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Maroon Tiger
May, 1968
No Concern For My Black Brother
CLAUDE R. WOODRUFF ’71
“A sad truth is better than a merry> lie. ” (words from a Catholic Sociological Review)
The black bourgeoisie are not concerned with the political, economic, or social restrictions imposed on the
Negro masses. This is to justify their dislocated identity and make them stand clearly dismembered from the
masses. The black bourgeoisie live in a world of make-believe, filled with delusions of wealth and power simply
because they refuse to identify themselves with the traditional culture of fellow black men.
So concerned are they of status, in relation to the white community, that they invariably forget that their
status is directly related to that of the lower-class Negro. After all, traditional Negro culture is inherent in the
lives of all Negroes generally, and nothing can erase it. By sheer reason alone, one should realize that past
history cannot be altered. Thus, the black bourgeoisie’s status has to be related to his origin, originally that
of the lower-class Negro.
The main reason the black bourgeoisie do not live up to their role as concerned citizens in the Negro com
munity is that they are desperately struggling to win acceptance by the whites of the same community. If they,
in their “exaggerated” way of thinking, show concern for their fellow black brothers, this would not be in line
with their attempts to conform to the behavior and values of the white community.
The whites are naturally not associated with the Negro masses; however, the black bourgeoisie, in attempt
ing to disassociate themselves from the Negro masses would have one believe that they too are not really a part
of the Negro community, the Negro masses.
One must admit that though the black bourgeoisie’s concern for the Negro masses is proportional to the
white’s concern for the same, their influence in the Negro community is not small. Their position is one of
dignity and respect. This is probably due to the fact that over half of the Negro masses are uneducated and regard
the black bourgeoisie, in their narrow, opportunistic philosophy, as an ideal to be sought-after.
The Negro in general suffers from “nothingness”, not because of his very narrow culture, but because when
he attains “middle-class” status he generally loses concern for his fellow black brothers.
FOUNDED IN 1898
Editor-In Chief . . . .Walter K. Dancy '69
Assistant Editor David Wilson '70
News Editor Carl Horton '69
News Reporters . . Michael Willingham'70
John W. Holmes '69
Carthur L. M. Drake '70
Feature Editor . Benjamin H. Wright, Jr. '71
Feature Reporters . . . William H. Cain '68
Robert T. Smith, III '71
Sports Editor To be announced.
Sports Reporter . . Charles E. Jackson '69
Faculty Advisors Prof. F. C. Campbell '56
Prof. C. L. Hill '56
Opinions expressed in THE MAROON TIGER
are those of THE MAROON TIGER and not
necessaiily those of Morehouse College.
Photographers Marshall Grigsby ’68
Richard E. Allen '69
THE
EDITOR SPEAKS
Individuality is only
gained by first realizing
that it is not important
in its most superficial
states. The quality of
an idea (or life) makes
it singular: what it is
about. An idea must be
specific and useful and
must function in the
world; it must be even,
an interpretation of that
world that permits a man
to use himself. The sin
gular man uses, first him
self. That is why he is
WALTER K. DANCY singular.Because few do.
EDITOR
As the shadow of his fame, power and love
grew around the world the brave dark man of
courage was cut down by Racism’s child and
died. Dr. King, a great man who graduated
from Morehouse College, begat respect, honor,
and admiration worldwide for his universa-
lism, desire for peace, and all that truly civi
lized men dream. No mistake made. Not
because he went to Morehouse sprang his
greatness. Mind — the man — is central. It was
because of his courage, large-mindedness, in
tegrity and fearlessness to dream in this
pessimistic world that Dr. King magnetized
greatness into his life. He is an archetype, a
symbol living yet in a hopeful flame, a tragic
hero slain on the altar of his mission, a dove
pierced by the eagle’s beak, a comet streak of
wonder in dark night. He is gone. He died
unafraid to change.
