The Gazette

A Strong Open Letter-Judge O'Rear
and Democrats, the Same--No Difference-Neither Friends of
Our Race-Much Truth.
Louisville, Ky., Oct. 10, 1911.
Editor The Gazette,
Dear Sir:-
Herewith I send you an "open letter,"
a copy of which was sent to the editors of the Louisville Columbian and
the Louisville Defender, race papers.
The latter promised to publish it, but
both in the meantime came out for
Judge O'Rear. Now I come to the
"Old Reliable Gazette" asking space
for the publication of my communication. Thanking you in advance, for
compliance with my request, I am
Louisville, Ky., July 10, 1911.
Editor Louisville Columbian:-
I have been a well-wisher of your paper
because I thought it was for the advancement of the race. When I read
your editorial, July 1-an attempt to
apologize for a man whose attitude
toward the race has been anything
but friendly, I was very much surprised. For the future good of the
race, you should not have attempted
to explain to the "Lily-White" Evening
Post which in an editorial, in
the summer of 1904, said, "If the Republican Party would eliminate the
Negro from its ranks, it would thereby
invite the better element of the Democratic Party." It is the opinion of
loyal Negroes that local Republicans
would do better by eliminating Dick
Knot as a factor. He is a "Jonah"
to any party and wants to dictate,
boss, and say who shall be party nominees, and spends much of his time
fighting Republicans who do not agree
with him. O'Rear is not one whit better than the rankest Democrat. The
Democrats make the objectionable and
degrading laws and they are sustained
and upheld by our Republican judges.
Why? Because they have nothing to
fear from the indignant Negro voters.
Negro voters, as a rule, are the first to
declare for such men because of the
influence of such editorials, and that
makes those men reason that the
Negro is too stupid or too hypocritical
and cowardly to resent anything. I
blame the Republican judges for all of
the laws that are intended to degrade
us. If the Negro would use the weapon-the ballot-against them instead
of supporting and trying to elevate
them to some seat of honor, they
would hesitate to make such outrageous decisions and the world would
have more respect for us. A race or
person who will not resent an insult
is held in contempt. If O'Rear, as
you say, "did his duty in rendering
that decision" and that is a reason
we should vote for him, Then, we
ought to vote with the Democratic
party for "doing its duty" in making
these harmful and degrading laws. On
the other hand, if the Democrats were
wrong in making these laws, the
judge was wrong in upholding them.
Judge O'Rear was wholly influenced
by his own narrow prejudice, and if
he is elected by some unforeseen
force, you will know why he made
that decision. The constitution of the
United States is plain on that point.
It says: No state shall make or enforce any law which abridges the privileges or immunities of a citizen." You
seem to think that out of the O'Rear
"Jim-Crow" law a great good was
done the race. Not so it can be noticed. Such white men see a little
further ahead than the average Negro.
In a mixed school they see equality
and adjustment of good feeling. They
know the Negro learns in them that
he is the white man's equal, and in
some instances, his superior, and they
further realize that the Negro child
has the best school equipment along
with the white child, and instead of
having any old thing palmed off on
him, he has the best that money,
brains and skill can afford. That they
do not want. If they can succeed in
giving us inferior advantages, they will
always be superior. If our children
could have free access to everything
as all other children, this strained relation would not exist. These laws
are not intended to bring about better
feeling between the races. Their object is to intensify the bad feeling.
to humiliate the Negro by prescribing
him. Why can't he be allowed to have
his own choice as to the kind of education he wants? He is constantly
being told that it is necessary for him
to learn to work, get an industrial
education. Why should he, any more
than any other race, spend four or five
years in these schools learning some
trade while the foreigner who comes
here acquires the thing in less than
six months, and does not see inside
of a school of that kind? There is
entirely too much ado about industrial
education. What the race needs is the
industrial doors opened to him and not
the industrial schools. Give him a
chance to work at any and all of these
trades and he will acquire proficiency
in as short a time as any other people.
If those men who are behind this industrial school movement would use
their influence to cause the doors of
the shops to be opened to the Negro,
they would do far more good. You
give as a reason for favoring separate
schools that it would give employment
to a number of men and women. The
desire for jobs is destroying the race.
There are too many who will sell the
race or any principle vital to its uplift and progress for a petty job. We
are asked to sacrifice millions of
school children for the sake of giving
a few men and women work. I am
no politician and have no use for the
game as it is played, but there is a
great principle involved in this, the
struggle of the Negro from slavery to
freedom, to build for himself and children a future which will cause the
world to recognize in him a man. He
cannot do it by pandering to the politicians. You also seem to think that
the progressive element in the Republican party is the one for the Negro
to follow, although you did not state
why, or point out what they have done
to merit the confidence of the race.
They are a bunch of "reformers," out
for notoriety, and they are for the
thing that will get them the most of
that commodity. Reformers? They
are, for the most part, a bunch of
hypocrites. You cannot name anything,
where the Negro is concerned, in
which they take a stand in our favor.
On the contrary, they are always found
opposing our progress. Who was it
that voted with the Democrats in their
contention (for States Rights) against
the Bristow amendment for Federal
supervision of popular elections of
U. S. Senators? The Progressive Republicans! Any six year old child
knows what the Democrats want with
"States Rights." They desire to suppress, humiliate, and intimidate the
Negro, unfettered by even threatened
national interference. Very little has
been received from the Republican
party and that little has come from
the "Old-Line-Republicans." It is the
"Old-Line-Republican" who is for the
Negro. There is no hope with the
other gang. The Negro may try to
"butt" into their council but he will find
himself ruthlessly rejected. My hope
and prayer is that you use your paper
in the interest of the race, and not to
forward the ambition of designing politicians who are heart enemies of the
race.
L. S. CHEATHAM.