The Eleanor Roosevelt Papers, Digital Edition > My Day
MAY 28, 1954
[This column has emendations. View original version]
NEW YORK, Thursday—I was surprised to read in my newspaper that Dr. Ralph Bunche of the Trusteeship Council of the United Nations was being investigated by a Government loyalty board. It seems to me that a man who has successfully carried through so much of value both to the United States and to the U.N. should be almost automatically cleared. There can be no question of his loyalty.
Someone to whom I inquired about the matter said, "Oh, well, he once addressed the Institute of Pacific Relations which, as you know, is under question." Now the Institute of Pacific Relations may have had the support of some people who later may have proved to be Communists or near-Communists, but that does not make the whole organization suspect. On the whole, the Institute has been supported by solid citizens interested in Asiatic affairs, and its work has been of great value. If some association with it is one of the reasons that Dr. Bunche has to be questioned, then there is something the matter with our investigative procedures.
When a man's record and accomplishments are as distinguished as they have been in the case of Dr. Ralph Bunche, they should be above any suggestion of disloyalty. I hope that his clearance will come through rapidly, for the usual slow procedures do not add to the confidence that one should have in our investigative processes.
I went the other evening to see a play produced under the auspices of the Elinor Morgenthau New Dramatists' Workshop. This was established at the City Center in Mrs. Morgenthau's memory, and gives an opportunity for new plays to be performed. The play I saw was "Ceremony of Innocence," by Elma Huganir, and was given with an Equity cast at the American Academy Equity Theatre. I found it deeply moving and very beautifully acted. Since there was practically no scenery and no costumes, the acting had to stimulate the imagination; and the performers succeeded admirably in doing so. To me, the evening was a memorable one.
Another evening, I attended the annual dinner meeting of the Citizens' Committee for Children. The committee has just published a pamphlet called "The Uprooted," which deals with the problem of children in need of foster care. It is very well done, easy to read, and it highlights the gaps in our foster-care program. It is important that the public understand "the human values at stake." This pamphlet should be widely read, for while it deals with New York City's children, the problem exists everywhere in our nation.
E.R.
(WORLD COPYRIGHT, 1954, BY UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE, INC. REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART PROHIBITED.)
About this document
My Day by Eleanor Roosevelt, May 28, 1954
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