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From The Militant, Vol. 12 No. 47, 22 November 1948, p. 4
ranscribed & marked up by Einde O’Callaghan for the Encyclopaedia of Trotskyism On-Line (ETOL).
The “loyalty” purge is striking hard and fast at Negro government employees, especially in the Post Office. Charges have already been brought against scores of purge victims in Cleveland, Chicago, New York, St. Louis, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Washington, Baltimore and many other cities. And that’s only the beginning.
The NAACP Board of Directors points out that a year ago, when the so- called subversive list was issued, it called attention to the danger that “prejudiced officials could utilize false charges of disloyalty against minorities to eliminate them from government.”
“One year, later,” the NAACP declares, “our worst fears have been realized. Charges of disloyalty based on flimsy and prejudiced information have been filed against colored government employees ... In practically all of the cases before us it is apparent that the employees have been placed in the position of defending themselves because of their opposition to segregation and discrimination, against unnamed accusers, before officials who are hostile to, or unaware of, the broad implications of the fight for civil rights in this country.”
The NAACP statement finishes with a new warning: “Not one of the more than 150,000 colored government employes will be safe if the present trend continues.” For this reason, the NAACP has decided to defend Negroes who are being victimized in this purge because of their race, and has called on the president and the
Loyalty Review Board “to take steps to prevent the persecution of colored employees solely because they have dared to stand up and be counted on the side of those who believe in justice for all men.”
Such a stand by the NAACP is entirely justified. But the matter doesn’t end there. Not only the Negro people, but the whole labor movement is affected by the government purge. For that reason, the labor movement too must swing into action to help the Negro victims of this witch hunt—especially that section of the labormovement which has already shown its understanding of the issues involved by coming to the aid of James Kutcher, the legless veteran who was fired from his job in the Veterans Administration.
Kutcher was fired under the same presidential order that is being used to hound the Negro government workers. The charge against him was his political beliefs and his membership ir. the Socialist Workers Party. But the essence of the matter is the same—his “crime” too is that he “dared to stand up and be counted on the side of those who believe in justice for all men.”
White workers must defend the rights of Negro Victims of the purge, and Negro workers must defend the rights of the white victims. Only in this way will we be able to successfully combat and defeat this drive to terrorize and intimidate the government employes who dare to exhibit a, spark of independence or to exercise their rights to speak and act freely.
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