The guardian. [volume], February 18, 1939, Image 1

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THE GUARDIAN
VOL. 38, NO. 16
SPUR ANTI-BIAS EMPLOYMENT BILL
Milk Co. Regrets - Aristo Pageant Superb
Rev. W. L Imes Speaks for NAACP Feb. 23-Honor Douglass and Lincoln
ANTI-BIAS BILL
HAS STRONG BACKING
LARGE DELEGATION ATTENDS HEARING
Vigorous support of the anti-dis
crimination employment bill was
voiced at a hearing before the Labor
and Industries Committee Tuesday
morning. The hearing was originally
scheduled to be held in Room 433 of
the State House, but so many persons
appeared on behalf of it that the hear
ing had to be adjourned to a larger
room.
Representative Roland D. Sawyer,
who introduced the bill, spoke in favor
of it, and introduced Matthew W. Bul
lock, who made a strong plea for the
bill. He then introduced Roy F. Teix
eira, first vice-president of the Greater
Boston branch, NAACP and Mr. Teix
eira conducted the hearing, calling on
representatives of numerous organiza
tions.
A number of members of the Execu
tive Committee of the NAACP sup
ported the bill, including George Good
man, who spoke both as chairman of
the Program Comm, of the NAACP
and as representative of the Urban
League. Miss Florence Luscomb, Juli
an D. Steele, and Alfred Baker Lewis,
secretary, Boston Branch, NAACP.
As last year the representative of
the state branch of the American Fed
eration of Labor, Kenneth F. Taylor
recorded his organization in favor of
the bill, this year David Boynick, legis
lative agent of the state branch of the
C. 1.0. supported the bill. Theophilis
Nunes also went on record in favor of
the bill on behalf of the Knights of
Pythias.
The bill likewise received support
JAMES FORD
SPEAKS IN HUB
Boston will hear two vital subjects
discussed Wednesday night when
•Tames W. Ford, Communist candidate
for vice-president, addresses a Wash
ington’s birthday mass meeting at
Butler Hall. Mr. Ford will speak on
“The Anti-Lynching Bill”. Another
timely address will bring the question
of “Boston’s Program for Federal
Housing”.
Ford is making his first appearance
here in more than two years. In the
intervening time he has visited Cuba,
Spain, and many other countries, and
his talk will contain a wealth of infor
mation he has gathered in these trips.
Tn this country he has made the most
intensive political compaign for the
vice-presidency of any colored man,
utilizing newspapers and frequent
radio hoopup broadcasts. During these
broadcasts much of his air-time was
devoted to the subject of lynching.
Also on the mass meeting program
with Ford will be Howard Carter, lo
cal leader of the Communists, and Phil
Frankfeld, Massachusetts secretary of
the Party. Entertainers, vocal artists
and others will be heard.
There will be no charge for admis
sion and the public is invited. The
meeting starts at 8 o’clock, Wednes
day, Feb. 22nd, in the main hall at
Butler Hall.
DePriest Garage
255 NORTHAMPTON ST.
Oil - Gas - Repairing - Storage
Now Maintaining the
Ford Service
Tri. KENmon 8158 H. Thomp.oa, Pwp.
The General Bedding and
Furniture Company
967 TREMONT STREET — BOSTON
(South End, corner Davenport St.)
SELLING A COMPLETE LINE OF HOUSEHOLD FURNITURE
New and Second Hand
Prices Very Reasonable
Specializing for Rooming Houses
Mattresses Upholstered Furniture Rebuilt Like New
Come in or Call GEN. 5600
STEVE MELTON, Mgr.
from representatives of a number of
Jewish organizations.
The bill, House 638, was introduced
by Pep. Roland D. Sawyer of Ware
and the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People, to
prohibit public service corporations
from making discrimination in em
ployment on account of race, color or
religion. It reads:
House No. 68
By Mr. Sawyer of Ware, petition of
the National Association for the Ad
vancement of Colored People and
Roland D. Sawyer that public service
corporations be prohibited from mak
ing discrimination in employment on
account of race, color or religion.
Labor and Industries.
elir Ctnnmmuuraltli us
fflasHurijuarttfi
In the Year One Thousand Nine Hun
dred and Thirty-Nine.
AN ACT TO PREVENT DISCRIMI
NATION IN EMPLOYMENT BY
PUBLIC UTILITIES.
Be in enacted by the Senate and
House of Representatives in General
Court assembled, and by the autho
rity of the same, as follows:
Section 1. It shall be unlawful for
(Continued on Page 5)
500 CHILDREN AT VALENTINE PARTY GIVEN BY FATHERS’ CLUB
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GAY PARTY FOR
YOUNGSTERS
St. Valentines Day, 1939 will long
be remembered by the 500 children of
Roxbury that attended the party given
for them by the Fathers Club at the
Robert Gould Shaw House last Tues
day afternoon. The gymnasium was
filled to capacity; with many of the
Mothers and Fathers in attendance to
watch their little darlings enjoy the
elaborate program arranged for them
by the committee composed of mem
bers of the Fathers Club and the Staff
of Shaw House. Group games, spec
ialty dance routines, marching, singing
and cheering were included in the pro
gram put on by the children themselves.
(Continued on Page 5)
GUARDIAN, BOSTON, MASS., FEBRUARY 18, 1939
CLUB PROTEST
WINS APOLOGY
MILK CO. REGRETS
Regret that the Pet Milk Company
radio advertising program had used a
song ridiculing the colored race was
expressed this week in a letter from the
company’s advertising manager to the
Mass. State Union.
