Remedies for Discrimination in Apprenticeship Programs

Excerpt] Efforts by Negroes to gain admission to apprenticeship programs in the building, machinist, and printing crafts have received widespread attention. Street demonstrations, picketing, entrance blocking, "sleepins" in union halls, and several violent clashes with police have catapulted the topic into the headlines. Accordingly, the issue has joined the grievances which serve as rallying cries for civil rights spokesmen in every section of the country. In response both to the public furor and to the notable absence of Negro workers in these trades, public authorities have adopted a variety of remedial measures. The main objective of this article is to review the effectiveness of these remedies and to suggest others which are likely to be more successful in solving this important domestic problem.