PORTLAND INQUIRER
MUSIC SWEET AND HOT
Pag«
It Happened in Ohio:
t
MY MOST HUM ILIATING
JIM CROW EXPERIENCE
By Langston Hughes
It happened in C leveland years
ago w hen I was in high school,
and the G reat M igration of Ne
groes from the South during
W orld W ar I was. at its height.
Jim Crow, new to C leveland in
most public pjaces, was beginning
to raise its ugly head.
O ur high school French class
had gone to see a m atinee p er
form ance of the late great Sara
B ernhardt, w ith h er wooden leg,
in C leopatra’s death scene, w here
th e sap stings her in th e bosom.
The m agic of S arah ’s famous
goldpn voice still rings in my
ears.
B ut of th a t afternoon, th ere is
Exclusive Independent Press Service Photo
The celebrated INK SPOTS, fea
an even m ore vivid mem ory. Fol
turing Billy Kenny, are currently
low ing th e perform ance, w ith one
appearing at the Paramount The
of my w hite classm ates, a Polish-
atre in New York where crowds
are a block long as this outstand
A m erican boy, I w ent across the
ing attraction is featured along
stre et from th e th e atre into one of
with Ella Fitzgerald, Buck &. Bub
C leveland’s large cafeterias. Its
bles, Ralph Brown and Cootie
self-service and low prices ap
Williams and His Orchestra.
pealed to our schoolboy pocket-
EEN-AGE boy» and girl« in New York’» Harlem crowd around the juke box, one of the features in the
books. Its long cases and co u n t
new Pepsi-Cola Junior Club of Harlem. The Recreation Center at 121 Lenox Avenue, New York, ha» ers and steam -tables loaded w ith I said.
been presented a» a gift to Negro youngster» in that community by Pepsi-Cola Company, through its Presi
apeptizing food w hetted our a p
“Pay your check—or else pu t
dent, Walter S. Mack, Jr. The Club is run on a system of self-government by the teen-age youngsters
petites. We took our tray s and your tra y dow n and leave it,”
themselves; an adult Director and Neighborhood Committee of adults give guidance. The Center, which
operates late afternoons and evenings, was presented by the Company so that Harlem’s youngsters could have
got in line. My w hite schol-m ate she shouted. “You are holding
a place of their own, with games, dancing, refreshments, and activities they would enjoy in wholesome
was ju st in fro n t of me.
up th e line. T h a t’s w hat it costs
surroundings. ,
We passed around in fro n t of if you w ant to e a t!”
the colorful green salads, the
I p u t my tra y dow n and left it
have had com bat experience in you th a t the W ar Bond purchases
sweet, good loking desserts, the th e re in fro n t of her. I had not
the p resen t w ar, I would like to of your students w ere not in
w hite and pink chocolate frosted ru n into an y th in g like th a t before
say th a t the experience of the vain. It so happens th a t I was
Cakes, th e long steam tab le w ith in C leveland, bu t I knew it was
soldier of the p resen t w ar is far | the first cadet to fly the training
its soups and vegetables and because I was colored. I w en t up
d ifferen t from th a t of yours. As plane th a t your students donated
m eats. Each of us selected our to the tab le w here m y w hite
A m ericans, we have our own way to the w ar effort. Being a Mem-;
foods, and stopped w ith our classm ate was eating and said,
of thinking, bu t I w ant to em phis boy, I wish to express my
tray s before th e cashier’s desk. “Come on, le t’s get out of here.
phasize this one point w ith those appreciation for w hat m ay ‘hom e'
She rang up m y frien d ’s bill, he They w on’t let me eat in this
G eneral Eaker, and com rades in
of you who have not had actual to w n ’ is doing to help us service
paid her, and passed on to seek place.”
the service, I am very happy to
com bat experience in th e present m en.”
a table.
have this privilege of being pres
He was astonished, and it took
w ar, th a t it is necessary for you
“Be assured,” Mr. Hayes replied
B ut w hen th e w hite wom an a long tim e to ex p lain it to him,
en t at w hat I understand is to be
in your thinking, in your tra in to C adet Beck’s letter, “th a t not
looked at me and th en dow n at because he did not know th a t
an activation of a new group. To
ing and in your perform ance to only th e stu d en ts of M anassas
my tray , I th o u g h t she w ould such things w en t on in this dem
me an assignm ent to du ty w ith a
give full support to th e officers High School, bu t ^ h e " stu d en ts of
n ev er stop striking the keys on ocratic land th a t his p aren ts had
new organization carries w ith it a
who com m and you.
all schools in M emphis and Shel the cash register. It rang and trav elled w ay across th e sea to
serious responsibility in th at the
The only people w ho know how b y county and th e en tire citizenry rang and rang. The am ount it find. But n eith er one of us m ade
new unit has not the advantage of
to
fight this w ar to th e best a d of the same, regardless of race, registered on th e black and w hite any protest. We w ere only fif
th e trad itio n and history of an
old established unit.
