That valiant defender of the rights
of the colored people, John Mitchell,
Jr, has an editorial in his paper, the
Richmond Planet, which is a gem. We
reproduce it in full:
Dr. H. B. Frissell has issued a pa
triotic address to the colored people
of the country and from every stand
point save one, it is an admirable
production. We are disposed to take
issue with him, however, when he
says:
"As Dr. Washington and Dr. Moton
have proved by their lives of quiet,
unpretentious service, the colored man
is going to secure recognition, not by
demanding his rights, but by deserv
ing them."
A right is a thing to be demanded
a privilege, a 'thing to be deserved.
If Dr. Frissell had said that the col
ored man is going to secure recogni
tion by demanding his rights and by
deserving them, we would understand
fully that he recognized that the citi
zen of color is entitled to every right
and every privilege enjoyed by any
other citizen. We pause to remark
that the colored people in this coun
try will never come unto their own
as long as they believe that they are
inherently inferior and that they are
not manly enough to deserve their
rights, and after deserving their
rights, to demand them.
