The Informer and Texas Freeman (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 48, No. 30, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 6, 1942 Page: 1 of 20
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Colored Carnegie Library,
Frederick and Robin St.,
Houston, Texas. Z-X
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HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY
- HOUSTON, TEXAS
S 8 - 42
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013
EDITION
Jie ainfurmer
EXA s
FREEMAN
VOLUME 48—NUMBER 30
8
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Ctto
HOUSTON, TEXAS, SATURDAY, JUNE 6, 1942
AACP
LI
NOTICE
READ THE STIRRING
ARTICLE, “THE NE-
GRO’S WAR” FROM
THE FORTUNE MAGA-
ZINE, C 0 M P L E T E IN
THIS ISSUE “ONE-
TENTH OF THE U. S.
POPULATION STILL
HAS NOT A FULL
SHARE IN AMERICA’S
GREATEST UNDERTAK.
ING. NINE-TENTH MAY
HAVE TO PAY THE
COSTS OF WASTEFUL
DISCRIMINATION.”
20 PAGES
PRICE 10e
PRICE: 10 cents
Conference Meets
RECENT GRADUATE
2 Others
Injured
By Shots
TWINS ON ENTERING
LIFE-TWINS IN DEATH
Houston.—Tragedy struck
again late Saturday night,
when John W. Hinton of 2909
Sammy’s Court emptied his
.32 calibre Spanish pistol in
a fusillade of shots that
snuffed out the lives of twin
brothers, C' B and Pete Miles of
2707 Sammy’s Court, on the corner
of Hill and Odin; the fourth such
tragedy in the same spot in four
weeks.
. Pete Miles, who was shot once
in the mouth and once in the left
shoulder, was dead upon arrival of
police and ambulance C. B. Miles,
who was shot in the abdomen, was
rushed to the Jefferson Davis
Hospital in a Brooks and Ross
ambulance where he died a few
minutes later.
> During the shooting melee, stray
bullets hit Daisy Mae Hinton, the
wife of the killer, in the right leg
and Albert Henderson in the calf
of his left leg. Both were treated
at the Jefferson Davis Hospital
and released.
According to reports from
neighbors and friends of the de-
ceased, the Miles brothers and
Hinton had been having trouble
for sometime which started over a
bottle of beer. Both Hinton and the
Miles brothers have police records
neighbors testified. Mrs. John Etta
Miles, wife of Pete Miles couldn’t
be reached for a statement but
her son I. G. Miles gave a very
graphic description of the grue-
some double murder and the inci.
dents leading up to it. Talking
freely about the tragely, he told
Informers reporters: “The trouble
started about two Sundays ago
when Uncle Johnny Miles, brother
of C. B. and Pete Miles, went into
Ban’s beer joint on the corner of
Hill and Odin, and bought a bottle
of beer and left it on a table.
When he returned the bottle was
empty and a man at the table ask-
ed him who drank the beer and
uncle Johnny told him that he
bought the beer and it wasn't any
of his business. The “Preacher”
(John W. Hinton) jumped up with
the empty bottle to hit him and the
other men at the table, three of
them, got up with their knives. At
this moment my dad, Pete Miles &
uncl' C. B. Miles entered the door
and the trouble stopped.
“We didn’t hear anymore about
the trouble until the next Sunday.
Uncle C. B. Miles, in the same beer
(See INJURED. Page 18. Cel. 8)
COMMENCEMENT SPEAKER
Sun Shipbuilding
Corp. Plant To Be
Manned By 9,000
By AL WHITE
CHESTER, Pa.—(ANP)—The first
official announcement of the pro.
posed expansion at the Sun Ship,
building corporation plant here,
including the erection of a new
plant which will be manned entire-
ly by Negroes, was made this week
through the office of the president,
, John G. Pew.'
Tentative plans call for the em-
ployment of nearly 9,000 workers
in every phase of the shipbuilding
industry. Negro professional, tech-
nical and other necessary workers
will comprise the personnel of the
vast enterprise, the first of its kind
ever undertaken anywhere.
