Awake!, July 22, 1968
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FINDING AN ANSWER TO THE PROBLEM OF RACE
What Are You Doing This Summer?
PAGE 21
Take a Deep Breath
PAGE 25
JULY 22, 1968
THE REASON FOR THIS MAGAZINE
News sources that are able to keep you awake to the vital issues of our times must be unfettered by censorship and selfish interests. "Awake!" has no fetters. It recognizes facts, faces facts, is free to publish facts. It is not bound by political ties; it is unhampered by traditional creeds. This magazine keeps itself free, that it may speak freely to you. But it does not abuse its freedom. It maintains integrity to truth.
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CONTENTS
Racial Tension Mounts in United States 3
The Roots of Racial Troubles 4
What Basis for Racial Prejudice? 7
The Real Causes of Racial Problems 10
Solving the Problem of Race 12
Desert Survival Technique 17
How to Spin a Yarn—by Jute 18
A Lawless Society 20
What Are You Doing This Summer? 21
Where Is the Proof? 24
Take a Deep Breath 25
Your Vocabulary—How Large? 27
"Your Word Is Truth"
Faith, the Possession of Few 28
RACIAL TENSION MOUNTS IN UNITED STATES
ON April 4, 1968, an assassin's bullet took the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He was considered by many to be the leading moderate exponent for the civil rights of Negroes in the United States.
His death sparked an avalanche of Negro rioting throughout the country. It was reported that 168 towns and cities were affected, more than in the entire year of 1967. About 5,000 fires were started, 2,000 homes or shops wrecked or looted, and 21,000 arrested. The death toll was 46.
In addition to the tens of thousands of police used to restore order, about 70,000 Federal and National Guard troops were called out. For the first time since the Civil War of 1861-1865, army troops stood guard in all sections of the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. Soldiers ringed the White House and the Capitol building.
One report stated of the nation's capital: "Washington was like a city under enemy assault. Smoke poured from scores of flaming buildings. Mobs roamed many areas—including the business district and sections close to the White House. . . . Parts of Washington looked as though they had been hit by enemy bombing planes. . . . Police were frank to say that
without military help there was no possibility of containing the situation. The officers often found themselves outnumbered by as much as 100 to 1."-U.S. News & World Report, April 15, 1968.
The death of Dr. King and the violence that followed shocked much of the world. Many foreign news analysts felt that the breach between whites and Negroes in the United States was beyond repair.
In the United States itself, many leaders saw a definite hardening of attitudes between whites and Negroes. One expert on racial problems, L. M. Killian of Florida State University, stated: "Even before Dr. King's death I felt that the nation's racial crisis was heading for open warfare. . . . I see no way for the country to avoid being plunged into racial war."
While others disagreed with the severity of such judgments, there was a general agreement that racial tensions had indeed worsened in the United States. The commission appointed by President Johnson to investigate the 1967 riots came to this conclusion even before Dr. King's death. Composed of leading officials of the nation, this body, the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, said: "This is our basic conclusion: Our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white—separate and unequal."
The commission acknowledged the complexity of the situation, but concluded: "Certain fundamental matters are clear. Of these, the most fundamental is the racial attitude and behavior of white Americans toward black Americans. Race prejudice has shaped our history decisively; it now threatens to affect our future. White racism is essentially responsible for the explosive mixture which has been accumulating in our cities since the end of World War II."
However, others disagree with the conclusion that white racism should take so much of the blame for the racial difficulties in the United States today. Many,
including some Negroes, feel that the Negro was making progress, although admittedly slow. They contend that the rioting, looting and destroying may severely undermine much of that progress. They say that such lawlessness cannot be justified for any reason and can only hurt the Negro cause.
Why has this tragic situation come about? What are the root causes of this racial unrest? Is there an answer to the problem of race, in whatever nation it appears? What is the best way for individuals of different races to cope with the problem today, regardless of what others may choose to do? And what does the future hold in regard to relations between the races?
THE roots of racial troubles in the United States are not difficult to find. Most authorities agree as to what they are.
The New York Times of March 1, 1968, pointed to these roots when it stated: "The causes of recent racial disorders are embedded in a tangle of issues and circumstances—social, economic, political and psychological—which arise out of the historical pattern of Negro-white relations in America."
It is to this "historical pattern" that we must look for the roots of racial troubles in the United States.
History tells us that over the centuries the nations of Europe gradually overtook
in political, economic and military power the nations of Africa, the Middle East and Asia that had gone before them. Beginning several centuries ago, this ascending power of Europe was used to acquire colonies in the Americas, in Africa and in Asia. Much of the "underdeveloped" world was eventually divided up among the European nations.
These European countries, particularly England, France, Portugal and Spain, quickly claimed almost all of North and South America. In what was later to become the United States, the British influence was the stronger and she established colonies along the east coast. As the colonies developed, more acreage was planted in certain profitable crops. But the labor force was small, restricting the amount of land that could be cultivated.
ease. Sometimes slaves killed themselves, preferring death to their ordeal."
Yes, here was a main root of racial troubles in the United States. Could such an abuse of human life have a good result? A principle found in the Bible states: "Whatever a man is sowing, this he will also reap." (Gal. 6:7) Consider, too, that every nation involved in the slave trade to the Americas called itself a Christian nation! Yet the founder of Christianity, Jesus Christ, had said "Just so you must
Slavery
The World Book Encyclopedia, 1966 edition, Volume 14, states: "In the 1400's European traders began to go to the west coast of Africa for slaves. With the discovery of the Americas, a cheap and plentiful labor supply was needed. As a result, the African slave trade became a profitable business. Portuguese, Dutch, French, and British traders took part in the traffic. Many New England families made fortunes in the slave trade. Because
Jesus Christ, had said: Just as you want men, to do to you, do the same way to them."—Luke 6:31.
