Hrdlicka's proposed solution to America's race problem

From an article published in The New York Times in 1898:
[Ales Hrdlicka] told of the failure of the Liberian colony, and of several plans which had been suggested in Congress, but which had come to naught, chiefly because the Nation at large had never realized the gravity of the negro problem. Miscegenation he regarded as impossible. Education had been tried, but many regarded it as a failure. The abandonment of the South, which was proposed by some writers, seemed to be impracticable. Having disposed of all the previous suggestions, the speaker put forward his own plan, which was to scatter the negroes in the South over the whole United States and the recent acquisitions in the West Indies and the Orient.

"The negro," said Dr. Hrdlicka, "is willing to spread. He would go anywhere if some inducement were held out to him [. . .] Once dispersed, the negro would be far more amenable to education and to the influence of law and morals." Dr. Hrdlicka expressed the opinion that such a movement would not seriously inconvenience any part of the country in which the negroes might settle. He referred to similar treatment accorded to refractory tribes by ancient nations, and said that, in many cases, such tribes had lost their individuality in consequence. In conclusion, he suggested that the scientists of the country should formulate and publicly support some definite proposition for the solution of the negro question.
How did that work out?

4 comments:

Nordicist said...

I hope that Hrdlicka wouldn’t have supported miscegenation if he had thought that it was possible.

ziel said...

Well they weren't exactly "scattered" - more like moved in waves to form new tribal lands (i.e., Newark, Bedford Stuyvesant, Detroit, etc.) in other regions. So I wouldn't say that Hrdlicka's plan was ever fairly implemented.

Anonymous said...

Ziel,

Ever heard of Section 8 housing? The government has been resettling blacks into affluent white neighborhoods for decades.

What ends up happening is after they reach a certain critical mass, the whites get spooked from the crime and poverty and leave.

Anonymous said...

It might reduce gang activity and the rate of crime, spreading it throughout the country at a smaller rate locally. But the strategy overall is to assimilate them, and that's a big no-no for negroes. We don't want them integrated and assimilated, we want them out.