Sun Shipbuilding corporation is
not a new concern. It is one of the
oldest in the east and a recognized
going concern, handling millions of
* dollars of governmental contracted"
in the course of its business year.
3 Already 675 Negroes are in train,
ing under skilled whites preparing
to take over supervisory positions
in the plant and in turn train new
Negro workers. The new plant is
expected to begin operating by Au-
gust.
IS MOST
SUCCESSFUL;
HAS LARGE
DELEGATION
By LAWRENCE I. BROCKENBURY
SAN ANTONIO.—The Sixth An-
nual convention of the Texas Con-
ference of Branches, NAACP, was
held in San Antonio last Friday,
Sunday and Monday, with the Geo.
W. Carver Library and the Second
Baptist Church .the meeting places.
The convention, which the officers
said was the most successful and had
the best registration of any-in the
state conference’s history, was high-
lighted by many enlightening
speeches, definite plans for action
and important discussions, among
them being:
MISS ERMA JONTEEL GROVEY, is a recent graduate of
Tillotson College, Austin, and is the daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. R. R. Grovey, Houston. Mr. Grovey is also a graduate
of Tillotson. 1:
Miss Grovey is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority.
I he
ROSCOE CONKLING SIMMONS
Roscoe Simmons
To Speak Here
; (1) The election of Dr. C. A.
Whittier of San Antonio as presi-
dent and the re-election of A. Maceo
Smith as secretary; (2) The ap-
proval by the Texas Council of
Negro Organiaztion of its special
educational committee's plans to be-
gin work immediately on the equali-
zation of teachers salaries, and the
endorsement by the state confer,
-nenysss
Production Board, who perhaps
made the most significant individual
contribution to the program pre.
MISS ERMA HUGHES, founder and president of the
Hughes Business College, Houston, was the commencement
speaker at Lawson High School, Montgomery, Tuesday night,
May 26. She spoke on the subject, “Wake Up Youth, It Is
Time To Do Your Part.”
U. S. Supreme Court
Gives Tex. Justice
Double Walloping
REVERSES THE TEXAS
COURT OF CRIMINAL
APPEALS IN TWO CASES
WASH INGTON, D. C.-
Texas justice took a double
walloping from the United
States Supreme Court last
Real Cowboy Gives
Ideas Of Western Life
As Seen In The Movies •
Monday when that tribunal
reversed the Texas Court of
Criminal Appeals in 2 cases.
The conviction of Henry Allen
Hill on a charge of rape by the
District Court of Dallas County was
reversed because colored persons
were excluded from the grand jury
which indicted him and had been
excluded from grand jury syste-
matically for more than sixteen
years.
Welders, ship fitters, electricians
and every type of work known in
modern ship building will be han-
dled by Negroes in this yard, from
the highest to the lowest grades of
work inclusive.
Recreational facilities will com- speeches,
pare favorably with those of other
large modern plants. Particular at-
tention will be paid the general
welfare and morale of the workers
especially recruited for this demon-
stration.
Housing for the great influx of
workers expected will follow the
standards generally accepted and
set forth through model construc-
tion. Some 2,000 men eventually
will have to be taken care of in
the new housing program, in ad-
dition to those already absorbed- by
present housing facilities.
Each worker upon being assigned
to a job after finger-printing and
the preliminary examinations, im-
mediately becomes insured to the
extent of $1,000 covering any emer-
gency which may arise during the
year the policy runs. Renewals of
these policies will no doubt be au-
tomatic, officials believe.
To the town of Chester and the
“ as the “world’s greatest Negro ora-
ten and 4724 of k semE
on Sunday, June 21, at 3 p. m., un- 1" w program by pre-
der the auspices of the Workers' 9 me and, explaining approaches
Aid Club, C. w. Rice, chairman, for the participation by Negroes in
announced this week, national defense training
Col. Simmons is known through-1 ployment.
out the word for his brilliant ora-1 (“
w7ce MEET: SOT . R. CAXQurief & AmtoMic mh
been acclaimed by other orators $
such as Henry Watterson, Theodore
Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and 1
numerous daily papers have edi-
torially lauded the brilliancy of his 1
and em-
4) The welcome address by May.
his frank and honest admission that
had it not been for the Negro vote,
he would not be mayor today.
