP
to the letter Of the law Of the de-
Tense program executive order,
which prohibited race or religious
discrimination, a clause defense
contractors were violating all over
the nation.
Paper Works With Contractor
A condition Of Mr.. Horns will
ingness to give Negro workers
equal opportunity at the plant was
that the newspaper work with him
in the screening, selection and fol-
low-up on Negro workers selected.
Horn astutely expected many prob
lens in changing the discrimin-
atory job patterns and his reason
ing proved accurate.
This work which found the
Spokesman and Recorder papers
working comparatively with the
Twin City Urban Leagues chan
nelled the greatest concentration
Of Negro labor in Minnesota his
tory into a plant where they were
employed in 40 different Job cate
gories. At one time 400 Negroes
were on the plant payrolls.
This was the Big Break-in Job
opportunity in Minnesota for Min
nesota Negroes have not stopped
since Horn startled unbelieving
Minnesota employers by stating
Negroes would be employed as
all others at their top skin and
aptitude, in the plant he oper-
ated.
This new departure required
many hours Of volunteer work by
the newspaper staff and the Urban
League offices, but by the time
World War II ended the non
discriminatory" program at Twin
Cities Ordinance had caught on in
many industries which had here
tofore rejected Negroes as work.
ers. 1t had earned Mr.. Horn the
personal commentator of Presi-
dent Franklin Roosevelt and a
place on the wartime Presidents
Fair Employment Practices Com
mission, the first US. FEPC which
was formed to police the war con-
tractors who still refused to give
Negroes jobs or upgrade them
when they did have them.
Employment Pattern Changes
The impact Of TCOP changed
the entire employment pattern in
the Twin Cities for Negroes and
other minority groups who had in
the past found job finding at their
highest slsiIls almost impossible in
communities that were otherwise