Minneapolis spokesman. [volume], January 08, 1943, Image 1

About Minneapolis spokesman. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1934-2000

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VOL. 9, NO, 22 BRidgeport 3595 MINNEAPOLIS, MINN., FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 1943 YEAR—7 CENTS A COPY
Sam Reed Coordinating
Committee Issues Bulletin
A bulletin outlining the case of Sam Reed, demoted St. Paul soldier,
was issued by the Twin City Coordinating Committee which seeks a
Congressional investigation of treatment of Reed in the Army. The
bulletin also announced the sending of Rev. C. T. R. Nelson of St. Paul
and Irving J. Blumberg to Washington to investigate the case.
BULLETIN
Sam Reed Coordinating Committee
Twin City Branches National As
sociation for the Advancement
of Colored People
The bulletin said:
The tragic circumstances sur
rounding the demotion of former
Sergeant-Major Samuel Reed and
First Sergeant Clifford Clemmons
at Camp Lee, Virginia, dramatize
the vicious and undemocratic treat
ment of Negro citizens in the
armed forces. Because 25-year-old
Samuel Reed, a native of St. Paul
and a graduate of the University
of Minnesota, is known and re
spected by thousands of Twin City
citizens, his case has an especial
appeal to all progressive men and
women in these communities. The
facts in the case, as they have been
presented in documentary form to
the Committee, are as follows:
OCT. 24, 1942: Sergeant Reed
and Sergeant Clemmons, with nine
other non-commissioned officers,
presented a list of recommenda
tions to the top officer of Camp Lee
asking that colored soldiers be
granted their “full and equal”
rights on the military reservation
and in the surrounding community.
The list of recommendations cen
tered around charges of discrimi
nation in the assignment and equip
ment of Negro Military Police; dis
crimination on public conveyances;
discrimination in the use of facili
ties of the camp (post exchanges,
theaters, service clubs, sports cen
ters and certain areas); the dis
criminatory policy of the War De
partment in limiting Negroes by
quota in some branches of the
service (the Army Air Corps) and
the opening of branches now closed
to Negroes (the Army Glider Pilot
training program). Sergeant Reed
was the chairman of the commit
tee which signed the list of recom
mendations.
NOV. 1, 1942: Sergeant Reed
was reprimanded by his superior
officers because of the alleged dis
appearance of a routine paper con
cerning an officer candidate which
was supposed to have been placed
on his desk. Since the paper re
ferred to was of such a nature that
it could have been easily replaced,
it was felt that the matter had
ended.
NOV. 6, 1942: Without warning.
Sergeant Reed was placed under
arrest by-orders of Colonel Henry,
Brigade Commander.
NOV. 13, 1942: Master Sergeant
Reed was offered the alternative
of standing trial by court martial
or accepting demotion to the ranks
for his alleged destruction of the
paper referred to above. First
Sergeant Clemmons was also of
fered the alternative of standing
trial by court martial or accepting
reduction to the ranks because he
had supposedly “treated one of the
trainees in his charge in a brutal
manner.” Both of these non-com
missioned officers being only too
familiar with the system of prej
udice and discrimination against
Negro soldiers (as evidenced by
their recommendations), “ac
cepted” the demotion. Sergeant
Reed was transferred to Fort Dix.
The whereabouts of Sergeant
Clemmons is unknown.
NOV. 18, 1942: Colonel Henry
called a meeting of all Negro non
commissioned officers of both th*
9th and 11th regiments at Camp
Lee and informed them he had
found it necessary to reduce these
two high-ranking non-commis
sioned officers in his brigade be
came they had protested against
the army policy of race segrega
tion. Then, this commanding offi
cer, in real southern fashion, told
these Negro officers that they
would have to “shut their damn
mouths and accept the army’s
policy and practice of discrimina
tion or be busted and shipped.”
The Twin City Branches of the
National Association for the Ad
vancement of Colored People, and
representatives of many liberal and
labor organizations, angry at the
treatment which had been accorded
these men, protested the matter to
the War Department. The War
Department, through Major Gen
eral James Edmonds, replied that
“Their demotions were coinciden
tal with the drafting and presenta
tion of the set of recommendations
but had no relation thereto.”