However, it must not be overlooked that Negroes themselves were implicated in this slave trade. Many slaves were hunted down by other African tribes who were themselves Negroes. These were unconcerned with the suffering of their own fellow Africans, but were interested only in selfish gain.
The bringing of slaves to the Americas destroyed the tribal, language and cultural
of treaties made with Portugal, Spain was not allowed to trade in Africa. Therefore, Spanish colonists in the Americas had to have traders of other nations bring in slaves.
"Slave traders from Europe and America tapped the human resources of Africa for about 400 years. The Negro kings waged war on each other to capture slaves they could sell or exchange with traders for guns, rum, cloth, and many other items. In all, more than 15,000,000
ties the slaves had in Africa. In many cases, it also destroyed their family ties as husbands and wives, and even children were sold separately to different slave owners. These slaves were used mainly as farm workers and house servants.
By the time of the Revolutionary War, which began in 1775, there were about 700,000 Negro slaves in a total population of about 2,500,000 in the colonies.
Abolition of Slavery
African Negroes are believed to have been carried to other parts of the world by slave merchants.
"Aboard ship, the slave captives lived for weeks in filth and horror. Many were chained hand and foot and packed together in the holds so tightly they could hardly move. Thousands died on the slave ships from brutal treatment and from dis JULY 22, 1968
In time, there arose many who saw the injustice of slavery. Attempts were increasingly made to abolish it. Thus, in 1808 the United States Congress outlawed further importation of slaves. However, this law was largely ignored. It is estimated that as many slaves were imported illegally between 1809 and 1861 as had been imported legally in the preceding two centuries!
During the American Civil War, President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the slaves. It became effective beginning in 1863. However, it applied only to those slaves in Confederate territories. It did not apply to the four states where slavery existed on the Union side. Not until 1865 were all slaves freed by the adoption of Amendment 13 to the Constitution. Other amendments were later adopted to give certain rights to former slaves, who then numbered about 4,500,000.
The decade that 'followed the Civil War was one of severe adjustment for Negroes, as few had the skills to find other kinds of work. Many ended up working for their former masters. The January 1968 issue of Theology Today observed: "By 1880 the white population of the Southern states had regained control of the political and social order. 'White supremacy' and a series of 'Black Codes' operated to reduce the status of the Negro to that of an inferior caste member based on his color. A bi-racial society was established in the South, and in the North subtle means were frequently used to accomplish the same purpose."
After World War II, many Americans began to show increasing concern over racial injustices. Thus, in the 1950's and early 1960's a series of laws were passed by Congress to guarantee the legal rights of Negroes in the United States. By the mid-1960's the legal barriers to full civil rights had been broken down.
Also, by this time most Negroes had moved off the farms. Fewer than 15 out of every 100 lived on farms, and it is now estimated that over 90 percent of all Negroes in the United States can read and write. Several hundred thousand have attended colleges and universities. Many have made careers as prominent educators, judges, athletes and political leaders.
several recently being elected mayors of predominantly white Northern cities.
Little Difference for Poor
Yet for the majority of Negroes, particularly those living in "ghetto" areas of big cities, this gradual progress was making little difference. These ghetto areas had swelled with the mass movement of millions of Negroes into the cities. In 1910 only 27 percent of American Negroes lived in cities that had a population of 2,500 or more. But now the Negro population of about 22,000,000 in the United States finds approximately 15,000,000 in cities.
Much of this Negro migration was the result of expecting better jobs and living conditions in the North, for in the South poor living conditions and unemployment created by the shift to mechanized labor on farms proved unbearable for many. This movement of population resulted in large concentrations of poor Negroes in cities. In some cases, this Negro population approached the majority. Indeed, the nation's capital, Washington, D.C., is now about 65 percent Negro.
Of such cities the President's riot commission said: "The future of these cities, and of their burgeoning Negro populations, is grim." Why? It says:
"Black in-migration and white exodus have produced the massive and growing concentrations of impoverished Negroes in our major cities, creating a growing crisis of deteriorating facilities and services and unmet human needs.
"In the black ghetto segregation and poverty converge on the young to destroy opportunity and enforce failure, Crime, drug addiction, dependency on welfare, and bitterness and resentment against society in general and white society in particular are the result."
At the same time the rising prosperity of the country over the past decade was brought to the attention of ghetto dwellers, causing huge frustrations. Additionally, the many legal victories in behalf of civil rights had raised the expectation of poorer Negroes.
Yet they did not see any immediate benefits materially. Adding to the difficulties of many poor Negro families is the fact that often the Negro male, the head of the house, leaves his family. Of this, the book Assuring Freedom to the Free, edited by A. M. Rose, said: "In the northeastern and midwestern cities ... if [Negro] households with incomes under $3,000 and whose heads are in the 35- to 44-year age bracket are considered,
1960 census data reveal that over 50 percent have female heads."
Summing up this situation, the president's riot commission reported: "The culture of poverty that results from unemployment and family breakup generates a system of ruthless, exploitative relationships within the ghetto. Prostitution, dope addiction, and crime create an environmental 'jungle' characterized by personal insecurity and tension. Children growing up under such conditions are likely participants in civil disorders."
THE foregoing helps explain the roots of racial troubles in the United States. But what explains the racial prejudice?
One source of racial prejudice is the belief that some races are inherently superior or inferior to others.
Is this true? Is there a difference in the inborn abilities and mentalities of people of different races? What accounts for the fact that some races have advanced more than others economically, scientifically and otherwise?
