Girl. Produced by president eisenhowers committee on government contracts, this film dramatizes the racial tensions caused by the first hiring of a black secretary by a private company doing federal contract work. The film was shown by churches and civic groups and schools to address compliance with the antidiscrimination effort. [film begins] [laughter] [indiscernible conversations] that is the new girl. It is her first day. Narrator that is the new girl. It is her first day. Some people say there will be trouble. Some saw trouble coming from the start. Good Office Management begins at home. You are late. Guilty, sir. You better hurry. My coffee is probably getting cold. It is a wonder i love to get up in the morning. Ive got such a nice boss to look forward to. Incidentally, did you see the urgent note i left . Policy meeting at 9 15 . Yes. Dennis got back from washington late yesterday and called the meeting after you had gone. Thanks. It is a new government contract. Was there any information . I tried to finesse information from his secretary and she is as informative as a quiz program. I had better get going. Have black coffee waiting for me. Good Office Management begins at home. Whatever they do, they are going to make health for that new nigro girl you put on the payroll. Girl you put on the payroll. Are you going to sit behind every secretary with a gun on your back . It means we can put the new policy through without trouble. We will have to move slowly at first, no matter how badly we need them. Now you set it now you said at. The need grow represents a labor force that hasnt even begun to be tapped. How about it, kurt . Your department has been crying for help. Think we can make it work . Maybe. Nigro and white work sidebyside and we dont have any trouble. There was talk about trouble but the union was on our side. By the time they were through with the meeting, there wasnt any opposition. Those were men. They work with their hands. How about women . What is it we are afraid of . Bad publicity . Maybe we are raising problems to high to hide our prejudices. I am not a bigot. Im not amount man of prejudices. At least not ones i could let interfere with profits. I am a man who sells a product to doesnt care what color the girls who types up the bill, but because i am on the outside, i get around. I hear stories. What kind of stories . Trouble. Morale. White girls dont want to work next to a negro girl, whether you like it or not. Now i will tell you something. Im not running for election and i am not going to run scared. No 20yearold stenographers going to tell me how to run my business. Frome just come back washington. I met with the president s committee on government contracts. It was no tea party. They were talking business. Since when does the president s committee running dennis industries . We are not just talking dennis industries, we are talking national policy. Under the president s directive, no company can deal with the government, can get a contract, unless its policies are clearly nondiscriminatory. Dont we employ are clearly nondiscriminatory. That is not enough. Unless we have black employees in the front line, we are discriminating. We are responsible to stockholders. We cant afford we can afford anything our business can anything our competitors can. From now on we will be hiring strictly by ability. If you want to set an example, put the first negro secretary in my office. And have the white girls quit . That would be discrimination. Sorry for the first girl you hire. She has got to be strong. Any white girl will think twice before she starts any trouble. And any man she works for will consider herself consider herself lucky. We want every Single Person in this office to know you are behind her, to the last typist in the pool. Every girl working here should be made to feel she is involved in putting through this new policy. Is that it . Thats about it. Better get going. What are you going to do . They have got to live too. Take it easy, you too. It hasnt even happened yet. I know it is a fact. I got it on the best authority. Maybe you wont think it is so funny when one of them is sitting on the decks sitting on the desk next to you. That i wouldnt wish on anybody. Doom spreading the usual morning cheer. Yes, and this morning she is colorblind. Very funny. She has got confidential information. I tell you it is going to happen. It is. Then we all are going to lose our jobs. Me, i will quit first. What would we do without you . Probably like my replacement, down here. What are you talking about . She claims they are going to somee need negro office girls here. You dont mean that. I do. Understand, i havent got anything against them. The one who guards the door, we are good friends, but that doesnt mean i want him or his sister working in my office. I dont bother them, and they dont bother me. Where are you working now, mary . Lanes. At least i was this morning. I may not be if i dont get back there this afternoon. Did he tell you what he wants to talk to you about . How would i