Our committee is in possession
of documentary evidence to sub
stantiate its belief that this was
no “coincidence.” The charges
against Reed and Clemmons have
every appearance of being trumped
up in order to cover up the real
(Continued on Page 4)
To Interview
Persons Seeking
Defense Jobs
A representative of a local war
plant will interview applicants for
positions Monday, Jan. 11, from
9 a. m. to 4 p. m. at the St. Pau?
Urban League office, 138 E. 6th St.
Wednesday the representative
will -interview Minneapolis appli
cants at the Minneapolis Urban
League, 240 S. Fourth St., from 9
a. m. to 4 p. m.
A large number of jobs are avail
able and qualified persons will have
opportunity for placement.
BALLET STAR
C.' :< '
ALICIA MARKOVA
Featured Star In Russian Ballet
Perhaps no theatrical venture
traveling in the country today em
braces as many great stars as does
The Ballet Theatre which brings
the Twin Cities annual Russian bal
let season to Northrop Auditorium
on the University of Minnesota
campus Friday and Saturday
nights and Sunday afternoon with
the Minneapolis Symphony Or
chestra.
And all of the great stars will
be seen in each performance, all of
which will consist of entirely differ
ent productions, ten of them in all.
Among the stars are Alicia Mar
kova, Irina Baronova, Anton Dolin,
Andre Eglevsky, Karen Conrad,
Nora Kaye, Rosselle Hightower,
Lucia Chase, Annabelle Lyon, An
tony Tudor and many others.
On Friday, January 8, 8:30 p. m.,
“Giselle,” “Three Virgins and a
Devil” and "Bluebeard" will be
presented. The famous ballet
“Bluebeard” was performed 68
times in New York—a world’s rec
ord.
“Princess Aurora,” “Pillar of
Fire” and “Helen of Troy” will be
performed on Saturday night, Jan
uary 9, at 8:30 p. m. These three
dances are full of drama and the
music by Tschaikowsky, Schoen
berg, and Offenbach will furnish an
excellent background of color and
movement.
Sunday, January 10, will be a
matinee performance beginning at
3:00 p. m. This matinee presenta
tion is ideal entertainment for chil
dren as well as the adults. “The
Romantic Age,” "Peter and the
.Wolf,” “Pas De Quatre,” “Pe
trouchka” will be staged.
Of the ten ballets to be presented
in the three performances, eight
are entirely new to the northwest.
John Martin, dance editor of the
New York Times, says, “This is the
finest ballet company that has yet
been seen in America.”
Principals in the company are
Massine, Baronova, Markova, Do
lin, Tudor, Chase, and Eglevsky.
Alicia Markova is England’s most
famous prima ballerina and dances
with such extraordinary fluency,-
with such lightness and ease that
few people realize that behind her
swift graceful whirling and
pirouetting lies a technical skill al
most unequalled in modern danc
ing.
Tickets for all three perform
ances are on sale at the Downtown
Ticket Office and the Symphony
Ticket Office in Minneapolis and
the Field Schlick Office in St. Paul
for the popular price (tax included)
32.75, $2.20, $1.65, sl.lO.
Our Job Is to Save
Dollars
Bu y
War Bond*
L II J* Every Fay Day
NEW ARRIVALS AT FORT HUACHUCA—Here are new inductees and WAAl'b at chej appeared on the first day ot their training
period at the famous Arizona Army post. *"The boys have been provided with their issue of uniforms and hasten to the barracks. The
girls seem well pleased with their new outfits. Uncle Sam’s soldiers are the best dressed in all the world.
Employment in
War Plants in
Mpls. Climbing
The number of Negroes em
ployed by local war plants con
tinues to increase, according to re
ports 'of the Minneapolis Urban
League. Among those firms that
have hired additional workers dur
ing the past month are Minneapolis
Honeywell, International Harvest
er Company, D. W. Onan Sons,
Twin Cities Ordnance Plant, Mun
singwear Corporation. Additional
jobs have been secured with the
garment manufacturing industry
and with several local foundries.