To Start Salary Fight
On Friday afternoon the Texas
Council of Organizations reviewed
the work of the special educational
Known for his patriotism, Sim-
mons says of himself: "Put me 1 . . -*-*------Mum-as
down if you will as colored, but I committee headed by President J. J.
am a member of the- American I Rhoads. Mr. Rhoads explained
people and whoever leads that peo- * *
ple, Democrat or Republican,
Southerner or Northerner, (
on me.”
A great disciple of Booker T.
Washington, he has, by his genius,
lifted this great educator almost to
a faith in the minds of the people.
He has been a delegate to four Na-
tional Republican Conventions, is
an authority on the life of Lincoln,
Robert E. Lee, and U. S. Grant.
Music for the occasion will be
furnished by various choirs and
bands of the city. For further in-
formation on the coming event,
contact the Workers' Aid Club,
419% Milam Street, Phone P. 5484.
committee that steps have al.
, ready been taken to carry out the
can count three-point program adopted when
(See TEXAS, Page 12, Col. 7)
Wiley Trustee
Board Elects
New President
Ceremonies For
1st Navy Recruit
adjacent territory, this wholesale .Are Held In D. C.
By ROSSYE LEIGH DAVIS
When handsome T. L. “Rone” Sweeney, owner of the
Diamond-L Ranch, located between Houston and Missouri
City on the Old Spanish Trail, returned home Saturday morn-
ing from participating in the major rodeos of Gene Autry,
he left blase Easterners with a vivid impression of the pic-
turesque “Lone Star State,” where
he was born and reared. Most
Easterners think of Texas as being
synonomous with the wild and
woolly west, and have a mental
picture of miles of cacti-covered
plains; crooked mesquite trees cas-
ting thin shadows on the dry sand;
lonely coyotes waiting to a reddish
moon; and handsome cowboys, re-
plete with boots and spurs, croon-
ing melancholy tunes around a
glowing camp fire, with long-
horned cattle in the distance. Nat-
urally they are a bit disillusioned
and sadly disappointed when they
find that the average Texan knows
as Mr Sweeny is.
only about cowboys what he has
seen in the movies, and it is a dis-
tinct thrill to meet a real cowboy, |
AN OLD FRIEND OF GENE
AUTREY'S
“Rone” Sweeney is an old friend
of Gene Autrey’s, having met him
in 1939, when Gene appeared in
his rodeo at Madison Square Gar-
den in New York. The two cow-
boys immediately became friends,
and when Gene appeared in Hous-
ton in February, he secured
“Rone’s” promise to join him a
little later. Rone joined the group
in March 28, in Gene Autry, Ok-
lahoma. He was accompanied by
Douglas Alexander, the down cow-
boy. In case you’re wondering
what a “Clown Cowboy” is, he is
(See COWBOY, Page 12, Col. 5)
Coercion by police in obtaining a
confession, which was used in the
trial of William Ward for the mur-
der of a 72-year old white man,
was the basis of reversal of the
judgment in the second case.
The opinion in the Ward case
was delivered by Justice James F.
Byrnes, former Senator from South
Carolina, whose appointment to the
Supreme Court was opposed by the
National Association for the Ad-
vancement of Colored People on
the ground that his conduct as a
prosecuting attorney in South Caro-
lina and in the United States Sen-
ate had been marked by race prej-
udice.
Attorneys for the NAACP car-
ried the Ward case to the Supreme
Court. Leon A. Ransom, acting dean
of the Howard Law School, and W.
Robert Ming, Jr., former Howard
law professor and now an attor-
ney in the Office of Price Admin-
istration, argued the case before
that tribunal.
Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone
delivered the opinion in the Hill
case.
“We think petitioner made out a
prima-facie case, which the State
failed to meet, of racial discrimi-
nation in the selection of grand
(See COURT, Page 10, Col. 6)
employment in the new plant will
bring an annual income which is
estimated at well over $18,000,000
in wages alone.
Officials of the company have
been considering this move for
some time and before making any
decision, made a careful study of
the problems involved in the exe-
cution of the proposal. It is more
than just an attempt to put a lot
of people to work. It is an expan-
sion of the Lincolnian theory, “one
nation, indivisible” and as such, is
a tribute to the company manage-
ment's belief in making democracy
workable.
Rivalry amongthe whites to
train the Negroes has been keen.
The Negroes selected for the train-
ing program have shown an unex-
pected interest in the new work
which is highly gratifying to the
sponsors.
With no attempt at segregation,
but with a firm conviction that Ne-
(See SUN, Page 12, Col. 6)
F-L-A-S-H
According to a report received
from William D. Alexander, Infor-
mation specialist from Washing-
ton, D .O., June 1, ceremonies for
the first Negro Navy Recruit, Wil-
liam Baldwin, was held in Secre-
tary of Navy Frank Knox's office
at 10:30 a. m. Monday, June 1, in
presence of Rear Admiral Randall
Jacobs. •
Baldwin of Washington was
sworn in as an apprentice seaman.
He will leave Thursday for Great
Lake Training Center in Illinois.
'WORK OR DON’T EAT NEW
STATE RELIEF POLICY IN
NEW YORK.
Albany, N. Y, (ANP) - New
York state last week adopted as
a war step a home relief policy
of “work or don’t eat.” The policy,
becoming effective when Governor
Lehman signed the Moffat Bill,
marks the first time since public
relief was legalised in 1981
MARSHALL.—At the Annual
meeting of the Board of Trustees
of Wiley College Friday May 29,
the resignation of Dr. M. W Do-
gan was accepted and The Rever-
end E. C. McLeod. A’ B" B D • S-
• B A M Professor of Philoso-
phy and Religion for the past three
years at Wiley was elected presi-
dent and will resume his duties
August 15th at the close of the
summer quarter. This annouce-
ment WAs made Sunday May 31st
at the baccalaureate Exercises by
Bishop Robert E Jones, D. D.,
LLD. of the Methodist Church for
the New Orleans Area.
Reverend McLeod is a graduate
of Claflin College, Orangeburg, S.
C. and also hold degrees from
Gammon Theological Seminary A
Boston University. He has served
as pastor in Boston and Atlanta
and as professor of Religion and
Philosophy at Bethune-Cookman
College in Flordia. He is married
and has a son attending the public
schools of Marshall. His wife is
also a graduate of Claflin College.
It was also announced that Dr.
Dogan would resume the duties of
President Emeritus of Wiley at
the close of the summer quarter
and will assist Reverend McLeod
in an alvisory capacity.
DORIE MILLER IS PRESENTED
NAVY CROSS BY ADMIRAL NIMITZ
WASHINGTON.—Standing on the
deck of a United States warship
somewhere in the Pacific, Dorie
Miller, heroic Negro navy man,
was presented the Navy Cross
which had been awarded to him
by President Roosevelt for bravery
in action during the battle of Pearl
Harbor. The ceremony took place on
May 37.
Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Com-
mander-in-Chief of the Pacific
Fiet, personally pinned on Miller s
breast the bit of ribbon and cross
of bronze that spell extraordinary
bravery above and beyond the
mere call of duty. Lined up on the
warship's deck besides Miller and
also decorated with the Navy Cross
for heroism were eight Naval offi-
cers.
As Admiral Nimitz presented the
decoration to Miller, he compliment-
ed the Navy man as being the first
representative of his race to be so
honored in this war.
Miller's act of heroism took place
on the U. S. S. Arizona during
Japanese attack on the Pearl Har-
bor naval, base, last December 7.
