Charles M. Aulino

Juneteenth, A Day of Celebration and Remembrance
Union Army troops under the command of Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865. Upon Granger’s public reading of an order of emancipation most people in the region first learned that slavery had been abolished in America. Annual celebrations in the Lone Star State began soon after the first “Juneteenth,” and gradually spread around the country. 31 States now recognize the anniversary in some manner, several having proclaimed it as a State holiday.

With hindsight, it is now clear that General Granger’s proclamation of “absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves” was little more than symbolism at the time. 144 years of struggle and determination has brought meaningful progress toward the goal of equality in our country. Juneteenth is rightly a day for celebration of that progress and of the memory of so many Americans who have contributed to it. This is also a reminder of how ephemeral greatness and fame can be; wonderful stories fade from the collective memory so that the life lessons and inspiration they offer are lost to future generations.

One great but largely forgotten story is that of Joseph Louis Barrow, whose family of sharecroppers had to flee Alabama to escape threats from the Ku Klux Klan. Not well disposed to school, he discovered that he had a natural talent for boxing and soon rose to prominence under the shortened name Joe Louis. Subtle opposition to black men in the boxing ring fell before the determined, hard-hitting young man who eventually gained the heavyweight championship, held it longer than anyone before or since and became the symbol of the might and righteousness of the cause of Allied forces in World War II. At a White House meeting, President Franklin Roosevelt told Louis America needed muscles like his to beat the Germans.

In the 1940s, while Louis was still heavyweight champion, the cause of true racial equality was advanced by the hard-charging president of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Branch Rickey decided to bring a talented infielder up from the minor league Montreal Royals, making Jackie Robinson the first black player on a major league roster. Rickey recognized Robinson’s fiery spirit as essential to the success of his plan to end segregation in major league baseball. Just a few years earlier, Robinson had found himself in serious trouble for fighting with an abusive white army officer. He might never have played professional baseball if Sergeant Joe Louis had not been around to pull some strings in order to get Robinson out of the stockade.

Another who deserves remembrance on Juneteenth is Medgar Evers, field secretary for the NAACP in Mississippi beginning in the early 1950s and until his assassination by a white supremacist in 1963. An early source of inspiration in Evers’ life was Jomo Kenyatta, freedom fighter and first Prime Minister of Kenya, the country from which our nation’s new president is a descendant. Evers saw himself as a “servant leader,” a self-view President Obama clearly shares. Among Evers’ many responsibilities was the investigation of racist murders, including that of a black teenager visiting from Chicago named Emmett Till.

Louis, Rickey, Robinson and Evers all died long before the first Juneteenth celebrated in America under the leadership of an African American president. However, each of them, in his own way, contributed to a cultural transformation that enables acceptance of diversity, and that will ultimately make General Granger’s proclamation a reality.

The FIght of the Century
I wonder how many Americans are aware that Wladimir Klitschko is scheduled fight Ruslan Chagaev for the Heavyweight Championship on June 20, 2009. Their bout will occur just two days before the 71st anniversary of what became known as “the fight of the century.”

In 1938, every American knew the names of Max Schmeling and Joe Louis. Their vastly different paths crossed at Yankee Stadium on June 22 of that year. The Louis family had fled from Alabama to Detroit to escape threats from the Ku Klux Klan. Schmeling had grown up in Post WWI Germany. Both were drawn to the boxing ring by a primal need for physical competition. Both were beloved by legions of fans for qualities they shared: sportsmanship, fearlessness, skill, strength and determination. Their only previous match occurred on June 19, 1936. In that meeting, a flaw in the defenses of the boxer known as “the Brown Bomber” facilitated a Schmeling triumph.

During the 24 months between fights, world events were ominous. Alliances between Germany, Italy and Japan presaged the coming war. Germany, whose war planes had devastated Guernica, annexed Austria and was threatening Czechoslovakia. Merely a source of dismay over its belligerence before the first Schmeling-Louis match, Germany had since become an international pariah. Unwittingly, the German pugilist was cast in the role of Champion of the Nazis. Meanwhile, at a White House meeting, FDR told Louis that America needed muscles like his to beat Germany. The fight of the century lasted only 124 seconds, with Louis emerging as victor by a knock-out. In his book “Dreams from my Father,” President Obama recalls a moving conversation in which his barber compared the excitement over Louis’ success with what followed the victory of Harold Washington as first black mayor of Chicago.