More Negro women are being
employed by war plants, but with
the exception of the Twin Cities
Ordnance Plant and Munsingwear
Corporation the employment of
these women is not proceeding as
rapidly as it is for the city as a
whole. The Urban League report
shows that there has been no
change in the number of Negroes
employed by the Northern Pump
Company. Three men were em
ployed by this firm approximately
a year ago. To this date the num
ber remains the same.
Chas. W. Washington, Executive
Secretary of the Minneapolis Ur
ban League, states that a casual
check of the war training program
shows that a number of Negroes
are taking advantage of the op
portunities to develop and improve
their skill. However, the present
number of trainees is negligible in
comparison with what the situa
tion ought to be. Those interested
in securing information regarding
various training programs are ad
vised to contact the training di
vision of the United States Em
ployment Service, Miller Vocation
al School and the National Youth
Administration. Information re
garding other training opportun
ities at the University of Minne
sota, Dunwoody Institute, can be
secured from the Urban League
office.
NEW BOY SCOUT
TROOP TO BE
ORGANIZED
In connection with an effort to
start a new boy scout troop at St.
Peter Claver Church, the Men’s
Club of the church is sponsoring a
moving picture show on Friday,
January 8, at 8 p. m., in the sub
auditorium of the church. The
movie is entitled, “The Trail to
Citizenship” and is being shown by
the Local Council of the St. Paul
Boy Scout organization.
Membership in this new boy
scout troop will be restricted to the
boys of St. Peter Claver and those
in the immediate neighborhood of
the church. Boys between the ages
of 12-15, their parents and friends
are invited to come out Friday eve
ning to the movie and organization
meeting.
The special committee for the or
ganization of this new group of
boys is headed by Mr. Owen C.
Howell, president of the Men’s
Club, and the other members of the
committee include Doctors Earl S.
Weber and Charles H. Williams,
Messrs. Fred Schuck, William J.
Gardner and David J. Payne.
Josephine Hall Dead
Mrs. Josephine Benton Hall,
niece of Mrs. Renix Duke and Mrs.
M. R. Wilson, both of Minneapolis,
died Sunday morning, January 3,
at the Anoka, Minnesota, Hospital,
after a long time illness. Mrs. Hall
lived in Minneapolis most of the
43 years of her life.
Mrs. Duke and Mrs. Wilson, her
aunts, will accompany the remains
to Kansas City, Missouri, for fu
neral services and burial.
Also surviving is Luther Benton
of Kansas City, Missouri, and
other relatives of Missouri.
Annual Credit
Union Meeting
Monday 8 P.M.
Assets of nearly $5,000 will be
reported at the sixth annual meet
ing of the Associated Negro Credit
Union at Hallie Q. Brown House
Monday, Jan. 11, at 8 p. m.
Beginning with assets of less
than S6O this credit union has
plugged along for nearly six years
against many obstacles and with
volunteer workers entirely.
The election of officers will be
held, annual reports will be made,
and the value of Credit Unions will
be discussed by a panel including
Miss I. Myrtle Carden, Rev. B. N.
Moore, Wm. Moden, Wilmoth
Bowen and Dr. W. D. Brown. R.
E. Archer, treasurer of the League
Credit Union of Minnesota, will be
on hand also.
During the life of this organiza
tion it has offered various services
to the community, the latest being
a Christmas Savings Plan.
Wilmoth Bowen, manager of the
Sumner Co-Op Grocery, Minne
apolis, will attempt to show how
other cooperative or private enter
prises can be bolstered by credit
unions.
The whole community is urged to
attend this meeting, join in the dis
cussion and learn more about credit
unions.
(The credit union annual state
ment is elsewhere in this issue.)
Lieut. Robert S. Brown, son of
Mrs. Esther Brown, 3828 sth Ave.
So., arrived at home Christmas
Day from Camp Davis, N. Caro
lina, where he received his com
mission as Lieutenant. He left Sat
urday for Camp Tyson where he
will be stationed temporarily.
ST. PAUL WESTERN UNION
HIRES YOUNG RACE LAD
S. Vincent Owens, Executive Sec
retary of the St Paul Urban
League, Wednesday announced the
placement of a young man as mes
senger boy for Western Union
Telegraph Co. The new employee,
Richard Lawrence, who began work
the latter week in December, is the
son of Rev. and Mrs. Alf Law
rence, 333 H No. Chatsworth, and
is attending Central High School.
