While the Iron is Hot

The Navy Department's decision of four days ago to accept Negro enlistments must go down on the records as a gingerly step at best. It is deserving of applause, not so much for what it does as for what it represents. Like the Declaration of Independence and the Fall of the Bastille and the Emancipation Proclamation, it is a symbol of what can be done, more than it is a concrete accomplishment. There is in the nature of this latest grant little indication of a change in attitude. A seaman's rating and an eventual petty officership may in themselves seem like the ultimate in advancement to the colored volunteer, who in the past has been suffered in the navy only as mess mate, steward, or cook. But on a comparative scale this move is hardly better than the closed door policy that the navy has clung to in the past through thick and thin.

While this action may seem to indicate an opening of the door, the viewpoint of those who guard it is as padlocked as ever. There are, for example, no commissions open to Negroes in the navy, though colored officers in the army are numerous. The material, the ability, and in some cases the technical training are there if they are given a chance to develop. Yet the navy at present shows no inclination to provide this chance. The excuse given, that it take a long time to train a naval officer, is specious to the point of being laughable. From the recent rapid expansion of V-1 and V-7, it can be seen that the means are there if the desire and need are great enough. Obviously the need is great, which leaves only the conclusion that the desire is lacking.

The problem of assigning mixed crews, which the authorities have always posed as the insoluble and insurmountable barrier, should not escape consideration. That such a problem exists is undeniable, but that in itself is no excuse to shelve it. The degree of insolubility is as much a matter of imagination from above as of incompatability inherent in the ranks. Mixed crews have existed and worked together on merchant ships. In one case a whole crew protested when its two colored members were dismissed, until the authorities were forced to re-hire them. Limited polls among prospective selectees have shown a majority in favor of eliminating the color line in the ranks.

When the potential cooperation of a ten per cent block of them country is badly needed, the present attitude of the navy higher-ups is a fallacy of logic as much as a violation of ideals. The navy's recent move must be taken for what it is, an opening wedge and no more. If the impression of finality and great advance which the Navy Department has tried to create, and which is evidenced in Secretary Knox's unfortunately patronizing attitude when he says "the whole thing will be carried along in a cordial spirit of experimentation"--if this attitude is allowed to persist, the long range value of the step will be lost. The problem is bigger than the navy and more far reaching than the war. Its solution is worth every effort, and the present opportunity, if properly handled, can become a vital link in that effort.