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[[image - continuation of Roosevelt's "Black Cabinet"]]

[[image - Judge William Hastie]]

The only government office in Washington where Negroes could obtain white-collar jobs, with few exceptions, was the office of the Recorder of Deeds for the District of Columbia. It was a patronage office, with all personnel appointed by the Recorder, usually on the recommendations from members of Congress, the White house or the political party in power... Secondly, the position had the added prestige of being a Presidential appointment with Senate confirmation, with a salary of $6,400 per annum. Dr. Thompkins, with the backing of the Missouri machine boss, Tom Pendergast, won this coveted spot, which, because of its large patronage potential, gave him the upper hand over the other three - and he played it to the hilt. He eventually organized the Negro Democratic Party, with the blessing of the President and Farley. This organization would hold its meetings simultaneously with, and in the same city as, the Democratic National Convention. Negroes weren't being elected delegates to the major conventions anyway, and the white bosses rather like the idea of the Negroes meeting separately.

To make them comfortable, and Dr. Thompkins look important, the President would send greetings and Farley and other Party bosses would address them in person.

With Lester Walton and Dr. Thompkins taken care of, only one of the two remaining members of the "Big Four" was interested in a job. Robert L. Vann, who had done publicity work for the Harding, Coolidge and Hoover administration, as publisher of the Pittsburgh Courier, suddenly realized that he was an attorney as well, and asked for a position in the Department of Justice. Homer Cummings, the attorney general, agreed to take him on as a "special assistant to the attorney general." What he did at the Department was always a mystery, but it was generally conceeded [[conceded]] that it couldn't have been important or much because there was never any publicity surrounding his activities and he was back and forth in Pittsburgh running his newspaper. He would travel by car to avoid passing through segregated Maryland, a State he would have to pass through if he used public transportation. On one of his trips, returning to Washington from Pittsburgh by car, his car crashed and Vann died from the injuries. Joe Rainey, the Boston lawyer, probably the wisest of the three, decided against a government position. As a result, he was the only one of the "Big Four" to become wealthy. 

As is typical of political leaders, they must take care of themselves first. That having been done in the case of the "Big Four," attention was then devoted to trying to help their depressed and hungry brothers.

In October 1933, there were 13,600,000 persons on Federal relief, receiving money or dole, from the Federal Emergency Relief Administration established by Roosevelt. Negroes on Federal relief constituted approximately 18% of the total Negro population. Negro organizations could see a lot of opportunities in the doling out of money to that many Negroes. They were soon able to have the government establish a "Department of Negro Work" within the Federal Emergency Relief Administration to handle problems of discrimination and equal participation. Forrester B. Washington, founder and director of the Atlanta School of Social Work was appointed "Director of Negro Work" and thus began a series of Negro appointments and not only within his department but in practically every cabinet department. One would never have guessed that there were so many "important" Negroes looking for government jobs. Applications came from everywhere and from all walks of life, from the executive directors of the National Urban League, and NAACP, YM, and YWCA's, to the chauffers of prominent and wealthy whites. When the Administration began appointing Blacks recommended by college presidents, the NAACP, the National Urban League, and social work organizations, without regard to their political backgrounds, the "Big Four" yelled like a wounded hound. "The mule that plowed the corn should eat some of it," they said...

Washington named Alfred E. Smith as his top assistant, and Smith succeeded Washington who had become frustrated with his inability to accomplish anything much and returned to the Atlanta School of Social

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