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To the Editors of the CRIMSON:
We, the members of the Radcliffe Association for the Advancement of Colored People, wish to clarify our position on The H.L.U.'s and the H.S.M.R.'s showing of the controversial film "Birth of a Nation." Although we have been associated with the activities of the H.S.M.R. in the past, we cannot agree with their sponsorship of this film.
The activities of our organization are directed towards securing inter-racial understanding and cooperation through educational methods. Because we do not believe that negative educational methods are effective, we would not write "laff" on a blackboard and tell children to avoid spelling "laugh" that way. Likewise, we would not show a film which is rife with anti-Negro propaganda and which presents a warped viewpoint of the period in American history in which the Negro's role was a highly controversial subject.
Therefore, we agree with the policy of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in refusing to sponsor or to support the sponsorship of this film under any circumstances.
We wish to emphasize that this is not an attempt at censorship, but we can not, on principle, allow ourselves to be associated with the sponsorship of "Birth of a Nation." Jewelle A. Taylor '55 President of the RAACP
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