This placement follows a con
ference held with Western Union
officials a few weeks ago when they
made a statement to the Urban
League Secretary that they would
hire messenger boys or girls and
clerks.
Mpls. Council
Annual Meeting
Sunday Afternoon
The annual meeting of the Coun
cil of Negro Organizations will be
held at the Phyllis Wheatley House
on Sunday, January 10, at 4 p. m.
The Executive Committee of the
Council has planned an interesting
program in the nature of a panel
discussion “Do Negroes Want Total
Integration?”
The discussion will be led by
three well known speakers, John M.
Patton, chairman of the St. Paul
Community Council; Erma Clardy,
secretary of the Minneapolis
Branch of the N. A. A. C. P.; and
Talmadge Carey, secretary-treas
urer of the Associated Negro
Credit Union. Following the talks
by the three speakers, there will be
a general discussion in which ev
eryone is invited to participate.
The annual report of the officers
and committee chairmen will be
made and the election of officers
for 1943 will be held.
We urge all delegates to be pres
ent.
Brother of L 0.
Smith and Mrs. W.
D-Brown Dies
Herman A. Smith, son of Mrs.
G. D. Smith of Minneapolis, now
in Los Angeles, Calif., died sud
denly January 2, on a train en route
from Winnipeg, Manitoba, his
home, to Vancouver, B. C., Canada.
He was an employee of the Cana
dian National R. R.
Educated in the Lawrence, Kan
sas, public schools and the Univer
sity of Kansas, Mr. Smith lived in
Minneapolis for a number of years
before going to Canada where he
had resided for 35 years prior to
his death.
In Minneapolis, Miss L. O.
Smith, attorney, and Mrs. W. D.
Brown, sisters, survive. Two
brothers, Johnny and Prentiss, also
survive.
Services will be held at Lake
wood Chapel, Minneapolis, Satur
day morning, January 9, at 10:30
a. m.
The Truth About the
Matter
The official announcement of fig
ures on Negro draftees and enlist
ments quashes two ugly rumors.
It ends the rumor that Negroes
were not drafted in proportion to
their numbers in the population—
they were, and a little bit more,
though at first the rate was slower.
For with segregation in the ranks,
they sometimes had to wait on
new facilities and the organization
of new units.
It also ends the rumor that Ne
groes don’t think the country worth
defending. They are justifiably
critical about the way they are
sometimes treated. But this is
their country, too, and 16 per cent
of the “volunteers entering the
army through selective service”
were Negroes. Moreover, 10.1 per
cent of the soldiers “inducted into
the army through selective service”
were Negroes, though Negroes
make up only 9.8 per cent of the
population. Des Moines (Iowa)
Register.
O’NEAL RELEASED
Ransom O’Neal, former war plant
guard, held for questioning in the
recent shooting of J. L. Armistead
Jr., was released last Thursday
when a coroner’s jury inquest called
Armistead’s death a suicide.
John M. Culver
Wins Promotion
to Fire Engineer
John M. Culver, 1489 N. Western
avenue, St. Paul, who has been a
member of the fire department
since 1929, was recently promoted
to the position of engineer. He re
ceived a civil service rating which
entitled him to the position, and he
was appointed by Chief William J.
Sudeith.
He began work in his new posi
tion on January 1. Mr. Culver has
been active in civic affairs in St.
Paul and is regarded through the
performance of his work as merit
ing this promotion. He is married
and has two children.
The closing of Station No. 9,
former all Negro manned station,
there was concern expressed in the
community as to whether Negro
citizens would be able to advance
in a department. However, G. H.
Barfuss, commissioner of public
safety, said that Negroes would be
appointed from the eligible list in
regular order. The new policy
means that Negro eligibles may be
appointed to any position in the
fire department, and not confined
to any special designation.
In 1940 a Citizens Committee
composed of Samuel L. Ransom,
W. S. Butler, I. Myrtle Carden,
Rev. G. L. Hayden, Cecil E. New
man, John M. Patton and Clarence
M. Mitchell, Jr., who was then ex
ecutive secretary of the St. Paul
Urban League, approached the
commissioner of Public Safety and
the Fire Chief in an effort to see
that the jobs of the men in Station
No. 9 were safeguarded by keep
ing the staff up to the regular num
ber of people required at the sta
tion.