Racial Superiority
It ought to be noted that scientists are in agreement on this matter. The World Book Encyclopedia states: "Science does not support the claim that some races are biologically superior or inferior to others.
Civilizations of any race may be advanced or retarded, and the people within them may have greater or smaller opportunities for contact and for personal development. People who live in an advanced civilization, regardless of race or stock, develop much more rapidly than people who live in a retarded civilization. But there is no scientific evidence to prove this has anything to do with inborn abilities or aptitudes."
At times the superiority of one race over another is claimed on the basis of a larger brain size. However, in his book Man's Most Dangerous Myth: the Fallacy of Race, professor of anthropology M. F. Ashley Montagu states:
"Upon the basis of the available facts the scientist can come to only one conclusion, .
. . there is therefore no significance to be attached to brain size as a mark of cultural or intellectual development. . .
"If this were not so, then the Amahosa of Africa, who have few cultural opportunities but more brains by size than whites, with 1,490 cc. as compared with 1,450 cc. for European males and 1,300 cc. for females, would be culturally and intellectually superior to whites, as would the Buriats, 1,496 cc.; the Eskimos, 1,563 cc.; and the Polynesians, 1,470 cc. If we are to hold that the Negro is mentally inferior to the white because his brain has a volume of 50 cc. less than that of the white, then by the same token we must hold that Amahosa, Eskimos, Polynesians, and many other peoples are superior to whites. This we have reason to believe is untrue. There is no evidence that any people is either biologically or mentally superior or inferior to any other people in any way whatever."
Hence, there is no evidence that any single race, people, or nation has a special ability for creating civilization.
Negroes a Cursed Race?
But does not the Bible teach that the Negro race is inferior because it was cursed by God? Is not this what accounts for their skin color and condition of servitude over the centuries?
Those who promote this view refer to the Bible account at Genesis 9:25 for support. There it states: "Cursed be Canaan. Let him become the lowest slave to his brothers." Why was Canaan, the grandson of Noah, cursed? Apparently because of an immoral act committed upon the person of the patriarch Noah.
However, where does this Bible account show that Noah mentioned the turning of anyone's skin black as a result of that curse? And please note carefully that the descendants of Canaan were not Negro. They were white.
The dark-skinned Negroid peoples, such as the Ethiopians, come primarily from
Noah's other grandson Cush, and possibly from Put, both sons of Ham. The Canaanites did come into slavery later, but in no way did this involve a curse against the black race.
Origin of Races
Another fact that helps us understand that no race is basically different from others is that all races have a common origin. As Professor Ashley Montagu states: "All varieties of man belong to the same species and have the same remote ancestry. This is a conclusion to which all the relevant evidence of comparative anatomy, paleontology, serology, and genetics, points."
The overwhelming majority of those who honestly study the evidence regarding racial origins come to the same conclusion. In the publication The Races of Mankind, by Prof. R. Benedict and Dr. G. Weltfish, we read the following:
"The Bible story of Adam and Eve, father and mother of the whole human race, told centuries ago the same truth that science has shown today: that all the peoples of the earth are a single family and have a common origin. Science describes the intricate make-up of the human body: all its different organs cooperating in keeping us alive, its curious anatomy that couldn't possibly have 'just happened' to be the same in all men if they did not have a common origin. . . .
"The fact of the unity of the human race is proved, therefore, in its anatomy. . . . all the racial differences among them are in nonessentials such as texture of head hair, amount of body hair, shape of the nose or head, or color of the eyes and the skin. . . .
"The races of mankind are what the Bible says they are—brothers."
Corroborating this is the book What Is Race, published by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It says:
"All of us, if we went back far enough, hundreds of generations, would arrive at the same place—the base of the human family tree with the first Homo sapiens.
"Our common ancestor could as well be called Adam, which also means man in Hebrew, for the familiar Biblical story foreshadowed the evidence of science that present men derive from a common stock."
All the scientific evidence in this matter harmonizes completely with the evidence found in the Bible, man's oldest and
most reliable history source. In the Bible we read that God "made out of one man every nation of men, to dwell upon the entire surface of the earth." (Acts 17:
parts of the earth, time, geography, language, politics and social factors combined to isolate groups of mankind, allowing them to develop differently from other groups.
Also, the genetic system in man was created to produce great variety. Thus, in time, certain gene patterns or groupings came to the fore, the result, particularly, of the geographic isolation of different groups. This, "genetic drift" produced the different "races" of mankind with their somewhat different
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26) And of the first man and woman, the Bible tells us: "Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she had to become the mother of everyone living." (Gen. 3:20) So the entire human race has had the same mother and father.
Because all mankind is really one human race, some scientists object to the classifying of different groups of peoples into "races." Their objection is well founded if the word "race" is used to infer different origins or different inborn capabilities. However, the term "race" is mostly used to refer to different groupings of peoples all within the same basic human family, which acknowledges their common origin.
The Differences
So, then, it is not inherent, inborn racial capabilities that have accounted for the differences in cultures down through history.
Different cultures began as a result of migration away from the center of man's activity in Mesopotamia, particularly after the flood of Noah's day more than 4,300 years ago. Following this migration to all
physical characteristics.
But why, within a given country, do some groups progress and others do not? For example, why, many ask, has the Negro in the United States not progressed farther or more rapidly in various fields than he has? In the book The Idea of Race the author states: "The simplest and the soundest answer to that question is that the Negro in America has never been afforded the kind of opportunities necessary for accomplishment of any distinction. . . The Negro in America has for three hundred years been isolated from the mainstream of American culture and segregated . . . from virtually all opportunity to enjoy the right even to the feeling that he was a man like other men."