Miller assisted in manning a ma-
chine gun on the battleship’s bridge,
firing at the attacking Japanese
bombers until the gun was put out
of action. He then aided in get-
ting his mortally-wounded com-
manding officer to a place of great-
er shelter, and not until his ship
was hopelessly out of action did
he and the othera with him leave
the vessel.
AT 9 TXT
Negro’s War
One-tenth Of The U. S. Population Still
Has Not A Full Share In America’s Great-
• est Undertaking. Nine-tenths May Have
To Pay The Costs Of Wasteful Discrim-
'illations. ->--
—.—._____09
We carry herewith an exhaustive study of the discrimination 1
Met * vontiz, “.,”"*:
article seems of such concern and possible value to Negroes, '
we have decided to carry it in toto for the benent of our J
I readers. So often in discussing the various problems in- /
volved In discrimination, we are unable to put our hands on /
specific facts and by preserving this article in one’s file, one
will hsve facts in the future.
Needless to say, the article is carried with the full consent
of FORTUNE Magazine.
FOR MANY MONTHS Japanese radio propaganda
aimed at the Americas has capitalized the Negro and
the tough deal he gets in the U. S. Take this English-
language broadcast from Manchukuo (March 15, 1942)
as recorded by American listening posts: “Democracy
as preached by the Anglo-Americans, may be an ideal
and noble system of life, but democracy as practiced by
Anglo-Americans is stained with the bloody guilt
racial persecution and exploitation.” Last February
the Detroit riot against Negro families who wanted to
move into their lawful homes was a boon to the Jap-
anese and, incidentally, also the German short-wave
propagandists.
A specifically conditioned anti-Semitism has made
certain in-roads into Harlem; but so far the Nasis seem
to realize how little chance the author of Mein Kampf
has to be accepted as savior of Negroes, and they do not
address them openly. The Japanese, however, work
hard. The clumsiness of their propaganda indicates the
Japanese certainty of the Negro’s readiness to turn
against white America. They are making a mistake.
As they are bound to find out, it makes no sense to
apply Japan’s strategy in Asia to the U. S. Negro-her
gamble on the primitive thesis that peoples will choose
sides in this world convulsion simply according to the
color of their skins.
- Although the American Negroes are undeniably in
a critical state of mind, foreign agents still have pretty
slim chances among them.. America is all the American
Negro knows. In fact, he is the isolationist par ex-
cellence; no other category of American has so few ties
with the outside world If nativity were really the
measure of citizenship, the Negroes would excell any
other national or racial stock in this country. Indeed,
out of 12,865,500 Negroes (1940 census), 99.4 per cent
are American-born and about 97 per cent are of purely
native parentage. But of the. U. S. white population
nearly 10 per cent were born abroad and less than
70 per cent are of native parentage on both sides.
Every attempt to revive for the American Negro alleged
African allegiances has failed. Negro intellectuals, in
a morose gesture of protest, may seek escape from
frustration in an artificial nostalgia for an African
civilization of their own; but as a whole, the American
Negro community is at home here in the U. S., beyond
any temptation from abroad, inextricably rooted into
this country’s soil.
An American Who Thinks With His
Skin—
The Negro has grown with America, though his
was a different pace. He has seen members of his
race achieve high academic and civic honors in contest
with white people. In the North he has learned to '
use all the gadgets of American civilization and feels
himself equal if trained, to any job. He is molded by
American contemporaries .particularly their disillusion-
ment. But his is a specific skepticism: the fierce vio-
lent skepticism of a very young race. He Lives in
America, but then again he does not. Reminded every
day of his coolr, sometimes he can’t help thinking with
his skin; worse even, sometimes his skin thinks for
(See THE NEGRO’S WAR, Page 8) 1
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The Informer and Texas Freeman (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 48, No. 30, Ed. 1 Saturday, June 6, 1942, newspaper, June 6, 1942; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1626702/m1/1/: accessed May 14, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.