really like to go to work, and could i drop down to the urban league on my lunch hour. Have you any idea . Put these books away please, ms. Thompson. I am sorry i kept you waiting. Would you come inside . It will only take a few minutes. Good luck. Thanks. Has missed thompson been filling your head full of tall tales . Would you have a seat, please . Cigarette . C. See you have been working at lanes since high school, and now you have graduated from secretarial school. Must be pretty rough working during the day on going to school at night. I think it was a little harder on my family that on me. They had to listen to my complaining. It mightit looks like have been worthwhile. How would you like to go to work as a secretary at dennis industries . You want the truth, dont you mr. Graham . An eye tooth to work as a secretary, but at dennis industries, im not so sure. Afraid you are not quite good enough yet . No. That isnt the reason. They wouldntd want me at dennis. Someone does. They called me. I didnt call them. We are not talking about anything that is secret. They have never hired a negro girl. Everyone knows that. It is not that they discriminate, it is just that they dont hire us. Maybe things are changing. Dont misunderstand. I would love to work at dennis. I could do the job of secretary. I could handle it. You could. I check your records. You have every qualification that you need. Now, let me bring you up to date. Last week, the Personnel Department of dennis got in touch with every Employment Agency in town. They told them that, beginning immediately, negroes would be hired for the office force at dennis. They also called the urban league and asked us to help them over the hurdle . Sounds as though they are serious. They are serious. They have started a longterm educational plants of the schools here will know exactly what kind of help they need. Everyave approached organization in town and asked for their assistance. This could be a tremendous step forward. But what about me . Suppose i do go up for the job . The Personnel Department cant make the people like me. Girlsant tell the other that that you are as good as they are . No, they cant. But they can give you every chance to show how. Mary, right now they need us and we certainly need them. If we dont take the chance when it comes along, it may not come along again. We have everything to gain. You have everything to gain. And nothing to lose except a job. And about 10 feet of pride. It is a funny thing, mary. Once someone offers you a choice , you cant ever go back to the way it was before. If you dont try, when you go out of here you will find that your pride has shrunk to 10 inches. If you do try, well, if you do you may have something to be really proud of. What do you say . I will try. , good girl. Is the crusade for freedom at dennis industries coming . There is a girl coming over from the urban league tomorrow morning. When she is through with personnel, i would like you to have a talk with her. Sure. I would glad i would be glad to have a talk. You know, talk isnt enough in this situation. You mean you people upstairs are serious about this . Let me point out one thing to you. Dennis industries does a lot of business with the government. And we turned out a good product. And the law says fair employment practice. It never fails. The vips decide to work a miracle in the little wheels downstairs have to start grinding. Are you against hiring negro es . Thats not what i said. Im only an office manager. I cant make a hero out of todd dennis. Nobody asked you to do that. Follow company policy. And lose half of the girls in doing it. I heard one of the girls say she will quit as soon as we hi ray negro. Hire a negro. She could start enact this she could start and exodus. The girls wont stand for it. Dont be naive. You know the reasons as well as i do. Like what . The washrooms, for instance. You know what i mean. What do these same girls do when the movies and have to go to the restroom . Suffer . Department head has made it official, all the way down the line. There is a memo in black and white so everybody can see it. The best ways to make a definite wayrom the top down is to make a definite stand from the top down. You would think we are living in the dark ages. When are people going to realize this is the 20th century in the United States of america. With freedom and Liberty Pearl for all freedom and liberty for all. It doesnt say working where you dont want to. Are you saying youre going to quit . I wont have to. My problem my job will probably just disappear into thin air. Most wonder what all the fuss is about. Few admit they dont like the idea of a negro, but are willing to go along with the idea. Go ahead and try it. It wontep saying work. You know those signs you put in the plant, equal opportunity, you can wallpaper the whole building but you cant change the facts of life. Got to get home. What time is it . If this girl tomorrow morning passes all those tests, it is your job to place her in one of those openings you have been