Hence, it is not inborn racial inferiority that has been the problem in the United States, or anywhere else for that matter. The problem has been inferior opportunity. Given equal opportunity, peoples of various "races" will generally progress similarly.
It is obvious, therefore, that racial superiority or inferiority is not inborn. Why, then, has there been so much prejudice throughout history?
The Real Causes
RACIAL problems are not new. They have existed for a long time. Not only has prejudice existed between those whose skin color was different; far more prejudice has existed throughout history between those whose skin color was the same!
No doubt you have noted such prejudice. For instance, there is the prejudice that comes because someone's nationality is different. Even among those who have the same nationality, have you not observed that there is often prejudice due to one's having different political or religious beliefs? Also, one's financial or social standing, occupation, or even the section of the country one is from, has been used as the basis for prejudice.
So Negroes should not feel that they have been singled out by history to feel the lash of prejudice. Many, many other peoples, including multitudes of white persons, have been victims.
Yet why should prejudice, as well as all kinds of injustice and wickedness, plague the human family for so long? Why, at this late date, in a so-called progressive and enlightened age, are racial problems not being eliminated?
An honest look at the situation will bring you to the conclusion that mankind, on its own, has never successfully coped with the problems of race and prejudice. Why? Is there something fundamentally wrong with the human family that so many of its members repeatedly ignore the welfare of others?
Man's Creation
God created man with certain capabilities and freedoms. He was created perfect, without a defect in his mind or body. He was told to cultivate the earth and also to bring forth children who, in turn, would multiply until the earth was comfortably filled. So mankind had a fine start and marvelous prospects for the future. —Gen. 1:26-31.
However, since the human family would grow, there would need to be standards by which human affairs could be regulated. So while man was created a free moral agent, his freedom was not to be total, but only relative. It had certain limits to prevent him from infringing on the rights and happiness of others. Thus, man would need and would be given God's laws and principles as a guide.
Just as God did not create man so he could live without food, so God did not create man with the capacity to manage his affairs successfully without divine guidance. Man was not made to rule his own affairs independently from God. That is why the Bible writer Jeremiah said: "I well know, O Jehovah, that to earthling man his way does not belong. It does not belong to man who is walking even to direct his step. Correct me, O Jehovah."
(Jer. 10:23, 24) To be successful man would always need the wise direction that would come from his Creator. Similarly, an automobile runs only as long as it has fuel, and an electrical appliance runs only as long as it is plugged in to its source of electricity.
But what would happen if man rebelled against guidance from God? Well, what happens to a vehicle denied fuel? What happens to an electrical appliance disconnected from its power source? They begin to run down until they cease to function altogether. That is what happened to man. Our first parents rebelled against God, and so man's affairs began to break down. Pushing aside God's clear warning, our first forefathers, Adam and Eve, believed they could manage their affairs without God.—Gen. 3:1-6.
Among the many reasons why God has permitted time for humans to go their own way is to demonstrate conclusively that satisfactory rule apart from God is not possible for man. The trouble-filled, prejudice-plagued history of the human family shows beyond doubt that this is true. As the Bible says: "Unless Jehovah himself builds the house, it is to no avail that its builders have worked hard on it."—Ps. 127:1.
Tendency Toward Bad
On their own, our first parents were like the vehicle that runs out of fuel, like the appliance that is disconnected from its power. Cut off from God, man was now imperfect, defective. That is what he would pass on to his children. "Through one man [Adam] sin entered into the world and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men."—Rom. 5:12.
So from birth up mankind is defective. That is why he has a tendency toward
doing what is bad. "The inclination of the heart of man is bad from his youth up." (Gen. 8:21) "Foolishness is tied up with the heart of a boy."—Prov. 22:15.
Because of man's alienation from God, and his subsequent tendency toward doing what is wrong, humans have caused great hurt and injustice toward other humans. That is why the Bible says that "man has dominated man to his injury."—Eccl. 8:9.
Deterioration Ahead for Immediate Future
Since this system of things is not being ruled by God, nor is it under his guidance, it can only deteriorate further. (2 Cor. 4:4) And the Bible foretells that it will do just that: "Wicked men . . . will advance from bad to worse."—2 Tim. 3:13.
But God's permission of man's independence is near an end. We live in the "last days" that the Bible foretold, in the "conclusion of the system of things" about which Jesus spoke. Shortly, God will intervene in man's affairs and rip rulership away from him. Read some of these prophecies in your own Bible at Matthew chapter 24, Second Timothy chapter 3, and at Daniel chapter 2, verse 44.
So whatever your "race" or nationality, you should not think that any of man's efforts, however noble, will reverse the trend in the world today. It is impossible for man, on his own, to solve the inequities of the social systems today.
However, does this mean we can do nothing, individually, to cope with the problem of race now, today? Not at all! The Bible clearly shows that the problem of race not only can be solved, but is being solved, and right now! And the Bible also shows us that racial strife will be eliminated altogether in the near future in God's new system of things.
IS THE racial problem being solved today? Yes! By hundreds of
thousands of persons, and in a permanent way! The solution has made a vast improvement in their relations with others, and in their daily lives.
How is it possible for persons of different races to solve this problem when it is worsening in many parts of the world? How are they able to overcome lifelong prejudices? How have they learned to treat others with dignity and honor, and also to improve their own way of life and personal habits?
For persons of different races and nationalities to come to unity and peace, they must observe the same standards of conduct. The only standards that produce such true harmony come from God. Since his laws and principles do not originate with imperfect, selfish men, we can have the utmost confidence that they are the very best standards of conduct available to humans.
