William F. Powell to Woodrow Wilson
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I greatly regret that the statements made by you at an interview granted me prior to the Baltimore Convention at which time you became the candidate of the Democratic Party as its candidate for President. I request you to recall that inverview.
I stated to you at the time that when you were candidate for Governor of this State, a number of colored citizens had cast their votes for you. We desired to know if you became the candidate for President and if elected to that office, what would be your attitude toward the colored citizens of this country. I further stated to you during the course of the interview that very many of this class of voters felt the time was propitions to divide their votes between the two great political parties of the country - the Progressive Party not being in existence at the time - so that we might feel that whatever political party might secure the direction of the National Government the civil and political rights of our people would not be endangered thereby, that as far as the emoluments of office was concerned it was a minor consideration inuring to the benefit only of the few. What we desired to secure, was to insure the civil and political rights of our people in traveling, in being accommodated in public places of entertainment which was inseperably connected with travelling, and to prevent the lynching of our people, all of which was so prevalent up to this time in the southern tier of states. You were also informed at that time that it had been held up to us that the Democratic Party was the natural political foe of our people, for a colored man to advocate the principle of that Party, he was looked upon by the members of his race as an apostate to his race and was ostracized for doing so, very many were willing to accept this stigma if in so doing a better relation would be brought about between the two races especially in the South.
You replied to these statements by stating you were very glad to learn that such was the feeling of the colored voters of this State toward yourself and towards the Democratic Party of which you were a member, that if this step had been taken years ago by my people the condition of the colored race in this country particularly in the South would have been vastly different from what it is now, that if I should become the nominee of the Democratic Party and I am elected to the office of President, while I may be unable to correct many of the conditions of your people in the country especially in the South that you complain of, I will use my best efforts to ameliorate such conditions and endeavor to secure a change that would be for the benefit of your people. You further stated to me that all the rights granted to my race under the Constitution and its Amendments would be rigidly enforced by yourself, that you desired the colored men of this country to know and to feel that you was and would be their friend. As to the public offices to be filled should you be elected it might be impossible you stated, for you to appoint colored men to some now held by them, that when this could not be done that there would be others that you would appoint them to which would be equally as honorable and as lucrative as those now held by them. You further stated you could not place your views or expressions in writing as it might be used by your political opponents to your detriment before the convention then soon to meet, but I could rest assured that if elected such would be your course and that I was at perfect liberty to make known your attitude as to your feelings towards the colored voters of this State and Country.
The statement made to me was also made to Dr. Walters and other colored men who waited upon you after you had been named as the candidate of the Democratic Party for the Presidency. In a letter to Dr. Walters dated October 16th 1912, the closing paragraph of which I herein copy you said these words.“The colored people of the United States have made remarkable progress towards self-support and usefulness and ought to be encouraged using every possible and proper way. My sympathy with them is of long standing and I want to assure them through you that should I become the President of the United States they may count upon me for absolute fair dealing and for everything by which I could assist in advancing the interest of the race in the United States. Cordially and Sincerely yours,(Signed) Woodrow WilsonActing upon these statements made by you, organizations of colored men were established in every Northern and Western State. This fact may not be known to you, but it is well known to those who had charge of your campaign. Many of those who entered this field advocating your election refused to accept any compensation for their services, paying their traveling expenses and in some cases contributing toward your campaign fund. In that election you secured slightly above 30 per cent of this vote. Mr. Roosevelt the Progressive candidate about 40 per cent, the Republican candidate Mr. Taft the remainder.
You are no doubt aware of this fact that without the electoral vote of Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan each of which are considered debatable states and in each of them the Colored vote is the balance of power, you could not have been elected, you therefore owe very largely to this class of voters you now ignore your present place as President of this Country.Mr. Cleveland, when he became President conceived the happy thought that if colored men could ably represent this country in the diplomatic field in what was known as the Black Republics they were rightfully entitled to represent this Nation in other Republics on the Continent and following this thought named several to South American States, they failed in being confirmed owing to the United States Senate at the time being of an opposite political faith. This can be said of both Mr. Cleveland’s administrations he was a true friend of the Negro race and had the backbone to stand by them and to see that justice and right was accorded them. This was at a time when there were but few colored men who could be induced to vote the Democratic Party ticket, unlike the many who at the last national contest cast their ballots in your favor.
Have you, Sir, attempted in the slightest way to fulfill any of the pledges that you have made? Unfortunately up to this date those who have loyally rallied to your standard and supported you have been cast aside. They have asked of you bread, you have handed them a stone instead.
The happy relations that have existed between the clerks of the several Departments for these many years, you and some of the members of your Cabinet have endeavored to sunder in the effort made to segregate them to separate rooms, this would have been carried to the extreme if it had not have been for the attitude of the honorable senator from Minnesota, Mr. Clapp, in introducing a resolution in the Senate inquiring as to the reasons why such rules had been established. All honor is due from this race to him in calling the attention of the Nation to this new order of things.
Your failure to appoint colored men to positions of honor and trust heretofore held by them because the United States Senate would not confirm them could and would be accepted if it came from a less resourceful man than yourself, as a contra distinction to this thought, your action as shown in shaping pending legislation in Congress, the “Tariff Bill,” which will if passed revolutionize the industrial and mercantile interests of the country, the “Currency Bill,” destined if passed to affect the financial interests of both rich and poor alike, if sheer will power on your part can compel members of divergent views on these measures of both the Lower and Upper House to vote for them and which will affect their political future, it would be mockery for any one to think that these senators who so willingly follow your behest in this legislation would not as readily follow it in confirming those who may be your selection to such offices. There is I am sorry to say Mr. President either a lack of will power on your part, or else a desire not to do so. I will not say a lack of back-bone in you to do it, those who know you best, know that you are not lacking in this direction.We had hoped in your election as the President of our Common country that a new era in our history would be open to us, one of progress to our race in the doing away with race friction and in a full recognition of our rights to those privileges which are the inestimable rights of an American citizenship which have been denied us these many years. We had looked forward in the hope that under your guidance all this would be changed, but the cold facts presented to us show that these cherished hopes are to be dashed to the ground and that for a while longer we must continue to drink from the bitter cup.
I cannot believe, Sir, the policy you have instituted toward us has either the sympathy or the support of the Democratic Party. I know it has not in the North and West and I fully believe that there are many fair and just minded men in the South who earnestly desire the elimination of these racial issues from party politics and who are willing to accord justice and equal rights to all American citizens irrespective of their color. You are, Sir, losing a golden opportunity to make yourself one of the great Presidents of this Country that comes only once in the life of any man.As the pilot of the new Progressive Democratic ship which was launched on November 5th 1912 and which started in its voyage on March 4th 1913 laden with the good wishes of thousands of well-wishers and the hopes of other thousands that the dogma of American prejudice was about to end, they hoped for it a safe and successful voyage of four years, that at the end of it the people might acclaim, “Ye have been faithful on this voyage, the country had prospered under your guidance, peace and good-will had attended the nation, prejudice of race or color had been finally banished from the country forever, in doing this the precious treasures of the Nation, we again entrust to your care for another four years.”This acclamation, Sir, you will not hear unless a change comes in the management of this vessal on the part of yourself and your advisors which you are now steering upon the rocks of unredeemed pledges and promises, I can assure you that it will be many years hence before the destiny of this Nation will again be entrusted to the care of the Democratic Party.
Courteously yours,
WF Powell
Camden, NJ
August 25th 1913.
Hon. Woodrow Wilson
President of the United States,
White House,
Washington, DC
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