More Masonic racism: "That which God has put asunder, no man should put together"

A good brother from Alabama unearthed this 50-year-old document from the archives of the Grand Lodge of Alabama. It speaks not only for its time, but for now. Sadly, not much seems to have changed in the minds of most of our Alabama brethren.

"Proceedings of the Grand Lodge of Alabama" for 1956:

George Johnson, Grand Orator of the Grand Lodge of Alabama

"We are now living in trying times, with respect to racial relations brought about by an unavoidable edict of the Supreme Court, invading again the rights of the states. The Grand Master of the Universe created all men and all races, which no God fearing person could or would want to deny.

"I submit that it is my humble judgement, brethren, that segregation is manifested in the creation.

"I went, last spring, to the beautiful gardens in Mobile, Bellingrath Gardens and I saw, there, a beautiful squirrel blue-necked swan down at one end of the lake, and its friend, the white one, down at the other end of the lake. As I observe geography and plant life, I see that alfalfa is grown yonder in the north and northwest and is not adaptive, without supplemental treatment, to this section of the country. I observe that the great Creator of the Universe put the white bear in the Arctic regions and the black bear in the mountains and I looked across the scopes of this creation and saw the dark man down yonder in Africa and the yellow man, my brethren, yonder in the Orient, and the white man here in the United States and over on the the edges of middle and central Europe.

"My friends, I don't want to presume upon the greatness of this question, man is so finite that I sometimes wonder if we ought to presume upon the great and Omnipotent creative handiwork of God, but I say, in all humility, that it is my conception that segregation is written all across the face of the earth, and I say to you, my brethren, it is my humble, but deep conviction, that that which God has put asunder, no man should put together.

"Yes, the Supreme Court has seemingly turned from jurors to psychologists and have thrust upon us a vicious edict called integration which, in my opinion, is destined to destroy the peaceful relationship which has gradually been built up between the races of our country over the past one and a quarter centuries. This integration is a monster unworkable, and undesired by either race in Alabama. It can only serve as the father of chaos and strife and I dont believe we have to have it here in Alabama until we want it, which will be a long, long time."

Image: The Grand Lodge of Free & Accepted Masons of Alabama held an emergent Grand Lodge Communication at The George Washington Masonic National Memorial to inaugurate November 2001 as The Grand Lodge of Alabama Month at the Memorial. Officers of the Grand Lodge of Alabama who participated were: M.W. V. Wayne Causey, Grand Master; R.W. Roger A. Simmons, Deputy Grand Master; R.W. Billy C. Ford, Senior Grand Warden; R.W. Darrell Neill, Junior Grand Warden; M.W. Jerry M. Underwood, PGM and Grand Secretary; W. Lew W. Jones, Junior Grand Deacon; Lyn Emfinger, Senior Grand Steward; and Luther S. (Pythagoras) Holder, Chairman, Committee on Work and Past Junior Grand Steward.

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