As he progressively saw the measure of
white racism in America, Dr. King changed
his tactics to deal with the situation. He
moved from his small church pulpit to the
bus boycott (Remember Montgomery), from
Southern towns to ghetto streets (the bricks
and stones of Cicero), from Morehouse College
to the world (the Nobel Prize for Peace),
from nationalism to internationalism (stop
the Vietnam War), from the pews of Ebene-
zer to the turbulent streets of Memphis,
marching for the underbrothers — the lower-
class garbage workers of Memphis. His chal
lenge was so emphatic and initially effective
that racism would stop him or justice would
prevail. Racism killed him but justice hangs
swordlike over Memphis and America. Just
a little time left to get right. This Dr. King
THE EDITOR SPEAKS (Continued)
knew and like a premonition of his death he
uttered:
Free at last
Free at last
Thank God Almighty
Fm free
That night before his death, what did Dr. King
see for America? His words are like those of
the Delphic oracle —strange, deep, mysterious,
rich in meaning but never completely fathom
ed. Such is the prophet.
A MODEST PROPOSAL . . .
For eliminating slums from the face of
America, and for making these dilapidated
quarters and industrial facilities useful to the
inhabitants and to the country.
It is a most repulsive sight to travel in some
of the larger cities of this great country and
to see the unsanitary and inhumane conditions
in which some people live. These places are
commonly known as slums or ghettoes.
These places not only breed unsanitary
physical conditions but are also detrimental
to the environment. Kids grow up to burn,
loot, kill, and otherwise damage our society.
It will be to America’s advantage for someone
to come up with a solution to this problem.
If someone does, I’m sure he, along with
LBJ, will go down in history — “way down.” .
I have given my n^ost thoughtful hours to
this problem and have come up with a seem
ingly workable idea. Why not just let all the
discontented “brothers” burn the whole damn
place down? At least it will save a lot of
time .and trouble and it will also help relieve
some of the tension. After they have thrown
a few Molotov cocktails and looted all the
stores, we’ll have “whitey” bringing his mon
ey back in and build us another beautiful
potential ghetto.
I am aware that other people have suggest
ed plans to solve this problem. But evidently,
the instigators of those plans failed to survey
the problem carefully. What good would
urban redevelopment do? How would the
allocation for funds to raze the ghetto and
rebuild the city help if attitudes don’t change?
Nope! Other plans that have been offered
just don’t have what it takes.
Keep in mind that this is just a liberal' sug
gestion! It will not profit me to institute
this plan nor to carry it through successfully.
I do not rent flats in the ghetto nor do I have
any business there to offer to be looted.
Since I have risen above the murky waters of
Vine City and sailed into the calm seas of
Cascade Heights, I have nothing more to gain.
John Briggs ’71
It’s
Not
Right
by Bernard Welters ’71
Racial prejudice has existed throughout
civilization. Prejudice is like a communicable
disease. It is a prejudgement with no facts to
effect its formation. It is often the result of
one man abusing another man because he
thinks he will be pushed aside and become
insignificant. Racial prejudice is a phycho-
logical enemy to the abused because he feels
inferior.
Racial prejudice is still a striving factor of
modern American society. Carl Degler, in his
book, Out of Our Past, points out the origin
of prejudice toward the black man. Degler
tells how the white man created stereotypes
of Negroes through the institution of slavery.
He explains that because the white man
possessed slaves, he reached the conclusion
that he is superior to the Negro.
It seems strange that there should be such
misconceptions from educated people who
should know better. For instance,from Gov.
Wallace of Alabama in her constant fight
against the Negro, one gets the impression
that the Governor doesn’t know or hasn’t
learned of the capabilities of the Negro.
A prime example of racial prejudice in this
country is illustrated by the 1956 crisis at
Little Rock, Arkansas. The crisis involved an
attempt by the Governor of Arkansas to pre
vent the enrollment of Negro students in the
all-white public school system. This was
tried despite a court order not to do so, but
the attempt of the Governor was checked by
President Eisenhower. A company of para
troopers were called to enforce the court
order. Here is a case when the white man
failed to understand that all the Negro wants
is a sound education and a chance to display
his talents.
The housing crisis of the summer of 1967
is another example of racial prejudice in mod
ern America.The riots of Detroit and Newark
were the result of deprivation, jealous hatred,
and frustration toward the white man. The
lack of effort by landlords to make im
provements in the ghettoes shows their
indifference toward the poor conditions of
Negro slum areas.
The white man has failed to realize that he
is treating other human beings unjustly. The
white man has failed to realize that racial
prejudice contradicts moral values. He has
failed to see that racial prejudice is not right.