A recent dinner in Chicago with Catholic friends, whose parents came
from Italy, a conference with a group of 25 cultured Negro men and
women at Chicago University, and a visit in Des Moines, Iowa, with a
close personal friend of mine, a rabbi, are a few personal experiences
which show in a very real way how a relatively free society enables us
to enrich our lives through fellowship with men of different races and
religions.
In this Nation, to which more than 38,000,000 immigrants have come
during the last 120 years, the struggle of people of all races and of
many creeds _has been_ and _is_ consciously toward the goal of human
understanding and tolerance. This is an effort to elevate human welfare,
irrespective of race, color, or creed; and to rise to new heights of
civilization with the help of all contributions to our culture. A
distinguishing characteristic of a true American is that he measures men
of all races and creeds by their achievement, their honesty of purpose,
and their humility.
J. W. STUDEBAKER,
_Commissioner of Education_.