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Full resolution (TIFF) - On this page / på denna sida - Footnotes - Chapter 39
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1406 An American Dilemma
motivated either by a sense of ‘fair play’ and a desire to sec the ideals of the Constitu-
tion lived up to, or an ‘I love your people’ attitude. Both attitudes are far from touching
the realities of the problem. But the evident concern for the opinions of the white
supporters of the organization, especially on the part of the National Office, has been
a powerful factor in keeping the Association thoroughly ‘respectable’ and has certainly
been an influence in the very evident desire of the Association to keep its skirts free of
the grimy bitterness and strife encountered in the economic arena. This has also been
a responsibility of the Negro members of the Board, who, by and large, have never
been distinguished for the advanced nature of their social thinking. At best they have
been cautious, racially minded liberals, and not infrequently, forthright reactionaries.
In general they have suffered from an intellectual myopia toward all but narrowly
racial problems. The liberal, white or black, northern or southern, recoils from the
shock of class conflict. Yet the twitchings of liberalism within him seek release; lacking
the courage and conviction to face the harsher realities, he seeks to find release and
solace in counterfeit substitutes, in political and social ersatz* He recognizes and revolts
against injustices, but seeks to correct them with palliatives rather than solutions; for
the solutions are harsh and forbidding, and are not conducive to optimism and spiritual
uplift.
“The N.A.A.C.P. is an interracial organization, and, though to lesser degree than the
less militant interracial groups, still leans heavily upon interracial good-will and under-
standing. Such reliance is a basic weakness in any organization designed to work on
behalf of an economically and politically oppressed group, and where ‘good-will’ and
inter-group ‘understanding’ are only will-o’-the-wisps which confuse the problem and
mislead thinking on it.” (Bunche, of* cit*y Vol. I, pp. 147-148.)
“It has not been able to become a solid political factor , , , through taking a strong
hand for or against a particular party, because of the conflicting political interests of
its membership. Thus, its politics is ‘Negro’ politics; its political interests are measured
solely in terms of the attitude of a candidate or a party toward measures directly con-
cerned with Negro welfare.” (Bunche, of. cit*, Vol. i, p, 54.)
Winning a greater membership is also important in order to give the Association
a solid financial basis. On the other hand, a main impediment to the organization in
attempting to recruit a larger membership is its lack of financial resources.
It is, of course, a vital necessity to the Association to keep independent as far as pos-
sible from outside support in order to maintain freedom of action. It is a public secret
that one of the foundations working in the Negro field, that had earlier contributed to
the Association, has tried to convince the N.A.A.C.P. that it should merge, first with the
Urban League and, at a later occasion, with both the Urban League and the Commis-
sion on Interracial Cooperation. The N.A.A.C.P. refused as it was not greatly dependent
on support from foundations and Community Chests and felt that a merger would
hamstring the program of the Association and infringe upon its freedom to challenge
the interracial status quo* As a result, it lost its earlier support from the foundation.
See Bunche, of* cit.y Vol. 2, pp. 218 ff.; and Paul E. Baker, Negro^White Adjust–
ment (1934), pp. 21 ff.
Information from Lester B. Granger (letter, August 7, 1942). Some of the con-
tributions have the form of membership dues.
Bunche, op. cit., Vol, 2, p. 265.
Idem* “It tries to make the most out of the condition of racial separatism and
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