Memorandum of Conversation with Secretary of State Dean Acheson, Theodore Brown, Jeanetta Welch Brown, Rayford W. Logan, Clarence Mitchell, William Dell, Elmer Henderson, and Patrick Condon

THUMAN 6937 ARCHIVES "NATIONAL SERVICE* RECORDE AND 107 April 16, 1951. Meeting of Negro Leaders with Secretary Acheson on April 13, 1951. Theodore Brown, Frotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, AF of I Mrs. Jeanetta Welch Brown, National Council of Negro Women Rayford W. Logan, Professor, Howard University Clarence Mitchell, Director, National Association for the Advancement of XXXXXXXXX Colored People William :. Dell, Bishop, Colored Methodist Episcopal Church; South Boston, Virginia. Elmer Henderson, Director, American Council on Human Rights PL - Patrick W. Condon This group, under the chairmanship of A. Philip Randolph, is a subcommittee of a Committee of Negro leaders that previously met with the President on February 28. Professor Logan read a prepared statement to the Secretary that outlined six of the subsommittee's recommendations. The Secretary first dismissed Point No. 6, dealing with schools training citizens for foreign service that discriminated against Negroes because he felt that his shoulders were sufficiently full with obligations more directly related to his responsibilities as Secretary of State. He said he would welcome, however, any criticism that might deal with Yale as he had for some time been a trustee of Yale. Regarding the other points cited in the S tatement concerning tha Depar tment's employment policies, the Secretary first outlined his own personal attitude on this general subject which was well known to the group. He invited the group to discuss the Department's employment policies in more detail with Haywood P. Martin, Director of the Office of Personnel. He pointed out that both be and the President had invited Dr. Ralph Bunche to be Assistant Secretary in charge of Near Eastern, South Asian and African Affairs for the sole reason that both he and the President felt that Dr. Bunche was the most qualified expert in this country and in the world to assume this responsibility. He said that, for reasons of his own, Dr. Bunche did not accept that appointment, The Secretary went on to say that when he had an appointment to make of an Assistant Secretary or of any other official in the Department, it would not be made on the basis of "this man