These standards of conduct are found in the Bible. The apostle Paul showed that we can confidently accept the Bible, "not as the word of men, but, just as it truthfully is, as the word of God." (1 Thess.
2:13) And that Word of God is not a dead book! It "is alive and exerts power and is sharper than any two-edged sword." (Heb. 4:12) It can cut through the bitterness and hatred in individuals to set matters straight between them. "All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for
teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness"—2 Tim. 3:16, 17.
Does It Really Work?
You may logically ask, "Does it really work?" No doubt you have observed many religions claiming to teach and use the Bible but who have not really lived up to Bible standards. Of them, God's Word says: "They publicly declare they know God, but they disown him by their works, because they are detestable and disobedient and not approved for good work of any sort." (Titus 1:16) No, those who adhere to that kind of religion are not solving racial problems, but are adding to them.
What you need to do is to observe the lives of those who really do believe and live by God's laws and principles, people who uphold them above all else. You will learn that persons who sincerely live by the Bible, as do Jehovah's witnesses, really are solving the racial problem, and not in just one country, but in every nation throughout the world. How do Jehovah's witnesses solve the racial problem?
Applying the Bible Standards
Persons who become Jehovah's witnesses learn to accept and believe the Bible's standards.
So they come to appreciate that, as the Bible states, "God is not partial, but in every nation the man that fears him and works righteousness is acceptable to him." (Acts 10:34, 35) Thus, they learn that God does not show prejudice, nor does he approve of it. As their knowledge and appreciation of God's Word grows, they are helped to respect and apply this standard. Because they want to please God, they learn not to be prejudiced.
In this regard Jesus Christ commanded: "You must love your neighbor as yourself." (Matt. 22:39) The Bible also says: "Let each of us please his neighbor in what is good for his upbuilding." (Rom. 15:2) And it adds: "Pursue peace with all people." (Heb. 12:14) Jehovah's witnesses sincerely believe that these are the right things to do, and they know that a person who does them will not look down on other persons because of their being of a different race or nationality.
God's Word also states: "In showing honor to one another take the lead." (Rom. 12:10) Could this be done if a person were prejudiced? No. Therefore, out of respect for God and his laws, persons who become Jehovah's witnesses are encouraged to change their attitude toward others so as to treat them with dignity.
Often a person becomes a victim of what he believes to be prejudice, not because of his skin color, but because of the bad personal habits he may have. He may show little respect for the rights of others, or be sloppy and use bad language. But those who learn Bible standards are aided to make a change in their personality, a change for the good, in harmony with God's will. (Col. 3:9, 10; Eph. 4:22-32) And when persons newly associated with Jehovah's witnesses begin to make this change, they see that others
often have more respect for them and treat them more decently.
True, not all persons appreciate the effort one makes at improving himself by applying Christian standards, but many do. And it should be kept in mind that those who choose to ignore these standards will, in due time, have to account to God for their attitudes and actions. But those who do learn the fine standards of God and who begin to apply them in their lives will see their own attitude and their relations with persons of other races and nationalities vastly improve. Gradually, past prejudices will be overcome.
Respect for Law
In addition to having respect for all races and improving one's own conduct toward others, those who obey God's standards are also required to obey all the laws of the government under which they live that do not conflict with God's laws. So Jehovah's witnesses apply to themselves the Bible command: "Let every soul be in subjection to the superior authorities."—Rom. 13:1.
This means that they are obligated to obey all governmental laws that do not contradict God's laws. Because they take to heart what God says on this matter, they refuse to share in such lawless activities as rioting, looting, burning and destroying. It is very practical to have such respect for law, because most of those killed or injured in rioting are the rioters themselves.
Daily Needs
But what about one's daily needs of food, clothing and shelter? Jehovah's witnesses have these needs, just as others do. But they appreciate that, as they do their part, God will do his.
What obligation does the able-bodied Christian have in this regard? The Bible principle is that "if anyone does not want to work, neither let him eat."
(2 Thess. 3:10) Alsq, the Bible says that "one working with a slack hand will be of little means."—Prov. 10:4.
Hence, by accepting God's standards and applying them, a person who becomes one of Jehovah's witnesses learns to improve his attitude toward work. He learns not to be lazy. He also improves his use of the money he does make, not wasting it when his family needs food and clothing. He uses wisely the resources he has.
What is God's part in this? Jesus taught his followers to pray: "Give us today our bread for this day." (Matt. 6:11) So as long as a person submits to God's will and is willing to work, then, as Jehovah's witnesses have experienced, God makes a way for him to sustain himself. And if a devoted servant of God is unable to hold a regular job because of poor health, advanced age, or other circumstances, God still provides for such a person. That is why the psalmist could say: "I have not seen anyone righteous left entirely, nor his offspring looking for bread."—Ps. 37:25.
Thus, confident that he will have God's backing if he does his part, the person who becomes one of Jehovah's witnesses learns that he must accept the responsibility to work hard, if he is able to do so, to provide for his needs. And if he previously resorted to illegal means to acquire things, on becoming one of Jehovah's witnesses, he abandons such lawless practices, for the Bible states: "Let the stealer steal no more, but rather let him do hard work, doing with his hands what is good work, that he may have something to distribute to someone in need."—Eph. 4:28.
Homelife
Applying Bible laws and principles makes a tremendous improvement in the
homelife of those who become Jehovah's witnesses. The housewife who applies these standards gradually begins to improve her home. Even if it used to be messy, her friends observe that she no longer lets it stay that way; she begins to keep it neat and clean. She endeavors to keep herself and her children that way too. And such a home does not require a great deal of money. It requires mainly effort and an appreciation for God's reasonable standards of decency, cleanliness and orderliness. Such a home is a pleasant place to live, a place to which a husband and father is glad to return at the end of the day. So application of these godly principles helps to keep families together.
