No Discrimination, Col. Woody Avers
Armory Commandant Emphatic in Denial of Report – Personnel Head Acknowledges
Complaint Made
There has never been the slightest discrimination against Negroes at Springfield Armory,
Col. George A. Woody, commanding officer at the post, said last night in answer
to a newspaper allegation claiming mistreatment of Negro personnel at the Armory.
The article further stated that Rev. M. N. Ward, minister in the New England
conference at AME-Zion church, had asserted that an Armory foreman threatened
to strike his wife, who works there, when she protested against attempts to put
her on filing work at day rates.
“We have now,” Col. Woody said, “approximately 700 Negroes in our employ
and they receive the same treatment as any others, being given the same opportunities
for advancement as rapidly as their skills and experience admit. We have one
Negro foreman in the Hill shops whose advice and opinion are respected and sought
after by others besides myself.”
“No
Color Line Ever Drawn”
“There are tool grinders and other skilled operators among out Negro employees,” the
commandant continued. “No color line has ever been drawn in our cafeterias,
rest rooms, or other departments of the Armory and Negroes are welcomed along
with whites in all our recreational activities. No barrier was ever raised against
the Negro at the Armory. We have employed them for a great many years and found
among them many faithful and industrious workers.”
Maurice W. Cruze, head of industrial relations at the Armory, acknowledged that Mrs. Ward
entered a complaint last December. At that time, he said, he called at her home
to investigate the situation, but Mrs. Ward was ill and unable to talk with him.
When she returned to work they made two subsequent appointments to discuss the
case, but in each instance Mrs. Ward cancelled the appointments. She has an appointment
with him tomorrow, Mr. Cruze said, and the case is open in his filed pending
the meeting. As far as Mr. Cruze knew, Mrs. Ward is still working at the Armory. |