Newspaper Page Text
66 YEARS OF
CONTINUOUS
PUBLIC SERVICE
LXVI
THEY WAITED IN VAIN—A view of the large
crowd which waited In vain Tuesday night at
the City Auditorium to hear Paul Robeson, re¬
nowned singer and speaker.
For Refusing to Hold Segregated
Meeting, Robeson Rally Forced to
Disband Under Police Pressure
Because the sponsors of a rally refused to segregate
white and Negro attendants w'ho gathered Tuesday night
at the City Auditorium to hear Paul Robeson, internation¬
ally famous singer and a member of the executive commit¬
tee of the Peoples Progressive party, the meeting was dis¬
banded a few minutes after it had got underway when
R. V. Summerlin, the manager of the auditorium, would
njM permit the stage curtain to be raised unless the audi¬
ence was seated Separately as to whites and Negroes-
There were approximately
1,200 persons present in the
auditorium, about 100 of whom
were whites, seated among the
main floor attendants, at eight
o’clock when «• P. Mooney, In¬
ternational Union of Mine, Mill
and Smelter workers represen¬
tative and chairman, of the
meeting, emerged through the
curtain and began addressing
the crowd, telling them that
their organization did not
countenance segregation of the
races and thus the meeting was
free to everybody to sit where
they pleased.
No soon,er had he finished
two or three paragraphs of his
opening talk than Mr. Sum¬
merlin, the auditorium manag¬
er, took the mike out of Mr.
Mooney’s hands and proceeded
to tell the audience that an
unsegregated meeting could
not be held in the auditorium
and that the meeting could npt
proceed unless the races were
separated. He asked the crowd
to withdraw quietly when the
sponsors refused to do this.
Af this point the squad of
policemen who were on hand
began to get busy and when
Reid Robinson, the internation¬
al vice president of the orga¬
nization sponsoring the meet¬
ing and who had flown here
from Chicago (to address the
meeting, attempted to speak to
the crowd he was prevented
from doing so by the police,
who pulled him away from the
microphone and pushed him
behind the curtain.
In discussing the incident af¬
ter the meeting, Mr. Robinson
said:
“Tonight’s action by the po¬
lice was not only an attack on
American constitutional rights
of free speech and free assem¬
bly, but must be considered as
part of the evil fruits of the
Taft-Hartley pattern of de-
j^rw/ing unions in the United
'M&p: This brutal action at
at Municipal Auditorium re¬
minds one of pre-Roosevelt
administration days when the
workers had to fight alone for
their elementary rights of or¬
ganization and collective bar¬
gaining.” national
Clarke Foremarf.
treasurer of the Progressive
party and a leader hi
"or
microphone to speak. He
auanrali (Mmim
Photo By Tolbert
PAUL ROBESON
seized by the police and pushed
behind the curtain.
At this point the crowd began
to disband, leaving orderly,
though with a look of disap¬
pointment on their faces at not
being able to hear Robeson,
who was making his first visit
to Savannah.
Among the other outstand¬
ing Progressives present who
were to address the meeting
were James L. Barfoot, candi¬
date for governor of Georgia;
Larkin Marshall of Macon,
candidate for the U- S. Senate;
Flo J d Hunter, candidate for the
U. S. House of Representatives
from the Fifth congressional
district and Raymond Tillman
New Orleans, representative of
the Union of Transportation
Workers.
Robeson had not arrived at
the auditorium while these in¬
cidents were going on. He was
not scheduled to be on the
scene until 8:30 o’clock.
When Mr. Robeson was told
of the un-American incident
and one which will not give
Savannah a very pleasing
name throughout the country,
he said. ' - MMT
“I regret exceedingly I was
unable to appear before the
(Continued on Dane <!>
Rickenbackei—Graves
Mrs. A L. Rickenbacker and
Mr. J. G. Graves were
Monday, September 27, in
lanta Ga at the home cf Mr.
isiding l sr: vj i CL Y tso ■ A lavs twinI
at 511 West Henry street,
SAVANNAH GEORGIA THURSDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1948
Disappointment was occasioned by the retu-
sal of the auditorium authorities, with police
assistance,, to allow a mixed racial audience to
listen to the presentation.
BARFOOT SHOCKED AT
INCIDENT
James L- Barfoot, guber¬
natorial candidate of th.i
Peoples Progressive party
of Georgia, makes public
the following personal
statement expressing his in¬
dignation when he witness¬
ed how a peacefully assem¬
bled audience w’as by
strong-arm tactics compell¬
ed to leave the Municipal
Auditorium of Savannah
last night and not allowed
the opportunity of hearing
Paul Robeson, world famous
singer and actor!
“As a citizen of Georgia
and as a guest in the his¬
toric city of Savannah, I
was shocked and deeply
miliated at the action of
certain local authorities in
refusing the people of Sa¬
vannah the privilege of
hearing the world-renown
artist, Paul Robeson.