The husband that learns to guide his life by God's standards also begins to improve his conduct. By attending the meetings of Jehovah's witnesses, where the Bible is discussed, he is aided to abandon bad habits such as drunkenness, abusing his wife and laziness, which cause strife in the home. Over a period of time, he learns to shoulder his responsibility as the head of the house.
Both husband and wife improve their marriage greatly by searching the Bible together for knowledge of the will of God, just as the early Christians did. (Acts 17:11) This helps to eliminate boredom and frustration and gives the entire family something of the highest value to do together. It strengthens family ties and helps them to learn the right answers to the problems of life.
Even where a husband has already abandoned his family, the mother, on becoming one of Jehovah's witnesses, finds that Bible standards serve as a great aid to her in making a living and managing the home. By building on the foundation of right knowledge from the Bible, she knows the right way to bring up her children, how to discipline them, what their goals in life should be.
Gradually, then, by applying God's standards, they find that family life is vastly improved. And Bible knowledge gives these families a grand hope for the future, helping to overcome the depression and gloom so much in evidence today.
Not Forcing Solutions
While Jehovah's witnesses believe in and live by God's standards, they do not try to force changes in the social systems of the nations. That is not what the Bible teaches. Forced solutions lead to violence, bloodshed and anarchy. Appreciating this, Jehovah's witnesses wait on God. They have confidence that, in his due time, God will change the entire social system for mankind's benefit just as he has guaranteed in his Word.
Hence, when the law or custom of the country permits, Jehovah's witnesses meet together as one group regardless of their national origin. However, if the law forbids integration, or where it could cause serious difficulty, they do not insist upon it. How practical would it be for them to pursue peace in obedience to God's laws, and then try to force a social issue that would create violence?
Yet, whenever and wherever it is permitted, Jehovah's witnesses of all races meet together for united worship. They obey the same high standards, treating one another with dignity and honor. Others, too, observe this and comment on it. One of many such comments appeared in the Asheville, North Carolina, Citizen of July 26, 1967. An observer said:
"These days when all we hear or see are news items about rioting, looting and hate propaganda it is time to console ourselves with the balance of good tidings that are entered on the plus side of the ledger.
came to Asheville for a week early this month. . .
"I am referring particularly to the recent convocation of Jehovah's witnesses that
'Never was there a policeman in sight. There were no raucous noises, no disturbances and no altercations. . . .
"The order was perfect and there was no obscene shouting. Remember there were at times as many as seven thousand people around the headquarters—a good many of them colored.
"There was NO litter about. . . Undoubtedly they were motivated by the Spirit of Good Will towards humanity."
Such clean, decent, respectful and law-abiding persons are living proof that the problem of race can be and is being solved. They know that, whatever a person's race or nationality, he will improve his life in every respect by living up to Bible standards. Today, as an organization, hundreds of thousands of Jehovah's witnesses are doing so. No, they do not claim to live perfect lives, nor do they expect perfection from those who associate with them. But they do continually work to improve their love for God and for neighbor. That is why they have been able to overcome the problem of race.
Perhaps just a few of many experiences in this regard can best illustrate how one's life is affected for the good, and how persons have been able to overcome lifelong prejudices by applying Bible standards.
Mother Overcomes Prejudice
One Negro mother in the United States relates:
"Jehovah's witnesses came to our house at least two or three times before we ever decided to have a Bible study conducted in our home. Along with being prejudiced toward white people, I was very opposed to having the Witnesses come to my home. But I just decided to let my husband find it all out by himself.
"About a month later, the Witnesses Invited us to their Kingdom Hall. Well, here is where I really thought that it would do my husband in.
However, even I was surprised to see the Witnesses when we got to the hall. They were altogether different than I thought they would be. Warm and friendly just aren't words enough to describe them. The Witnesses didn't even treat us as if we were Negroes. To them there was no difference in our colors. We were just the same as they were. That did it with me. I was so ashamed of myself.
"From all of our Bible studies we have learned how to conduct ourselves, how to love each other, and now we know that this is the right way to go. It has changed our relationship with each other, made us have a happier marriage, made us be better parents.
"It has given us something to hang onto and showed us what we have to do in order to gain everlasting life. Before that, we could have gone to church for a hundred years, and we never would have learned what Jehovah God's purpose for us was.
"To live up to Bible standards, and to conduct ourselves accordingly, are not hard to do. Even despite imperfection it can be done."
Southerner Finds Answer
Many have had the experience of this Negro man, about 50 years of age, who was raised in the southern part of the United States. He writes:
"We lived on a farm and were sharecropping, the produce being divided between us and the landowner. But during the bad seasons when the land wasn't productive, the landowner came and took all our farm animals as well as the little feed we had left. That was in 1928. Then my mother agreed to raise some hogs on share for another landowner. But after we raised them, he took them all for himself without giving us any share. Mother consulted a lawyer but was told that it was pointless to go to court, as we could not hope to win.
"After working on the farm hard until November, I'd get outside jobs on construction work for 10 cents an hour. This way I'd make $1.20 by working 12 hours a day.
"With all the hardships and prejudice I experienced through the years from 1928 to 1958, I knew there had to be something better. But what it was, I was not sure.
"Then finally in 1958 I was invited to the first meeting of Jehovah's witnesses that I'd ever attended. I found something greater than
anything any man had ever deprived me of. Since then, I have had no problems in seeing to my family's needs. Of course, I didn't have a high-paying job or anything like that, I just worked hard and tried to use what I had in the proper way. And I could see very well that I had help from Jehovah.