Both fighters served in their countries’ armies during the Second World War. Louis fought numerous exhibition bouts, serving primarily in a public-relations role. Meanwhile, as punishment for his loss, the Nazis made Schmeling a paratrooper, and he was nearly killed during the invasion of Crete. They might have done worse had they known Schmeling hid two frightened Jewish boys in his apartment on Kristallnacht.

After the war, Louis returned to the ring, holding on to his title until March 1949, for a total of 11 years and 14 months, longer than any other Champion before or since. By then, his life of reckless spending and his insurmountable tax debt had taken their toll. He was reduced to play the role of “Greeter” at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas near the end of his life, and when he died broke, Schmeling helped pay for the funeral.

Schmeling faced a grim future at the end of the war until he was sought out by a former NY State Boxing Commissioner, who had been a mentor early in the young German’s career. After the war, James Farley was in charge of international expansion for Coca Cola. The German franchise made Schmeling a fortune that was widely shared through philanthropy.

In the contest between Klitschko and Chagaev, may the better man win. And on the occasion of their match, let’s remember the fight of the century and the two great men who took part in it.

Journalism's Struggle for Survival
The future of journalism is difficult to predict and there is no reason to believe that traditional outlets for the dissemination of news will survive. Some people still enjoy the tactile sensation of the daily newspaper and the routine of retrieving it from the front porch or a favorite newsstand on the way to work. Online versions, however, offer simplicity of navigation, freedom to view multiple publications in minutes and no cost. How do you compete with that?

The proliferation of blogs and the evolution of such social networking facilities as Twitter has transformed competition for the attention of information consumers and created an enormous volume of material. Dozens, even thousands can learn about events as they unfold. There is virtually no opportunity to check “facts” contained in tweets; by the time a reporter can do so, the news is old and cold. Imagine reporters resorting to Twitter as a primary source, potentially debasing journalism to the level of local TV news, a repetitive onslaught of weather, traffic and the latest petty crime story, all delivered by TV star wannabes.

In the search for the future of journalism, it might be useful to recall one of the great success stories of the 20th Century: The Washington Post. Eugene Meyer, a former Fed chairman, bought the business in the depths of The Great Depression, devoting enormous capital and effort to support the enterprise for the years it took to return it to profitability. His son-in-law and designated successor, Phil Graham, helped turn the tide, describing the field as the “inescapably impossible task of providing every week a first rough draft of a history.” When Phil’s bi-polar disorder led to suicide, Meyer’s daughter Katharine Graham threw herself into the task of managing a growing journalistic empire. Her decision to publish the Pentagon Papers, in the face of commands to desist from the government, might have landed her in prison. She supported the determined efforts of her staff throughout Watergate, a journalistic crusade that led to the only resignation of a U.S. President in history. Then a tag line from the paper’s classifieds was used to mock his successor, when T-shirts appeared with the phrase “I got my job through the Washington Post” printed below Gerald Ford’s picture.

The only thing we know for sure about the future of journalism is that we cannot survive as a civilized society without it. The evolution of information technology that has presented such great challenges, also provides new journalistic tools. Imagine what might have happened if Bernstein and Woodward had Twitter at their disposal? Remember, too, the grumbling of H.L. Mencken: “most people who write letters to the editor are idiots.” Will Twitter prove to be a forum for idiots or a means of gathering myriad facts and viewpoints? Will journalists learn how to tap, sort and presents the best products of the oceans of data that now float freely throughout cyberspace? Will management encourage them or block their efforts to do so?

The best hope for the future of journalism lies in reinvention. News may or may not be presented on paper in the future, but news organizations must and will learn how to get paid for delivering information products of the highest quality. Something tells me that Eugene Meyer and his daughter would have regarded what is happening as an enjoyable challenge.

On Political Courage in the Face of Fear
The use of fear to achieve political ends has gained momentum since that morning in September 2001 when America’s self-image and sense of security were shattered. It was fear of Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction that enabled the most recent President Bush to coerce the legislative branch of our government into support for a war that will be recognized as one of the worst blunders of international diplomacy in our nation’s history.
Former Vice President Cheney expounds on the effectiveness of torture to get information out of terrorists, warning that America is less safe since he and the administration he served left office. It is as if he is hoping for another tragedy just to prove his point.