complaining about for so long. See you later. To finde very lucky someone with your qualifications, miss newton. You passed those tests with flying colors. I thought i would be too nervous to hold a pencil. All that is left is a physical, just routine. I will have my secretary fix an appointment with the medical office. Would you alert the medical office miss newton will be down in about half an hour . You had better meet the man you will probably be working for. May i ask a question . Would it be possible to have an assignment in the Accounting Department . Why . There is a girl in there from my class at high school. We are not friends exactly, but i thought it might make things as a new employee at dennis, you should know the rules, we dont give favors, we dont give preferential treatment. We stick to our word. Every employee is treated solely on their merits for better or worse. See. Now i will take you down and introduce you to mr. Haydn. You have to wait. That is all i can say. Are you the gentleman complaining about the lack of office help . Atif you dont get someone that desk soon, you will have to dig me out of all this paperwork. I have someone for you. 22, graduate of sec. School, honor student, conscientious, loyal, eager to work. She is outside. Would you like to meet her . Bring her in and tell her to have her pencil sharpened so we can get started. Miss mary newton, mr. Kurt harden. I think you will find your work cut out for you. How do you do . You should have seen his face. He looked at me like he couldnt believe it, like he couldnt believe it. What did he say . He said, how do you do . He said it twice and then turned around and went back to his desk, said he would see me tomorrow. What did the other guy do . Mr. Nelson . He smiled, like it was some sort of joke and then took me down to the medical office. Anybody say anything about you being the first colored girl in the office . They didnt have to. You could see it in their faces. The way the girl and mr. Nelsons office looked at me. Maybe you just imagine doll of this. Imagined all of this. Thats a crazy thing to say, mama. Its the truth. You just dont understand. I understand. You may not think i understand, but i do. You think i cant understand because i am your mother and i am older, but i do. What you are going through isnt new. I had was a young girl, to leave high school to get a job. I would have given everything to work in a shop, but this wasnt done where i lived. A niggerer heard of working in a shop where white girls and white women came in to buy things, so i got a job and i cleaned, house and cried at nights until i got married. Maybe my mother had something she wanted very bad and couldnt have, and cried about all night. I dont know. Children, and you i have watched you grow up and finish school, and now mary is working in a shop and crying her eyes out because she cant work in an office. Well, maybe she can work in an office, and if she can, i dont want to see her throwing away the chance because she is afraid. Maybe those people hate her, maybe some of them do, and maybe she is imagining a law of it, dreaming up trouble to hide her fears. And if this is the way it is, than she has got to find out, and the only way to find out is to go to work tomorrow. When she has her own kids, she is going to have to watch them get hurt and cry and be afraid. And she will always wonder if she couldnt have suffered it for them, and may be made their lives a little easier and maybe made their lives a little easier, the way i sometimes wonder now. Mr. Nelson. Yes . Im resigning. Seriously . Seriously. Ok. I appreciate your getting here on time to tell me. You know exactly why i am quitting. Y receive ayou ma personal invitation for mr. Todd dennis of dennis industries to present your case to him personally. Him i would like to see her right away. Lets squash this. And get lyle ross on the phone. May i ask a personal question . Of course. Where do you stand on all this . You have heard the policy discussion. How do you feel . Honestly, mr. Dennis, i wonder where everybody has been. Doesnt anybody in this company read the newspapers or go to the movies . I think it is about time we woke up. You can be a great help to us right now. How . By giving the new girl a chance. By making sure that she gets a chance. You mean by being especially nice to her . Nice, justcially plain, ordinary nice, gardenvariety nice. You have a certain amount of prestige here. Use it. I didnt want the other girls to think i was doing it just because dont you start being frightened too. Think about it. It is not an order, just a random comment on humanity. I am sorry you want to leave,. Iss right miss wright up until now you have been an asset to the company. Enjoyedtil now i have working here. I suppose you will be looking for a job in a plant that doesnt irony grows. I think you understand my position. I know your position. I dont understand it. I head is not difficult to explain it is not difficult to explain. I have heard it before. You dont expect us to adjust our