It mean.; vantage are th e people who have color, or creed are 100 p er cent tabs behind its glass strip becam e teen, and we did not know w hat
th a t the new unit will be very had actual com bat experience 1 behind you and the other m en larg er and larger. F inally the to say. He and I both w ere em-
closely observed, and all of its w ith th e enem y. I wish to con in th e arm ed forces.” Mr. Hayes cashier pulled out a check and bararssed.
acts w ill be given very close g ra tu la te you on th e calibre of took th e occasion to th an k Cadet flung it on my tray. It was Eight
Some y ears la te r a large group
scrutiny and evaluated m ore th e officers to be assigned to you. Beck for his thoughtfulness in D ollars and S ixty-F ive Cents!
of Com m unists picketed th a t
My frien d ’s check had been same re sta u ra n t and others like
closely th an sim ilar acts by an They have the confidence of the w riting th e stu d en ts of his school
d ep artm en t they have the respect th an k in g them for their co n trib u only about fo rty -fiv e or fifty
older, w ell-established unit.
it in Cleveland. Negro and w hite
The d ep artm en t is sparing no of the men they have fought tion to th e w ar effort through cents. I had selected about the w orkers to g eth er w ent in and
sam e am ount of food. I looked in insisted on service for all. In th a t
pains to give you the advantage w ith and against. I urge you to the purchase of W ar Bonds.
of experience. Y our new com give your w hole-hearted loyalty,
In th least year, students of am azem ent at the cashier.
w ay they broke dow n th e color
“W hy is m ine so m uch?” I line and ended th a t kind of un-
m anding officer, Colonel Davis, support and m axim um effort to the nation, th ro u g h th eir bond
and the officers accom panying bring about a victory.
and stam p drives, supplied the asked.
A m erican Jim C row in the dow n
Again
I
w
ant
to
assure
you
th
at
“T hat is ju st w hat you w ill pay tow n caterias in C leveland. I do
him from his form er assignm ent
m ilitary forces w ith 37,000 jeeps,
are men fresh from the European I feel g reatly honored having the 12.000 am phibian jeeps, 12,800 if you eat in here,” said the no t believe such an incident
com bat zone. N early all of them privilege of being here today be flying jeeps, 7,700 parachutes, cashier.
would happen to a high school
have not only been in combat, cause I know th a t your p e rfo rm 6.000 life floats 5,000 motor scoo “But I don’t have th a t m uch boy th ere today. A t least, I hope
but they have been aw arded dec ance is going to m ake this one ters, and 7,000 field am bulances. food,” I said.
not. Such things are h a rd e r to
“T hat is w h at you w ill pay to take w hen one is young.
orations for m etritorious services of th e most outstanding events Also stu d en ts have bought an
perform ed in com bat. It has been of o ur history.
unknow n nu m b er of gliders, eat it,” said the cashier, h er face
my privilege to know som ething
w alkie-talkies and potato peeling: grow ing m ore and m ore b ellig
about our enem y, having visited
m achines, am ong other items. | erent, h er skin tu rn in g red and
his country and observed him in
M any thousand planes, jeeps and her eyes narrow ing. I could see
training.
am bulances in battles areas are th e h atred in h er face.
“B ut it doesn’t cost th a t m uch,”
The J a p is a tough soldier, ami
m arked w ith school sponsorship
in m ost cases he has to be killed.
panels.
To the veterans of W orld W ar I
W ar Bonds and stam ps being
M EM PHIS, TENN.—The s tu
I who m ay be w ith you now and dents of M anassas High School bought m onthly ru n about $50,-j
here recently learned th a t a 000,000—enough to pay for 200
tra in e r £lane bought by them heavy bom bers, or enough to:
through W ar Bond purchases is m aintain 733,000 boys and girls in
being used by a fellow M em ph colleges for th e m onth w hen the
ian w ho is an a ir cadet at C arl- bonds m ature. T reasury D ep art
A COURTEOUS FRIENDLY STORE
m ent statisticians credit the
strom Field, A rcadia, Fig.
QUALITY MERCHANDISE
CAHLLE R. VICKERS. DOS. In a le tte r to J. A shton Hayes, schools of th e nation w ith the
1471 N. E. W illiam s C ourt
principal of th e large Negro high sale of more th an $1.300,000,000
a TABLE LAMPS—MIRRORS
P ortland, Oregon
school, A ir C adet R. O. Beck, Jr., w orth of W ar Bonds in the last,
a DAVENPORT SETS
V E rm ont 4208
w hite, w rote: “I w ish to notify th ree years.
a BEDROOM SETS
P o rtla n d ’s Only Negro D entist
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