There was an attempt also to
have a Negro captain appointed,
but there were eligibles ahead of
the Negro candidate who would
not waive in his favor, but were
willing to go to the station manned
by colored firemen rather than lose
civil service rights.
Fifty-two Weeks
Of Pleasure!!
Mail subscribers get 52 weeks,
one year of pleasure brought to
their door by the mail man when
they subscribe to this newspaper.
Victory in the New Tenr
WISE MERCHANTS ARE
As late as 1939 Negroes in this
trade area spent an estimated
$2,760,000 per year for durable
goods. With increased buying pow
er the local Negro consumer is
spending far more money for mer
chandise than ever before. Wise
merchants are cultivating this re
ceptive market via the ad columns
of the Negro press.
Double Trouble
For Asberys
Trouble comes in double doses
is probably an established fact
in the home of Mr. and Mrs.
Herbert Asbery of 1127 Emer
son Ave. No. Trouble number
1 happened about five weeks ago
when Mr. Asbery broke his foot
and was confined to St. Mary’s
Hospital for several weeks. Now
that he is expected to return to
work soon, Trouble number 2
appeared.
What was it? Mrs. Asbery
slipped on the sidewalk near her
home on Christmas Eve and was
slightly injured. At press time
she is feeling much better.
Congressman Tells
How to Pass Anti-
Poll Tax Bill
A plan to pass the anti poll tax
bill in 1943 was announced this
week by Congressman Vito Mar
cantonio (ALP, N. Y.) in the fol
lowing statement:
I have already arranged the in
troduction, on January 6, of a bill
to outlaw the poll-tax as a pre
requisite of voting in federal elec
tions. It will be known as H. R. 7.
To insure against a Senate fili
buster such as killed a similar bill
in 1942, my plan is, with the help
of the aroused people of the coun
try, to secure passage of this bill
in the first half of 1943. A year
and a half will be a long time for
poll-tax Senators to carry on a
filibuster.
At the end of 30 legislative days
I shall place a discharge petition
on the Speaker’s desk, and the cam
paign to secure the requisite 218
signatures of members of the
House of Representatives to force
a vote in the House will begin.
Hearings in Committee on the bill
would be superfluous. The bill has
been fully debated. Hearings would
merely delay passage.
Every week, the people of the
country will be informed which
Congressmen have signed the dis
charge petition, and which have
not. lam sure the people will see
to it, under these circumstances,
that the necessary 218 signatures
are obtained in short order.
It is to be expected that every
parliamentary trick will be used by
the poll-taxers to prevent or to de
lay passage of H. R. 7.
I want to assure the people who
want this bill passed that every
parliamentary manoeuver will also
be used to see that it is passed.
Quick passage in the House is es
sential to the eventual enactment
of the anti-poll tax bill into law.
I am confident that with the whole
hearted support of the tremendous
majority of the people of the coun
try who recognize the necessity of
passage of this law as a win-the
war measure, this quick action will
be obtained and H. R. 7 will become
law.
Youth Council
to Meet Jan. 8
The Youth Council of the Min
neapolis Urban League will hold
its regular meeting, Phyllis Wheat
ley House, Friday, January 8, 7
p. m. The Council will initiate
plans for the 1943 Vocational Guid
ance Program. Participation of
the Youth Council in the Interracial
Week Program to be held in Feb
ruary will be discussed. All regu
lar members are urged to be pres
ent and to invite other interested
youth.
MOVIES TO SHOW NAVY LIFE
Sound movies of Navy life will
be the feature of Navy Night, Jan-'
uary 14, at the Phyllis Wheatley
House, Bth Avenue North and Bry
ant.
The program starts at 7:30 p. m.
and men, women and children are
to be the guests of Twin City Navy
recruiters who are planning the
showing.
Here’s your chance to find out
about your United States Navy and
what it has to offer you.
What? No Soldier
Boys’ Photos!!!!