In defense of our state,
I would like to say publicly
that I know' the great ma¬
jority of the people of
Georgia will not approve
this kind of police censor¬
ship.
My faith in the Progres¬
sive party’s future was re¬
doubled when the audience,
both colored and white, dis¬
ROBESON RALLYISTS HEAR PROGRESSIVES— 'Left) Raymond Tillman,
Orleans, speaking to the mixed audience at Masonic Temple Wednesday
night at a Paul Robeson Rally: (Center,. A portion of the large drowd present;
j ~ --- --- --------O rrrisar “.r;
jreal and active Civil Bights program
Court Decisions Spur
NAACP Education Drive
New York, Sept. 30—The
NAACP drive for the elimina¬
tion of segregation in educa¬
tion and equality in teachers’
salaries was accelerated by
three court decisions handed
down this week by federal and
state courts.
In Oklahoma City a special
three-man federal court inval¬
idated the state's laws pro¬
hibiting co-education of the
races insofar as it prevented
admission of a Negro student
to ^he graduate school of the
University of Oklahoma.
In Atlanta a federal judge
ruled that the Atlanta School
Board could not maintain a
discriminatory salary scale bas¬
ed on race. And in Austin, the
Supreme Court of Texas refus¬
ed to grant a writ of error
which would have brought be¬
fore the highest court of
the state the now famous
Sweatt case challenging Bhe
segregation laws of that state.
“These cases illustrate the
irregular course of our drive
against jinn Crow in education,”
Thurgood Marshall, NAACP
special counsel, said. “In
the Atlanta decision we won a
victory which establishes the
right of Negro teachers to sal¬
aries equal to those paid white
instructors. In Oklahoma, (al¬
though the court failed to or¬
der the university to admit our
client, we succeeded in winning
a declaratory judgment which
we believe will enable us to
Continued on Page Six
Growth of
Negroes
In Colleges
By Carter Jewell
NEW YORK (ANP) — The
annual educational number of
The Crisis,, reveals that at
least 88,557 Negroes were en¬
rolled in 1947-48 in American
colleges, universities and pro¬
fessional schools- Of this
number, 5,635 graduated with
bachelor degrees.
That Negroes are seeking ed¬
ucation in increasing numbers
is indicated by the fact that
Negro enrollment in colleges
in 1946-47 was 74,095 or
14,462 less than that for 1947-
48. This increase is noted in
both the Negro institutions of
higher learning and the white
educational institutions.
The Crisis report, likely the
most inclusive one available at
present,, shows that there
were 5,636 graduates with the
bachelor’s degree; 451 with the
master’s degree; 9, Ph. D.; one
doctor of education; one, doc¬
tor of theology; 126, M. D.; 68
Continued on Page Six
played a genuine reluctance
to leave. Dozens of people
approached me to ask if
somehow the concert could
not go on.
This expression of a dem¬
ocratic people’s will is w’hat
made Georgia great. It has
enabled the Progressive
pvrty to place its national
candidates, Wallace and
Taylor, on the ballot in
Georgia, and it will enable
the Progressive party to
place its stette candidates
rtn the ballot also, thus as¬
suring the voters a real
choice in the general elec¬
tions November 2.
DR. THOMPSON IN
CHARGE DENTAL CLINIC
Dr. Luther Thompson has
been appointed in charge of
dental clinic for Negroes at
Chatham-Savannah Health De¬
partment. Dr. Thomson is a
native of Pittsburgh, Pa., where
he received his elementary
and high school training, grad¬
uating from Sc,henley High
School. He entered Fisk Un¬
iversity as a pre-dental student
graduating in June 1944, He
then entered Meharry Medical
Continued on Page Six
Smash Pliilly Dope Ring;
Jail Business Man
Girl Scouts To Celebrate
Issuing of Low Stamp
Mrs. M. B. Payne, chairman
of the Negro division, invites
all of the Negro Girl Scouts to
take a part in the big celebra¬
tion of the issuing of the Ju-
li^tt Low Commemorative
stamp on October 29. This
stamp will go on sale imme¬
diately after this ceremony.
The stamp is being issued
by the past office in honor of
the late founder of the Girl
movement in America,
and it is very befitting that
this stamp should be issued at
the shrine where Girl Scouting
began in America 36 years ago.
Many persons of great note
from all over the country will
be in attertdance at this cele¬
bration. Among the dignitari¬
es incited will be the Postmas¬
ter General, Mrs. Lawrence,
niece of Mrs. Low; Mrs. Dr.
Hayes, first vice president of
the national board of New York,
and members from the nation-
and regional staffs; Mrs-
New, director of public infor¬
mation, Miss Betty Brooks, re¬
gional director, and perhaps
mart others. The Mayor
other city officials will be on
the program.
