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Full resolution (TIFF) - On this page / på denna sida - X. The Negro Community - 44. Non-Institutional Aspects of the Negro Community - 4. Recreation - 5. Negro Achievements
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986 An American Dilemma
Michigan, and another in Mississippi. Several colored seaside resorts flourish along
the Atlantic coast. On the whole, however, these can be patronized only by the few
who have the time and money to spend a good portion of the year away from home
on vacation. While there are some Negro resorts which can be enjoyed by poor
Negroes, the number of this class actually able to patronize them is small. A pseudo-
vacation is obtained by many of the working colored people by securing jobs at
seashore or other resorts where they can earn their living and still have vacation in
off hours and through a change of scene. In Philadelphia, for illustration, it is
common for colored cooks and maids to go to Atlantic City and other nearby resorts
for summer work, thus breaking the monotony of their routine and obtaining some
semblance of a real vacation away from the home city and without starving. This is
no doubt better than no vacation at all but the problem has not been faced. The
majority of this group must continue to think of vacation as a short period free from
work but otherwise no different from the rest of the year.®®
One of the most wholesome aspects of Negro recreation and amusement
is that It is not a separate part of their lives, but is well integrated into the
daily routine. Part of this seems to be that Negroes, having little time free
from hard work, devised relaxing accompaniments to their work. Singing,
for example, accompanies all work, even on the chain gangj gambling while
working is another example. Part of it is that so many of the usual recrea-
tional forms were denied them that they learned to enjoy the everyday
things they did.®^ Whatever the cause, this integration of fun and work
has undoubtedly made life possible for many Negroes under the difficult
situatfons they face.
5. Negro Achievements*
Opportunity is a most Important prerequisite for achievement 5
and since
the Negro’s opportunities in America have been kept low, his achievements
are also small. In 1929-1930, there were only 98 Negroes listed in Who^s
Who in America?^ No Negro is outstanding in national, state or local poli-
tics. Few Negroes have been outstanding in business, and these have become
successful usually by catering to special needs of the Negro group. At
present, when the federal government is asking capable and wealthy busi-
nessmen to work for it as ^^dollar-a-year” men, only one Negro has been
included in the group. There have been but one or two outstanding Negro
military leaders. No Negro has been an outstanding jurist, although a few
Negro lawyers deserve fame for the way they have handled cases involving
Negro rights. Since scientific achievement requires not only a superior
education but also a secure position and facilities in a university or large
“ We shall not attempt to give a systematic survey of Negro achievements in this section.
Rather we shall single out the main fields in which Negroes have made notable achieve-
ments and give examples of the achievements and the achievers. In order to be concrete, we
shall mention names. The persons named are merely outstanding examples } they do not
include all Negroes who have made notable achievements^
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