order as proposed by Senator Magnuson and pointed up by Senat McFarland. They do not seem to care to act. They think that Negroes oug to be satisfied perchance with "Jim Crow" despite President Truman civil rights program and the pledge of the Democratic platform. The last time I got on a train from Orange, Va., personally to cor up here, they told me to go up to an old dirty "Jim Crow" coach the front. Of course I refused. The white people had nice a conditioned coaches and a luxurious club car and enjoyed all t superior accommodations that they paid for. They were first-cla passengers getting first-class benefits for having paid first-class fa I noted, but I was expected to be satisfied with segregation and secon class accommodations. The Negro pays first-class fare, and gets "Jim Crow" under the IC One of the best ways for the ICC to affect some economy in th so-called broad experimental program that they have outlined he in their annual report, which I had hoped to go into some deta There are a great many pages of it, none of them mentions one io of interest in human problems as has been pointed out so clearly he by Senator Tobey. ( We would like to know what has been the effect on the morale the million Negroes. Think of these young Americans in the militat service. My own sister volunteered. For 3 years she was a fir lieutenant in the United States Army Nurse Corps. She had ride Jim Crow in the back of a bus and to stand up while th white people were seated in the bus, or on the train, and she suffere the ultimate Jim Crow in death, in the subbasement with men the veterans' hospital, Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis, Mo. I say to you that this Jim Crow travel is a vital question for t ODT, which Commissioner Johnson had the responsibility for durin World War II, and, as has been posed here, the possibility in th next war. We do not think a man like that has the understandin of how to win this war if one-tenth of the manpower is going to alerted to make the supreme sacrifice not to be stultified. How can they go out and fight for democracy if they are bein discriminated against in such a vicious way by the Governme: doing nothing at all to guarantee equality in travel to and fro. We do not wish to attack the integrity of anyone, per se, exce his sins of omission. We would like to see the whole Commissio instructed by this committee to do something about this illeg segregation and discrimination. I was so hopeful that Senator Tobey, in talking about safety, woul advocate immediate action. The safety and morale of one-tenth of th population of this country is involved in this matter; and this des woman here who was just thrown in jail-that happens too man times. Congress must act for civil rights. The Klu Klux Klan secret agents are watching every colored woman that leaves the Sout since they lynched Mr. Mallard at Lyons, Ga., because this wido went out and actually identified one of the lynchers, and still lives tell the tragic and sordid story. I wish you could hear her story, Mr. Chairman and members of th committee, it is unbelievable that in America such horrible, fiendis things happen here to women because of their race. I want you to know that the Commissioner here does not probably alize, but there is no practice of the Golden Rule over at the Intertate Commerce Commission in what they have done to alleviate these matters that I have called to your attention, affecting 13,000,000 lored people's daily comfort and peace of mind. I want to say to you, Senator Johnson, the first thing you said to -when we were in the campaign to get the late Senator Bilbo— every man's vote is sacred." Now it is the Dixiecrats down in South l'arolina. You know that Judge Waring down there had to threaten ontempt of court. He was going to cite these white people for disFrancising Negroes and denying them the right to register even after The Supreme Court handed down a favorable decision. Mr. Johnson admits the Supreme Court has ruled that there shall be equal accommodations, but they are not carried out, and the Eerstate Commerce Commission knows it. He knows it; everybody ows it. Congress knows it, and we want Congress to do something -Pat it. I believe in the spirit that you, as once acting chairman of this amittee, which finally investigated the late Mr. Bilbo-these er Senators who get up here, by disfranchising the colored people, ading the two Senators from South Carolina who endorsed Mr. nson, ought not now to be sitting in the Senate until a full-fledged atorial investigation gets all the facts. Senator Maybank recently n in ought to be first investigated as in the case of the late Senator ., rather than to be endorsing another man for a position to keep segregation. When a Federal judge, a white man, has to say down South Carolina, "I am going to put you white people in jail if you p on stopping Negroes from registering," it is time the Senate d to preserve its own integrity of membership. There is no evidence that anything is being done to give Negroes r constitutional rights. They have and will fight for democracy. na veteran; my father was in the Spanish-American War, too, 4 my grandfather was in the Civil War. We will continue in war peace to make our contribution. We, too, are taxpayers. I ve been paying first-class fare on common carriers only to be subted to second-class accommodations. A million other Negroes are stantly riding up and down in the railroads and busses each year. the ICC would treat Negroes properly, the railroads would be able vercome their mounting deficit. They would bring about some iency and economy to our transportation lines. They must wipe this Jim Crow business. The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Mr. Brown. The committee will what you have said into consideration. We will now go into executive session. Thereupon, at 11:15 a. m., the committee went into executive *ion.) X ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF COMMERCE HEARINGS BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON UNITED STATES SENATE EIGHTY-FIRST CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON NOMINATION OF THOMAS C. BLAISDELL, JR., OF THE FEBRUARY 23 AND MARCH 22, 1949 Printed for the use of the Committee on UNITED STATES WASHINGTON: 1949 APR 30'49 COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE EDWIN C. JOHNSON, Colorado, Chairman ERNEST W. MCFARLAND, Arizona CHARLES W. TOBEY, New Hampshire HOMER E. CAPEHART, Indiana EDWARD S. JARRETT, Clerk |