PORTLAND INQUIRER
MUSIC SW EET AND HOT
It Happened in Ohio:
“ Tops” At Paramount
MY MOST HUM ILIATING
JIM CROW EX PERIEN CE
By Langston Hughes
It happened in C leveland years
ago w hen I was in high school, j
and the G reat M igration of N e
groes from the South d u ring
W orld W ar I was. at its height. 1
Jim Crow, new to C leveland in
most public peaces, was beginning
to raise its ugly head.
O ur high school French class
had gone to see a m atinee p e r
form ance of the la te great Sara
B ernhardt, w ith h er wooden leg,
in C leopatra’s d eath scene, w here
th e sap stings h er in th e bosom.
The magic of S a ra h ’s fam ous
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. F o l
turing Billy Kenny, are currently
lowing th e perform ance, w ith one
appearing at the Paramount The
of my w hite classm ates, a Polish- 1 atre in New York where crowds
A m erican boy, I w ent across th e I are a block long as this outstand
street from the th e a tre into one of i ing attraction is featured along
with Ella Fitzgerald, Buck &. Bub
C leveland’s large cafeterias. Its
bles, Ralph Brown and Cootie
self-service and low prices a p - ! Williams and His Orchestra.
pealed to our schoolboy pocket-
EEN-AGE boys and girls in New York’s 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, has
ers and steam -tables loaded w ith I said.
been presented as a gift to Negro youngsters in that community by Pepsi-Cola Company, through its Presi
apeptizing food w h etted our a p
“P a y your check—or else pu t
dent, W alter 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 h ite 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 h at it costs
surroundings. ,
We passed aro u n d in fro n t of if you w ant to e a t!”
th e colorful green salads, th e
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
th e p resen t w ar, I w ould 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 th e experience of th e I vain. It so happens th a t I was
takes, th e long steam table w ith in C leveland, but I k n ew it was
soldier of the p resen t w a r is fa r I th e first cadet to fly th e train in g
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 stu d en ts donated
m eats. Each of us selected our to th e tab le w here m y w hite
A m ericans, w e have o u r ow n w ay to th e w ar effort. Being a M em
foods, and stopped w ith our classm ate w as eating and said,
of th in k in g , b u t I w an t to em phis boy, I w ish to express m y|
tray s before the cashier’s desk. “Come on, le t’s get out of here.
phasize this one point w ith those appreciation for w h at m ay ‘home!
She ran g up my frien d ’s bill, he They w on’t let me e at in this
G eneral E aker, and com rades in
of you who hav e not had actu al to w n ’ is doing to help us service
paid her, and passed on to seek place.”
th e service, I am very h appy to
com bat experience in th e p resent m en .”
a table.
have this privilege of being p res
He was astonished, and it took
w ar, th a t it is necessary for you
“Be
assu
red
,”
Mr.
H
ayes
replied
B ut w hen the w h ite w om an a long tim e to ex p lain it to him,
en t at w h at I u n d erstan d is to be
in y o u r th in k in g , in y o u r tra in to C adet B eck’s letter, “th a t not
looked at me and th en dow n at because he did no t know th a t
an activation of a new group. To
ing and in y o u r perform ance to only the stu d en ts of M anassas
m y tray , I th o u g h t she w ould such things w en t on in th is dem
m e an assignm ent to d u ty w ith a
give fu ll su p p o rt to th e officers H igh School, bu t ’th e * students 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
w ho com m and you.
all schools in M emphis and Shel th e cash register. It rang and trav elled w ay across th e sea to
serious responsibility in th a t 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. B ut n eith er one of us m ade
new u n it has not th e adv an tag e of
to
fig
h
t
this
w
a
r
to
th
e
best
a
d
of th e sam e, regardless of race, registered on the black and w hite any protest. We w ere only fif
th e trad itio n and history of an
old established unit.
It m eans v an tag e are th e people w ho have color, or creed are 100 per cent tabs behind its glass strip becam e teen, and we did not know w hat
th a t the new u n it w ill be very had actu al com bat experience behind you an d the o th er 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 w ish to con ! in th e arm ed forces.” Mr. Hayes cashier pulled out a check and bararssed.
acts w ill be given v ery close g ra tu la te you on th e calibre of | took the occasion to th an k C adet flung it on my tray . It was E ight
Som e y ears la te r a large group
scru tin y and ev alu ated
m ore th e officers to be assigned to you. B eck for his thoughtfulness in D ollars and S ixty-F ive Cents!
of C om m unists picketed th a t
My frien d ’s check had been sam e re stau ran t and others like
closely th a n sim ilar acts by an They have th e confidence of the w ritin g th e stu d en ts of his school
d ep artm en t th ey have th e respect th an k in g th em for th eir co n trib u only about fo rty -fiv e or fifty it in Cleveland. N egro and w hite
older, w ell-established unit.
The d ep artm en t is sparing no of th e m en th ey have fought tion to th e w a r effort th ro u g h 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 1 insisted on service for all. In th a t
pains to give you th e advantage w ith and against. I urge you to the p u rch ase of W ar Bonds.
give
your
w
h
o
le-h
earted
loyalty,
of experience. Y our new com
In th least year, stu d en ts of am azem ent at the cashier.
w ay th ey 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 th e nation, th ro u g h th e ir bond
and th e officers accom panying bring about a victory.
an d stam p drives, supplied th e asked.
A m erican Jim Crow in th e dow n
A
gain
I
w
ant
to
assure
you
th
a
t
“T hat is just w h at 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 m en fresh from the E uropean I feel g reatly honored h aving the 12.000 am p h ib ian jeeps, 12,800 if you eat in h e re ,” said the not believe such an incident
com bat zone. N early all of them privilege of being here today b e flying jeeps, 7,700 parachutes, cashier.
would happen to a high school
cause
I
know
th
a
t
y
o
u
r
p
e
rfo
rm
“B
ut
I
don’t
have
th
a
t
m
uch
have not only been in com bat,
6.000 life floats, 5,000 m otor scoo
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 hat you w ill pay to take w hen one is young.
orations for m etritorious services of th e most o u tstan d in g events Also stu d en ts have bought an
perform ed in com bat. It has been of o u r history.
u n k now n n u m b er of gliders, eat it,” said the cashier, h er face
m y privilege to know som ething
w alk ie-talk ies and potato peeling grow ing m ore and m ore b ellig
about our enem y, having visited
m achines, am ong o th er item s. [ erent, h er skin tu rn in g red and
his country and observed him in
M any tho u san d planes, jeeps and h er eyes narrow ing. I could see :
training.
am bulances in b attles 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, and
m ark ed 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 w ho m ay be w ith you now and dents of M anassas H igh School bought m o nth ly ru n about $50,-
here recently learn ed th a t a 000,000—enough to pay for 200
tra in e r jblane 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 reasu ry D epart-:
A COURTEOUS FRIENDLY STORE
m ent statisticians
credit the
strom Field, A rcadia, Fig.
QUALITY MERCHANDISE
CARLLE R. VICKERS. DDS. 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 m ore than $1.300,000,000
• TABLE LAMPS—MIRRORS
P o rtlan d , O regon
school, A ir C adet R. O. Beck, Jr., w o rth of W ar Bonds in the last
• DAVENPORT SETS
V E rm ont 4208
w hite, w rote: “I w ish to notify th re e years.
•
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