Niggers in the White House

The poem, as it appeared in the Kentucky New Era on March 13, 1903

"Niggers in the White House" is a racist satirical poem that first appeared in 1902 in the Sedalia, Missouri newspaper Sedalia Sentinel. The poem was widely republished in newspapers throughout the United States in reaction to a White House dinner hosted by President Theodore Roosevelt that had invited Booker T. Washington, an African-American presidential adviser, as a guest. The poem reappeared in 1929 after First Lady Lou Hoover, wife of President Herbert Hoover, invited the wife of African-American congressman, Oscar DePriest, to the White House for a tea event.

Both incidents triggered widespread condemnation by many throughout the United States, and particularly throughout the south. Elected representatives in Congress and state legislatures from southern states voiced objections to the presence of an African American as a guest of the First Family.

The poem is composed of fourteen four-line stanzas, in each of which the second and fourth lines rhyme. The poem also frequently uses the titular epithet as a term to represent African Americans, and Senator Hiram Bingham described the poem as "indecent, obscene doggerel." The identity of the author remains unknown.

History

The poem was written in 1902 after widespread news reports that President Theodore Roosevelt and his family served as host to African American presidential advisor Booker T. Washington at the presidential residence, the White House. Many felt that such an act made the two men appear equal in terms of social status and this resulted in public outcry – even respected politicians condemned Roosevelt's action. Democratic Senator Benjamin Tillman from South Carolina remarked, "The action of President Roosevelt in entertaining that nigger will necessitate our killing a thousand niggers in the South before they will learn their place again." The poem was reprinted widely in newspapers across the south and throughout the United States; the Missouri newspaper Sedalia Sentinel published it on its front page for one issue.

The poem resurfaced in June 1929 due to a public outcry triggered by another White House invitation. First Lady Lou Hoover, wife of President Herbert Hoover, invited the wife of Republican Oscar DePriest to a tea event. De Priest was a member in the House of Representatives and the only African-American member in Congress in 1929. Mrs. Hoover had a series of teas with the wives of congressmen and Jessie De Priest was among the guests. Southern congressmen and newspapers reacted with public denouncements of the event. Democratic Senator Coleman Blease from South Carolina inserted the poem within a senate resolution entitled, “To request the Chief Executive to respect the White House” in the upper chamber of Congress. The poem was read aloud on the floor of the United States Senate. However, the reading of the poem was unanimously blotted out from the Congressional Record due to protest from fellow senators Walter Edge and Hiram Bingham. Bingham described the poem as "indecent, obscene doggerel" which gave "offense to hundreds of thousands of our fellow citizens and [...] to the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution." Blease withdrew the resolution, but stated he did so "because it gave offense to his friend, Senator Bingham and not because it might give any offense to the Negro race." A copy of the poem cut from one of the newspaper publications forms part of the Theodore Roosevelt papers preserved by the Library of Congress. A typed caption had been added, stating, "Publications like this show something of what is the matter with Missouri.".

Overview

The poem is composed of 14 stanzas with four lines per stanza. Every stanza is written in rhyme. The term "nigger" is used as a pejorative term in nearly all the stanzas in the poem except the last three stanzas. The term "nigger" is an epithet used to identify people of African descent or people that self identify as African American or "black" in the United States. The epithet is widely considered to be the most offensive term anyone can use to describe African Americans. In congressman Blease's version of the poem, the last four stanzas were omitted. The last three stanzas mention Roosevelt and Washington by name and the names of their respective children. The poem ends,

I see a way to settle it
  Just as clear as water,
Let Mr. Booker Washington
  Marry Teddy's daughter.

Or, if this does not overflow
  Teddy's cup of joy,
Then let Miss Dinah Washington
  Marry Teddy's boy.

But everything is settled,
  Roosevelt is dead;
Niggers in the White House
  Cut off Teddy's head.

Edward J. Robinson links the comments about racial intermarriage to a “Southern rape complex” according to which racial purity was threatened by the possibility that “negroes shall mingle freely with whites in the social circle—that white women may receive attentions from negro men", in the words of the Richmond Times.

See also

• A Guest of Honor – the first opera created by Scott Joplin, the celebrated composer of Ragtime music. The operatic production was based on the 1901 White House dinner hosted by President Theodore Roosevelt for Booker T. Washington.

Further reading

Booker T. Washington incident

• Davis, Deborah (2013). Guest of Honor: Booker T. Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, and the White House Dinner That Shocked a Nation. New York City: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781439169827.
• "The Night President Teddy Roosevelt Invited Booker T. Washington to Dinner". The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. 35. The JBHE Foundation, Inc: 24–25. Spring 2002. JSTOR 3133821.
• Norrell, Robert J. (Spring 2009). "When Teddy Roosevelt Invited Booker T. Washington to Dine at the White House". The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. 63. The JBHE Foundation, Inc: 70–74. JSTOR 40407606.
• Severn, John K. (January 1976). "Theodore Roosevelt Entertains Booker T. Washington: Florida's Reaction to the White House Dinner". The Florida Historical Quarterly. 54 (3). Florida Historical Society: 306–318. JSTOR 30151288. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• White, Arthur O. (January1973). "Booker T. Washington's Florida Incident, 1903-1904". The Florida Historical Quarterly. 51 (3). Florida Historical Society: 227–249. JSTOR 30151545. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

Jessie De Priest incident

• Day, Davis S. (Winter 1980). "Herbert Hoover and Racial Politics: The De Priest Incident". Journal of Negro History. 65 (1). Association for the Study of African American Life and History, Inc.: 6–17. doi:10.2307/3031544. JSTOR 3031544.

External links

• Harris, Gardiner (November 8, 2008). "White Houses Past: The Underside of the Welcome Mat". New York Times. Retrieved 15 September 2013. - Provides an historical overview of other incidents involving the presence of African Americans at the White House from slavery until the present.