In substance the writer stated that he
regretted that such a number had been
included in their radio program, that
he is “deeply interested in the progress
of colored people” and promised that
the regrettable incident would not oc
cur again.
At the January meeting of the execu
tive board of the Mass. State Union,
the union went on record as strongly
denouncing the Radio Broadcast listed
as the Saturday evening Serenade. The
program was sponsored by the Pet
Condensed Milk Co., one of the songs
introduced was that of “Ml Lill’ Ala
bama Coon” in which occurred the
words, “Piekanneny” “darky”, “kinky
hair”, and other derogatory epithets.
The matter was brought to the atten
tion of the Board by Miss Susie Jones,
chairman, an ardent supporter of equal
rights who is continually on the alert
for the elmination of everything that
(Continued on Page 5)
DRIVE FOR
BETTER HOUSING
CHARLES N. MOORE
First Colored man employed as con
ductor on Elevated is not now on the
job.
CAMBRIDGE —The pressing need
of better housing conditions will be the
topic to be discussed Sunday night,
February 19, at a meeting to be held in
Hotel Continental, Harvard Square.
Among the guest speakers are: Mr.
Corcoran, president of the Cambridge
division, FHA; Mr. Spencer, president
of the First National Bank, Boston;
(Continued on Page 5)
HONOR DOUGLASS at SQ. IN SO. END NAMED FOR HIM
it BiswwWoi it W* ■ Ofc w ’
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Group at Annual Frederick Douglass Exercises at Douglass Sq., Tuesday noon, Feb. 14, under auspices of Boston
Branch National Equal Rights League—Louis Brems, representing Mayor Tobin, placed the city's wreath and de
livered a splendid tribute to the noted abolitionist—other speakers were Ralph J. Banks, Vice President of League,
Mrs. John B. Hall, Atty. Albert G. Wolff, presiding, and Rev. J. S. Myrick, offering prayer.
PAUL ROBESON
IN BIG "FELLA"
HF
I ■k
' X”
PAUL ROBESON
Starring in "Big Fella", a British Lion
Film Corporation production at a New
York theatre.
Barred from New York’s Broadway
because the British-made film “showed
too much racial equality”, “Big Fella”
was transferred to the Apollo Theatre
on 125th Street, Harlem. With Paul
Robeson in the picture are Elizabeth
Welch, Roy Emmerton, Lawrence
Brown, Zardee Jackson and several
other white and colored actors.
Crowds flocked to see “Big Fella”
but reactions were not wholly favor-
(Continued on Page 5)
ARISTO CLUB
AGAIN SCORES
A large and appreciative audience
was present in Jordan Hall, Thursday
night, for the ninth annual production
by the Aristo Club, “A Woman Un
sung,” a pageant which artistically
portrayed the achievements of So
journer Truth. The entertainment
was given for the benefit of Aristo’s
scholarship fund.
The program:
I.
STARLIGHT: Scene: Slave Quart
ers on Master Ardenburgh’s Estate.
Time. About 1810. Narrator: Donald
Joseph. Dance: “Nobody Knows the
Trouble I See”—Mindred Davenport’s
Dance Choir; Mau Mau Bett, Beatrice
Simpkins; Selina, Annetta Elam; Isa
bella, Gertrude E. Smith; Children,
Barbara J. Burnett, Randall Dane,
Thelma Gaines, Jacqueline Parker,
Alice Taylor, Cecil Taylor, Clyde Tay
(Continued on Page 4)
NAACP
ANNUAL MEETING & BANQUET
THURSDAY EVENING, FEB. 23
Horticultural Hall — Boston
Principal Speaker
REV. W. LLOYD I MES of New York
Annual Meeting 6:30 P.M. Banquet 7:30 P.M.
Banquet Tickets $1.75
PRICE FIVE CENTS
CROSSWAITH ON
JOBS FOR COL D.
The Greater Boston branch of the
NAACP held a meeting arranged by
Mr. George Goodman, chairman of the
Program Committee, Sunday evening
at St. Mark’s church in Roxbury on the
topic “Jobs for Colored People” with
Frank R. Crosswaith, chairman of the
Race Labor Committee in Harlem as
the speaker. Mr. Roy F. Teixeira who
is now the first vice-president of the
NAACP, and has been recommended
without a dissenting vote by the Execu
tive Comm, of the * Greater Boston
branch of the NAACP for election as
chairman for the coming year, acted as
chairman.
Mr. Crosswaith is one of the general
organizers of the International Ladies’
Garment Workers Union, and has had
a great deal of experience in getting
colored people into unions and securing
for them the advantages of higher pay
and working conditions such as mem
bership in a union makes possible.
Mr. Crosswaith explained that the
bulk of the colored group were confined
to the agricultural life of the Southland
and to domestic service in the North.
During those years of slavery and
since, the natural resources and wealth
of the nation were being developed and
monopolized, until today the bulk of
America’s wealth and industrial me
chanism are solidly in the hands of a
mere handful of individuals numbering
not many more than a few hundreds.
Mr. Crosswaith went on to point out
that it is only within very recent years
that colored have been given an oppor
tunity to enter industry and the skilled
trades. “With emigration cut off, the
recruits of American industry must in
evitably come from the ranks of the
colored race. However, because of the
increasing mechanization of our in
dustrial efforts there will not be enough
room in industry for all workers.
Therefore, except during the period
of a war, millions of workers, black and
(Continued on Page 4)