The Famous Black Man [Paele] in America.

THERE WAS MUCH PROTEST TO THE PRESIDENT INVITING HIM TO EAT WITH HIM.

Some Things Which Show the Hatred the Whites of the South Have for the Blacks to This Day.

Something that the people of the South of America are very incensed about now, that is because President Roosevelt invited Booker T. Washington, the very famous Paele in America these days, to go to the White House of the Capitol to dine with him. Perhaps none of us understand the cause of this anger, but these days, the hatred of the whites of the south have for the Paele like when these people lived as their slaves. The whites of the south know that this Paele is well educated, and there have been many a time that they went to him and showed him some things that were very unclear to them. So that we get an understanding of how the paele are hated, we will give a short illustration of a situation that is seen all the time at the home of this famous Paele.

When some whites go to speak with Booker T. Washington [Buka T. Wakinetona], that paele welcomes them graciously, taking them into his beautiful home, and teaching them of what they wanted to know. Once, they were enjoying their conversation, and it got near to the time when that Paele was to dine, they smelled the aroma of the food wafting. Eating with a Paele is something to be much ashamed of by the Southerners, and when they smelled the aroma of the food, and they thought that this paele was about to invite them to eat with him, they immediately tried to find a way to get out and to escape from this great shame. It was then that they asked to excuse themselves because they had something to do before dinner, or that they were going to catch a train to go somewhere, and so forth; all sorts of reasons to get away before they were asked by this paele to come and dine with him at his table.

Booker T. Washington understood these things, and he knew that these people didn’t want to go because of an important reason, but they wanted to escape from eating with him. When the time to eat approached, Booker T. Washington quickly asked his visitors to come into a fine room of his house and to sit there and have a meal, and he provided a fine servant to look after his wants, while he went to the dining room to eat with his family. When the whites who came to his house heard this, they were overjoyed, because their desire to talk with him about the unclear matter they came about was not solved when it was time to eat. He was quickly taken to this fine room and he no longer wanted to return to work before lunch;  no more did he want to board a train to somewhere, and he waited until the servant came with the fine food of Booker T. Washington. When the food came, they saw that this was fine food indeed, and that it was better than their food, the service was fine, and it was truly delicious. The contempt was not for the bad food, and not for where he was made to eat, but for his [Booker T. Washington’s] skin, and because he was afraid he would be mocked by society.

When he was done eating in that room, he left everything and returned to the parlor to finish his business with that famous paele.

This is how the Paele in the South live among the whites, and when they heard that President Roosevelt invited this paele to the Palace of the Capitol, and not just that, but that he dined at the same table in this beautiful house, their jealousy was great as well as their anger, and that is why they are so persistent with the President, and they are considering all becoming Democrats and opposing Roosevelt. But this is not something that Roosevelt fears; he did what he felt was proper, the Republicans, his party, do not hate the Paele, so he has nothing to fear.

It is said one reason that this famous Paele is greatly loved is because he does not try to lord over others. He knows that he is not liked; he know his race is hated, and when he goes places, he goes places that his people frequent; he humbles himself, and he does not try to show the haole, “I am just like you, except for your whiteness;” he definitely does not do that. If he goes to a city where there are hotels that are prejudiced against blacks, he does not enter those hotels to riot, but he goes to places that do are not prejudiced against him. He rose up from being poor to a famous man, and he knows his station with his older white brothers and it is this station that he holds on to.

As Hawaiians, we should have much appreciation for the actions of President Roosevelt, for he showed that he does not look at the color of your skin, and your stature in the land. He is a true Republican, and just as the Republicans do not hate paele, he embraces them with aloha.

[So many layers.]

(Kuokoa, 11/15/1901, p. 6)

Ka Nupepa Kuokoa, Buke XXXIX, Helu 20, Aoao 6. Novemaba 15, 1901.