SPEECHES & WRITINGS FILE     [Race Discrimination in the 
General Federation of Women's Clubs]

Written by Mary Church Terrell 
1615 S St., N.W. 
Washington, D.C. 
[Race Discrimination in the
General Federation of Women's Clubs]
In this country and throughout the civilized world, in fact, women
have recently been carrying on in a variety of ways.  Perhaps the most
spectacular thing done in recent years was the drive for peace made by the women
of Great Britain.  Women from all parts of England literally made a pilgrimage
to London. Some of them walked several hundred miles from their
homes, stopping at villages and towns along the route to preach the gospel
of peace.
"The women of the world are tired of war," say these English women, "and no
group is more heartily sick of it and disgusted with it than we are." The
leader of this great demonstration was Mrs. Pethick Lawrence.  She has long
been foremost in various movements undertaken by women and flew in an air plane
from one town to another to make the drive for peace as large and as impressive
as possible. And it was truly a wonderful gathering of earnest, determined
women who met in Hyde Park on that memorable day to tell the world that
they would not countenance another war, that they are tired of having their
husbands, fathers, brothers and sons blown to atoms, gassed and shell-shocked
because the Powers That Be in the great nations will not settle their disputes
by arbitration instead of resorting to force.  On that occasion all social
barriers and class distinctions were broken down.  The titled woman and
the tattered char-woman stood side by side, shoulder to shoulder to voice
their demands for peace.  Such a huge demonstration made by these English
women may not succeed in averting war for all time, but the
British statesmen must have been tremendously impressed by it.  They will
certainly make strenuous efforts to avoid declaring war in the future, because
of the determined stand against it made by the mothers, daughters, wives and
sisters of the country.  What the League of Nations can not accomplish,
perhaps the women of the world will do.
In Atlantic City not long ago the eighteenth Biennial Convention of
of the General Federation of Women's Clubs was held.  This organization
excludes colored women from membership. It did not originally take such a 
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narrow, backward stand, but, as usual, the northern women hearkened to the voice
of their sisters from the South once upon a time and the doom of the colored
women was sealed from that day forth. And this is how it happened.
Mrs. Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin was sent as a delegate to a convention
of the General Federation of Women's Clubs which was held in Milwaukee
Wisconsin in 1889. Mrs. Ruffin was an intelligent, distinguished-looking,
well-dressed woman who attracted attention wherever she went.  Incidentally,
she was one of the pioneers in the national organization of colored women.
A southern woman spied Mrs. Ruffin wearing a delegate's badge of of
the General Federation and tried to pull it from her dress, when they met
in the lobby of the Milwaukee hotel.  After that disgraceful scene the 
General Federation of Women's Clubs, completely dominated by its southern members,
voted not to admit colored women to its ranks. History in this respect was
in a fair way to repeat itself in Atlantic City a few weeks ago.
The southern members of the General Federation tried once more to force
their will upon the organization as a whole. But this time they did not
succeed - probably, because the colored woman's right to respect and
recognition was not involved. This effort to rule or ruin was called the "Louisville
Rebellion," because  some high and mighty ladies from that city decided they
would not bow to the will of the majority. These Louisville ladies declared
they did not want to be bound to any policy, to which they objected, even
though the Federation as a whole voted to adopt it.  Reflecting the attitude
of their section, these Louisville ladies wanted to be a law unto themselves.
True to type they wanted to secede. But on this occasion the General
Federation of Women's Clubs told the Louisville ladies that they would have to abide
by the decision of the majority, whether they liked it or not and that they
would not be allowed to conduct a campaign either in the name of the State
or of a club against any measure which the organization as a whole had voted
to accept, It was gratifying to see that many of the leading women of Kentucky
stood by the Federation and disapproved of the demands made by the Louisville
ladies.  In comparing the meeting of the Federation with any similar group
of colored women, one fails to see any striking evidence of the boasted
superiority of the dominant race. 
Mary Church Terrell

Transcribed and reviewed by contributors participating in the By The People project at crowd.loc.gov.