"Now that I am one of his Witnesses, I can see that it is possible for whites and Negroes to get along together. I've found among them the best friends I've ever had anywhere or at any time. They're always ready to do anything possible to help me in any way. And now I also have a hope of life everlasting in God's new order.
"No matter what happened over the years before, I'm now sure there can be peace, but only in God's way."
Youth Learns Bible Standards
Many persons learn Bible standards in their youth, enabling them to avoid the pitfalls that swallow up other young people in delinquency. One Negro youth writes of his experience in this regard:
"I was born in New York city, one of six children. With the limited education of my father and mother, and being Negro, there was but one place we could live, and that was in the ghetto.
"In 1950 our whole family started to study the Bible with a minister of Jehovah's witnesses. We began to learn about things we had never heard of before, about a new system of things, that there was no hellfire, and we learned many other Scriptural points.
"By the time I was twelve I understood more of what the Bible was saying, and how it would be Jehovah God that would bring about a permanent change in the condition of all God fearing persons. I also learned what I needed to do now to help improve my condition in life. The key was WORK, for all of God's servants in the Bible are spoken of as being hard workers. So I began to look up instead of down. I got a job after school and also worked on Saturdays.
"At the age of thirteen I was able to make enough money after school to buy all my own clothes, and so was always decently dressed. And by being busy after school I stayed out of trouble. I was learning what the Bible meant when it talked about being self-sufficient. Also, my now I had advanced in Bible knowledge and was associating with a congregation of Jehovah's witnesses, where I gained many real friends, both white and Negro, all getting along together in peace.
It gave me great hope for the future, knowing that in God's new system of things all mankind would live in such peace.
"After I finished high school, I was able, not only to work to sustain myself, but also to devote much time in teaching other persons God's purposes as found in the Bible. At twenty-five, I married and began raising a family. Because I had applied myself in school and on the job, I was able to go to a data-processing school and learn computer programming. Thus I am able to make a decent living for my family.
"By staying close to Bible standards, I have improved my life and my associations with others, especially those who also live by Bible standards. Yes, the truths from God's Word made it clear that I could enjoy the fine, upbuilding association of other Christians regardless of their race, and could look forward to such pleasant association forever in God's new
order of things. No doubt about it, living by Bible standards is the best way!"
These experiences are not unusual for persons applying God's standards of conduct. For hundreds of thousands of Jehovah's witnesses in 197 lands throughout the earth, the nagging questions about life's problems are being answered, including the problem of race. And all of them look forward to the only permanent solution for all such problems—when God soon brings to an end this wicked system and establishes his new order where "righteousness is to dwell." (2 Pet. 3:13) Then God "will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be any more. The former things have passed away." (Rev. 21:4) Then never again will racial problems mar the peace and happiness of the human family.
Desert Survival Technique
WATER is a precious commodity in desert country. For one stranded on the desert without water, survival can appear to be all but impossible. From one Australian source, however, comes the suggestion that travelers through desert regions should always carry with them some sheet plastic, for with this they are equipped to collect water. But from where, and how?
Dig a small hole in the ground, perhaps one foot and a half deep and some two feet square. Place at the center of this hole an openmouthed container of some kind, and surround it with some of the local desert vegetation. Over the hole spread your sheet of plastic, anchoring it at the corners. Place a small stone or pebble on the upper side of the sheet immediately over the center of your container. This should cause the sheet to dip downward at the center. In course of
time the heat of the sun through the plastic will draw moisture from the earth and the vegetation below. The moisture will form in droplets on the underside of the plastic and then run down to the center and drop into your container.
In one demonstration it was found that there were two pints of water after the container had been in position for three days. Since each person needs about four pints of water per day in the midst of the summer, one could calculate just about what would be necessary to yield the right quantity. Perhaps one could increase the number of excavations, containers and plastic squares; even enlarge the excavations and the size of the plastic sheet. One could also experiment by renewing the vegetation in the hole each day. At least he could count on wringing some water out of the ground itself.
How to Spin a Yarn
-By JUTE
PERHAPS, first, I ought to introduce myself. My name is Jute and I belong to the family of natural fibers. I make no claim
to being an aristocrat, unlike my cousins, the delicate silks and cottons that grace milady's wardrobe. No, I am the coarser type, designed for the rough and tumble of commerce and industry.
You may have met me at your place of employment, for I appear in jute tarpaulins that are used to protect goods against the elements. I turn up in the form of sackcloth employed for packing and bagging. I come in all sizes of ropes used for towing heavy loads. I even succeed in penetrating your very homes, for I have a share in the carpet industry. And then, believe it or not, I turn up in the theatrical stage wigs. So, in spite of my rougher associations, I do get ahead sometimes!
But where did I come from? How did I get here? Well, let me tell you, it was by no means easy. I had to go through the harrowing experiences of being cut, beaten, broken, stretched and twisted. But I survived, and here I am—a brand-new
hank of jute yarn. Of my early beginnings, I am none too clear. I know it all started in the jute
fields of Bengal, India, and led to the jute mills of Calcutta, where I was spun into my present shape.
My ancestors first attained importance back in 1746, when jute manufacturing began. Not until a century later did the demand for my family begin to expand world wide. The first jute mill, operated by power, was activated in Calcutta, in 1854. Now Calcutta has over 300,000 workers employed in this industry, and it constitutes the world's largest jute-manufacturing location.
