Portland observer., February 23, 1978, Page 25, Image 25

Portland Observer Section II Thursday, February 23, 1978 Page 19
Carrying on its tradition of
independence, the Black press
established its own national or
ganization in 1940 with the orga
nization of the National News
puper Publishers Association,
which has consistently filled a
leadership role in the struggle of
Blacks.
The Black press in the North
continued to grow, in strength
and influence, and was slowed
only by the impact of the Great
Depression. This was a period -
from the early part of the cen­
tury through World War I - in
which the Black press had learn
ed some valuable lessons, not the
least of which was the potential
strength it had in its hands. It
had seen its readership grow, it
had trained its own journalists, it
had been able to survive finan­
cially because of the support of
Black people, and it had not
surrendered to those who sought
to silence it.
The importance of this is un­
derscored by the fact that since
Uusswurtn’s first paper, there
was always two separate and
distinct presses in America for
Blacks the white press and the
Black press. But it was only in
the Black press that Blacks could
find any recognition of them­
selves as human beings. Like the
rest of white America, the white
press largely ignored them.
The onset of World War II
brought the Black press to a new
critical juncture in its history.
The issue, reduced to its basic
elements was that with racism
so rampant at home, was the
Black press justified in suggest­
ing that Black men should lay
their lives on the line to fight
foreign dictators. The answer
was provided in two parts. The
war effort would be supported
but at the same time the fight
against segregation and discri­
mination, particularly where
they existed In the armed forces
and war related industries,
would be stepped up. The pages
liegan to fill up with protests
over the barring of Blacks from
the Navy, the Marine Corps, the
Air Force and private industry.
The press began to report on
how Blacks were being mistreat
ed, while in uniform, by southern
(Milicemen. How, America, can
you tolerate such things, the
Black press asked.
Once again the protests fell on
unfriendly ears, Virginus Dab­
ney, the white editor of the
Richmond Times I)is;»atch and
regarded as a liberal, warned the
Black press:
"The degree to which this
I racial I injustice and discrimina­
tion is being emphasized by
Negro editors and Negro leaders
at this time, and the insistence
with which they are demanding a
complete and immediate revolu­
tion in race relations in America,
has aroused no little concern
among their white friends...they
cannot view with other than
apprehension the speed with
which, Negro leadership, as
exemplified in the Negro press,
is pushing to a climax.
“...the current effort to effect a
drastic revolution overnight can
only result in violence and bitter­
ness with the Negro suffering
heavily in the end.”
The response of the Black
press was to ignore Dabney and
others. Dr. V.V. Oak, at that
time a professor of sociology and
an instructor of journalism at
Wilberforce University, a Black
institution, best summed up how
most Black editors felt when he
said:
“It is true that the Negro press
is getting more and more mill
tant in its demands for a real
democracy at home, but this
growing impatience of the press
is quite natural as well as desir­
able...unless the American Negro
is entirely unintelligent and un­
progressive he is bound to de­
mand his right to be a free
American, especially when he is
fighting abroad for the preserva
t.ion of democracy."
The militant tone of the press
irritated the government and
there was talk within the Roose­
velt Administration of the possi­
bility of prosecuting some of the
editors for impeding the war
effort. However, the talk never
got beyond the discussion stage
and Black papers continued to
point out the contradiction be­
tween what America publicly
proclaimed as her war aims and
the reality of her treatment of
Blacks at home. The Double V
campaign of the Pittsburgh Cour­
ier summed up the strategy of
the Black press - “V for Victory”
over tyranny abroad and “V” for
Victory over bigotry at home.
When the war ended, the
Black press was stronger than
ever. The combined circulations
of the more than a hundred
papers were well in excess of two
million copies a week; the papers
had built up enormous prestige
among their readers on the
strength of their war coverage
both foreign and domestic; and
increasingly more talented peo­
ple were attracted to Black jour­
nalism.
In 1956 -- two years after the
Supreme Court decision outlaw­
ing segregation in public schools
-- the Washington, D.C. Afro-
American in a burst of inspira­
tion printed a headline that in
retro sp ect prophesied the
changes that were about to occur
in America'- changes that would
have enormous import for the
Black press. Appearing over a
story that told of a Supreme
Court decision upholding the le­
gality of several public accommo­
dation laws that had been passed
for the District of Columbia but
which had been allowed to slip
into disuse, the headline said
simply - “EAT ANYWHERE.”
The decade that followed saw a
permanent alteration in Ameri­
ca’s way of life. Discrimination
and segregation lost their protec
tion under the law and were no
longer publicly acceptable -- but
M artin Luther King, Jr.
A man who taught us how to change the world.
When you're not getting a fair shake, you get discouraged. You don't like whoever is making your life
miserable, and sometimes you might even react in a violent way. It seems only natural. But, a great man
named M artin Luther King, Jr. never reacted violently. He saw deeper than most of us are capable. He
saw that the powers of love and nonviolent resistance were the fastest ways to effect real change in this
world. Some say he was too soft, tot) loving. But no one w ill deny that Dr. King got results. M artin Luther
King, Jr.: One of the rare men in history with the incredible ability to turn a foe into a follower, using
nothing but the truth.
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