Included in the program will
be the three color guards, each
guard composed of four Girl
Scouts, three white and one
Negro from Savannah, Pic¬
tures will be made for televis¬
ion and movies- All stamp
collectors will be on hand io
receive one of these commem¬
orative stamps and others will
want one for their friends and
scrapbooks.
All Girl Scouts who have
uniforms or who are properly
identified by their troop lead¬
ers will be allowed to leave
school and attend the cere¬
mony, which will be held
downtown headquarters. This
celebration comes just
Girl Scout week, which begins
Oct. 31 and continues through
Nov. 6.
Mrs. Payne is very anxious
that all girls meet with their
troop leaders and get their
troops reactivated so that they
may be ready for the coming
events. If a girl is not » scout
arVl is desirous of becoming
one, she is asked to contact
Mrs. Countess Y. Cox, field di¬
lector, at 714 West Broad street
or by calling 3-9966.
Balked in their effort Tues¬
day night to hold a mixed au¬
dience Paul Robeson rally at
the City Auditorium, the Mill,
Mine, Smelter Workers Union,
sponsors, held a very success¬
Member Audit Bureau Circulation
Price 7c
Nurses Told
To Fight For
Integration
NEW YORK (ANP) - The J
fortieth anniversary of the
National Association of Color¬
ed Graduate Nurses, honoring
charter members and actress
Lena Horne, was observed on
Saturday at the Tavern-Oiir
the-Green in Central Park.
The guest speaker was Dr.
Charming Tobias, Phelps-
Stokes director. Estelle M. Os¬
borne presided.
Addressing the group of some
306 distinguished guests of all
races at the luncheon, was Dr.
Channing Tobias. The speak¬
er said this is a “momentous
occasion for all of us and es¬
pecially the founders and early
pioneers of this movement. The
organization has called atten¬
tion to the contribution of the
Ne «. ro nurse in . lhe .. , busmess . of ,
healing and care in this coun¬
try.”
Dr. Tobias urged the nurses
to fight for full integration in¬
to all phases of health educa¬
tion. He also stressed the im¬
portance of deleting the word
colored from the name of the
oorganization. “We can’t eat
our cake and have It, too. Full
and complete recognition for
Continued on Page 6
Discrimination in Veterans’
Housing Ordered Ended
Trenton, N. J. Sept. Commission' 30 -By
action of the City
this week. , . Negro veterans , were
assured an opportunity to ob¬
tain housing in a Trenton
veterans’ housing project. Ac¬
cording to charges made by
Clifford R. Moore and Charles
Williams of the Trenton branch
of the National Assocciation
for U/ie Advancement of Col¬
ored People, city officials had
planned, while refusing to pass
on applications of Negro vet¬
erans, to admit white veterans
to the completed units.
ful unsegregated meeting last
night at the Masonic Temple
on West Gwinnett street.
A leader of the organization
said at last night’s meeting
NUMBER 51
PHILADELPHIA (ANP) — A
dope ring was
and a prominent
street business man was
as the alleged opera¬
by members of the nar¬
cotics squad after a month of
intensive investigation.
James Gibbs, the suspect,
alias James Gardner, 46, was
to get in his flashy Lin¬
sedan when he was ar¬
rested by Lt. William Lienhau-
and three detectives-
The accused was held in
$5,000 ball for court by Magis¬
trate Haga|> when arraigned at
Central police station on the
charges of unlawful possession
and sale of Narcotics and con¬
spiracy.
Lienhauser declared that
Gibbs, who operates a hotel, a
cleaning establishment
and a restaurant, has been the
source of supply for South
Philadelphia dope traffic for
several months. There has
been a tremendous increase in
the flow of drugs in South
Pliilly within the last six
months, he continued. In an
to ease the financial
burden incurred by the habit,
are enticing teen-agers
to use the drugs.
An all-out campaign to rid
the city of “peddlers of living
death” was climaxed with the
arrest of Gibbs, Eleven ad¬
have been placed under
arrest and held for court since
the drive began five weeks ago.
The arrest of Joseph Gor¬
don, 26, was the major break
the case which resulted in
the apprehension of Gibbs.
Thirteen capsules of heroin
Continued on Page Six
Protests were made to city
officials and to the State De-
nartiment of Economics Develop
ment, which had built the
homes, by NAACP branch offi¬
cials and by Mrs. Marian Wynn
Perry. N4ACP assistant special
counsel.
The City Commission and
representatives of the Trenton
Committee on Veterans’ Hons-
ing have now agreed that no
applicants will be admitted to
^he project until # all applica¬
tions have been screened and
passed upon without discrimi¬
nation. 1
Photo By Tolbert— Tribune Staff Photog.
that he had been told by a
high police dffieial that no un¬
segregated meeting would ever
Continued