From Field to Mill
The sowing of jute may begin anytime after February, and the harvest may stretch from June to October. Being of Oriental extraction, we prefer the hot moist climate with a fair amount of rain. So, the Brahmaputra basin and the Ganges valley are highly suitable for growth of jute. Given the right conditions, we jute stalks can grow as high as ten feet, cylindrical in shape and thick as a man's finger. Harvesting begins when our whitish-yellow flowers are fading. Gathered before this, the fiber will be too weak for commercial use. Left till too late, or until the seed is ripe, the fiber, though stronger, will now be coarser, lacking luster.
are separated from the stalks by a process called "retting." The stalks are completely immersed in water for periods ranging from a few days to a month, depending on the temperature.
Here the stalks decompose and the next step, extraction of the fibers, is facilitated. This step is cared for by native operators, ryots, who beat the stalks fan-wise on the water's surface, extracting the fibers by skillful manipulation of the hands and fingers. Manhandled in this fashion, we are grouped into bundles in readiness for the jute presses.
This is when the grading takes place. The fibers are sorted according to color, luster, softness, strength, length, firmness, uniformity, and so forth. Oh, by the way, my name "jute" in Sanskrit means "braid of hair," because of my hairlike fibers!
Now we come to the baling stage. Have you ever been in a hydraulic press? I have, and it was quite a crushing experience. We were subjected to pressures that are frightful, and emerged in the form of bales weighing 180 kilograms. Of course, our family is comforted in the knowledge that we are in great demand internationally. And in India we get the name of "the golden fiber," for jute is India's biggest earner of foreign currency.
From Fiber to Yarn
But there are many more trying stages through which we must pass before we can get to be a bobbin of refined jute yarn. After our crushing experience it is a real relief to enter the loom mills and submit to the softening process, accomplished by a mixture of mineral oil and water, mixed to the correct consistency and spread uniformly through the fibers. It is like going to warm baths after a hard day's work. This process gives us a buoyant resilience that will enable us to stand up well to the ordeals that still await us. This softening stage is called "batching."
next. What an excruciating affair! They literally pull us to shreds and break us up and then weld us into one continuous layer of interwoven, sandy-colored gauze. I shudder in every strand of my being every time I think of it. But somehow we survived and felt a lot cleaner and lighter in spite of everything.
At this point we are still a mass of disconnected fibers, so the carding section is
The carding machinery consists of a series of rollers covered with fine teeth, called "workers" and "strippers." We loose fibers are pushed in between these rollers onto a large drum with a high-speed surface also covered with steel teeth. By the time we emerge at the other end we are all knit together into one endless sheet of clean, gauzy fiber.
In still another step my brothers and I are drawn into a narrow cylindrical roll of material that they call a "jute sliver." Next comes the pulling and stretching. Phew! Four of us slivers are drawn together into rollers and gently pulled out so that we become longer and slimmer. But, whereas we went in as four, we come out as one. So we now contain four times as much material and begin to feel a bit stronger. That process is the "drawing" stage. And now most of the inequalities and irregularities have been smoothed out. We are really improving in looks too.
But if we cherished the hope that that was the end of the stretching torture, we were badly mistaken. Still in the "drawing room" (sounds quite civilized, doesn't it?) two of us newly refined slivers must go through the same thing all over again. The result: a still finer and stronger and slimmer sliver. But imagine! In each of those two drawing processes I was pulled out to eight times my original length. The torture racks of the Inquisition had nothing on this, believe me!
Up to this point there was one thing to be grateful about: the loom workers had been "straight" with me and my kind. But now, as if all the preceding stages were not enough to snap one's fiber strands, they introduce a twist process!
They call the machine used for this process a "rover," but for personal reasons I still call it a "twister." Here I-am converted into jute rove. Even on this machine I am stretched as never before, but with the twist added. Now, wound around a rove bobbin and looking more like jute thread, I feel stronger and ready for work.
At this point some of my relatives may be used for the manufacture of coarse jute materials. But I am privileged to move along to the final operation—the spinning frame. The looms are operating at high speeds, and again I am pulled out as much as previously and I must also suffer a final twisting, which completes the job and spins me into finished jute yarn. At this point I begin to feel as if I have had enough of the grueling workout, and happily the jute spinners appear to think the same way, because now they consider the spun yarn to be just right. How glad I am that they find me to be precisely the
required strength and diameter! Am I glad it is all over!
In the finished state, as jute yarn, I am reeled onto bobbins or into hanks, ready for use in making jute fabrics or webbing or cordage. Through the years our family have been great travelers. Starting early in the nineteenth century, a world center for jute products began to develop in Dundee, Scotland. Later, some of their grandchildren were actually born in the United States and expanded into a vast agricultural enterprise, particularly in the Gulf States. But though having a home-grown supply, the United States is still one of the chief importers of Indian jute. Other importers include Britain, Germany, France, Japan and Argentina.
So there you are. You know my story now. You can appreciate the strains and stresses I have endured to become a hank of yarn. Now that is all over, and I do not mind. I am happy to be of service to man. If I can serve any useful purpose, it is all my pleasure. And I have enjoyed telling you my story. Now you know how they spin a yarn—with jute.
A Lawless Society
The New York World Telegram and Journal of February 20, 1967, made this startling observation:
"Most of us so-called 'nice people' think of the country as being made up of a great mass of law biding folks and a small, maladjusted bunch of criminals. A report by the President's Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice that just indicates the opposite ratio exists."
To confirm such a shocking revelation, a study of a sampling of 1,700 persons was cited: "Ninety-one per cent of the respondents admitted having committed one or more offenses for which they might have received jail or prison sentences. Thirteen per cent of the males admitted to grand larceny, 26 per cent to auto theft and 17 per cent to burglary! Sixty-four per cent of the males and 27 per cent of the females said they committed at least one felony! And when you add this whopping majority of 'hidden' offenders to the whopping list of detected offenders, the crime picture gets murky indeed."
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