policies to meet your approval . I would rather not work then work under your policy. Rather not work . Well, you are lucky. How do you mean . Lucky you can afford that alternative. I cant afford it. Neither can most of the people working here. I dont understand why my leaving has suddenly taken on such importance. I wish i felt flattered by the attention, but i am afraid i dont. Well, the fact is, youre much moree company is important than a personal matter for me or for you. Attempt going to even to argue with your prejudices. I know that in a few minutes here, i cant change whatever has made you think what you are thinking for a lifetime but if would like to, i put the shoe on the other foot. You are a popular girl here, probably with good reason. What you do, quitting, may set an example for a lot of other girls or cant afford your independence. I am responsible for this company. That means i am responsible to the stockholders, the people working here, to myself, even to the whole country indirectly. It is too late to crawl back into a shell. Im afraid i dont understand, mr. Dennis. , i am going to ask you to stay on here in spite of how you feel. To give this girl, to give yourself even, a chance to find out if we are right. You are putting me in a pretty tough spot, mr. Dennis. It may not be as tough as you think. You are making it awfully difficult to refuse. It would have been so much ier just to ball me out bawl me out. Will you give it a try . It is only fair to warn you, i may do all the wrong things. You may be sorry if i stay. Every day i am in business, i am taking chances. One. Willing to take this i will think about it, mr. Dennis. I will say this, though. It is the first time i have stopped to think about it at all. Thank you. [indiscernible conversations] i am miss merrill. Mary newton. Hello, mary. Would you join us . [indiscernible] what department are you in . [indiscernible conversations] there was no mass walkout. No one quit. If you even tried to help out. Resentment turned to curiosity. Then curiosity became interest. [typewriter keys clicking] narrator in time mary was no longer the new girl, and a new girls no longer meant trouble. Towe all settled down again the difficult business of making a living. You can watch archival films on Public Affairs in their entirety on our weekly series reel america, saturday at 10 00 p. M. And sunday at 4 00 p. M. Eastern hereon American History tv. Ways to are a lot of cover this to follow this highlycompetitive election on this cspan network, but the fastest and easiest is on the web on cspan. Org. We have our campaign 2020 interactive calendar with maps of upcoming primaries and caucuses, including super tuesday. There is the event tracker. This is a tool for easy search of 2020 candidates, our coverage based on the candidates, topics, events and locations on the Campaign Train came pain trail. Byhave results broken down county and candidate and district for president ial candidate send upcoming senate, house and governors races, and our schedule of information. It is free. It is easily accessible. It is all they at cspan. Org. There at cspan. Org. Artifacts,n american and the capital city of the seminal nation of oklahoma, we meet assistant chief lewis johnson, who gives us a tour of the tribes museum. Here is a preview. Here we have one of the last seminole chiefs in florida around 1856, around that time. His english name was billy bow legs. Was famous during the seminole wars because of his prowess in war, and as a leader and diplomat. He was the last chief to leave florida and come to the indian territory. This is seminole clothing of that time period. Warriors ofamous the seminole conflicts, the United States conflicts with the seminoles, was a person known as osceola. There is a real pronunciation in the language, but here is a representation of an event that took place in history, when they were talking about removing the seminoles. Came ands said osceola drew his knife and put his knife in that tree that was being presented to the seminoles and said, this is how seminoles sign such treaties of this type. In other words, he was saying the seminoles want to remain in florida and want to also live the life the creator has made them to live, and that they did not want to move. Of this is the name piece, the defiant one. This is a copy of that treaty that this is associated with. This is a copy, and as you can see, this was the treaty of fort treaty thet was the United States and the seminoles had agreed to move westward. Some say that that is a crease mark and some say that is actually the mark of the knife that osceola did that that time in history. The entire Program Sunday at 6 00 p. M. And 10 00 p. M. Eastern here on American History tv. Historians compare todays era politics to they stress that while demographic size has changed, many issues that concern americans today, partisanship, foreign influence, and the role of the media, were issues in the early years as well. The Edward M Kennedy institute for the u. S. Senate in boston ho