My boss called me and suggested
it was time to print some more
soldiers’ pictures in the paper and
I readily agreed and promised him
I would send some over to the en
gravers for this week’s issue.
Lo and behold, I looked and had
to swallow those words “I would
send some over to the engravers”
because our supply is exhausted.
So I have to make an appeal to
you to send us pictures of the hus
band, brother, son, who is in the
service—army, navy, air corps. We
prefer the pictures in uniform. We
will not damage the picture and
will return it to you and will print
it free of charge. Snap shots are
not acceptable. It must be a photo
graph with clear features.
But we do want some pictures!
—E. B.
George W. Carver,
Famous Scientist,
Dies in Alabama
Tuskegee, Ala., Jan. 6. Dr.
George Washington Carver, a son
of Negro slaves, died at his home
at Tuskegee Institute last night,
leaving his mark on the South’s
agricultural economy.
Despite his humble beginning,
he became one of the Nation’s
greatest scientists in the field of
agricultural chemistry, discovering
countless uses for native-grown
products and developing them for
commercial utilization.
Dr. Carver never knew the
date of his birth on a farm at
Diamond Grove, Mo_, but he be
lieved it to be about 1864. His
father died when Carver was a
baby. Carver and his mother
were stolen and taken to
Arkansas.
The boy was ransomed for a
race horse valued at S3OO. His
mother disappeared. Carver's mas
ter recognized the boy’s intelli
gence and permitted him to enter
school. After a long struggle, he
won a master of science degree in
agriculture at lowa State college
in 1896.
Two years later, Dr. Booker T.
Washington, founder of Tuskegee
Institute, invited Carver to direct
agricultural work at that school.
There was little equipment for
Carver to use and only 19 acres
of some of the poorest farm land
in Alabama.
He accepted the challenge
and set out to utilize so-called
“waste products” of southern
farms. From the lowly pea
nut, Carver developed more
than 300 useful products alone,
including paper, ink and even
oil to be used in the treatment
of infantile paralysis. The
sweet potato, another of scores
of plants with which he
worked, yielded well over 100
by-products.
Carver steadfastly refused to
exploit his discoveries. Working
in his laboratory at Tuskegee, in
torn apron and baggy trousers,
he declined financial offers.
Carver’s health, always frail,
took a turn for the worse after
his return several months ago from
visiting Henry Ford’s model Green
field village in Michigan at the in
vitation of the automobile manu
facturer. He was confined to his
bed the last 10 days before his
death, which was attributed to
heart disease.
Funeral services will be either
tomorrow or Friday. The body will
lie in state at the school until burial
in Tuskegee cemetery near the
grave of Dr. Washington.
Elks Custodian
Attends Minn. ‘U’
on Q. T. 6 Years
Grant Albert Charleston, cus
todian at the Elks Rest, Minne
apolis, is so quiet and unassuming
that his friends and acquaintances
would never had guessed that he
has been a student at the Univer
sity of Minnesota for the past six
years!
But this week because out of a
biology class of 107 pupils he was
the only one to receive 100% on
his report card, Dean W. Watzer,
professor of biology at the Uni
versity, thought it was worthy of
mention in this newspaper. He is
the only Negro in the class.
For the past six years Mr.
Charleston has attended the Uni
versity only one quarter each year,
taking a veterinarian course. Dur
ing the remainder of each year he
has worked to save for his one
quarter’s tuition and provide for
a family the entire year.
If this ambitious student can
manage to continue his studies ac
cording to his former schedule he
will finish the course in 1944.
In his statement to this paper
Dean Watzer said, “We glory in
his spunk!” “So do we.”
Ruben Silverman
In New Market
Ruben Silverman, well known
fish market man, has announced
the opening of the Great Northern
Food Market at 616 Hennepin Ave.
Mr. Silverman invites his many
friends to shop at the new location.
“The store,” he said, “is a complete
food market.” Their ad appears
elsewhere in this paper.
Vletery in the New Tev
HALLIE ANNUAL
MEETING JAN. 21
Hallie Q. Brown Settlement
House, 553 Aurora Ave., will hold
its annual meeting on Thursday,
January 21, at 8 o’clock at the
Hallie Q. Brown House.