The use of fear to manipulate public opinion and attitudes is a time-honored, if regrettable, tradition in politics. On Lincoln’s birthday in 1950, two ambitious politicians provoked fear to build political capital. One was then-Congressman Richard Nixon, who spoke about secret forces conspiring to impose the slavery of communism on America. The other was Sen. Joseph McCarthy, who claimed to have a list of 205 communists working in the Truman administration. Then as now, the ground was fertile and ready to nurture the seeds of fear. In less than one year beginning in August 1949, the Soviet Union detonated a nuclear weapon, Mao Tse-Tung solidified communist control over mainland China, and the U.S. Army, sent to Korea to defend against an attack, was nearly driven off the peninsula by communist forces from the north. Then as now, fear was power and those who were willing to use it became powerful.

At least now, some in the press and in private conversation are condemning the ranting of Cheney and his ilk. But it was so bad in the 1950s that citizens from all walks of life were afraid even to think of questioning the actions of Nixon and McCarthy. To be labeled a communist in America in 1950 was to become an outcast from society. One of very few who showed the courage to decry the use of fear for political gain was Sen. Margaret Chase Smith. Her speech before the Senate on June 1, 1950, entitled “A Declaration of Conscience” is as meaningful today as it was 59 years ago. Smith expressed regret that the Senate was being transformed into a forum of character assassination – all the more reprehensible because of the congressional immunity afforded the perpetrators. She reminded her colleagues that our Constitution prescribes trial by jury, not by accusation. Then she listed her “Principles of Americanism”: to criticize, hold unpopular beliefs, protest and have independent thought. Finally Smith asserted that no American should ever suffer the loss of reputation or livelihood for the exercise of those rights.

Smith’s actions were not popular with many of her Republican colleagues, who were willing to tolerate McCarthyism in order to obstruct the Democrats’ plans. How interesting to observe the courage of Sens. Olympia J. Snowe and Susan M. Collins, who like Smith are both women and both from Maine. They are the only two Republican Senators to support the Economic Stimulus plan of the Obama administration. “It must be Maine” that inspires courage in the face of fear.

Our country survived the threat of communism and will survive the threat of terrorism but not through the use of fear to justify inhuman actions. We must return to our principles of courage, renew and intensify vigilance and, above all, treat every human with the dignity to which she or he is entitled. It’s a good thing that Margaret Chase Smith has successors who have the courage to champion the effort.

Facing Financial Calamity with Courage
Collateralized mortgage obligations, credit default swaps and other so-called “toxic assets” have dominated the financial news for some time now. You hear about people giving up on plans to retire, and optimism is in short supply.

At times like this, it is worth recalling the son of Italian immigrants who faced catastrophe fearlessly throughout his illustrious career: Amadeo Peter Giannini. He quit school as a teenager to go to work in the produce business for his step-father on the San Francisco wharf. Within a few years, success led to boredom and the young man was looking for new challenges. By then, Giannini was serving on the board of directors of a bank. But he resigned in a rage over the rejection of his expansion plans – developing business from immigrant working families. He burst into the office of a banker-acquaintance named James Fagan and exclaimed “Giacomo, I’m going to start a bank. Tell me how to do it.” Soon a charter was issued for “The Bank of Italy in America” which commenced business in a one-room office that had previously been a neighborhood saloon.

Giannini acquired accounts by door-to-door solicitation; he could cajole immigrants into taking their savings out of their mattresses and depositing it with him. He also made credit available at far better rates than those offered by local loan sharks, his customers’ only prior source of financing. On the day after the great earthquake and fire, Giannini dug through the rubble to rescue his bank’s gold and records, then set up a temporary office on the wharf and made loans on a handshake to help get the process of economic recovery started.

By the time the Great Depression hit, Giannini’s bank was a financial empire, but also beset by challenges. High-powered bankers from Wall Street, in whom Giannini had placed great confidence, were planning to split up the enterprise and end his dream of a coast-to-coast branch network. He was plagued by bank regulators who seemed intent on blocking his expansion plans and he was battling a debilitating illness. None of that stopped him. He waged an epic proxy battle to regain control of the beleaguered financial giant, withstood threats from federal authorities to put his bank in receivership and launched a “back to good times” campaign stating “Depressions are the product of fear ... Prosperity, however, is born of confidence.” He showed his own confidence by backing a daring public development project: construction of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Giannini’s bank is still in business, now known simply as “Bank of America.” The current challenges it faces are compounded by its acquisition of what had been the largest brokerage firm in the country. That move was made, under pressure from the highest levels of our national government, to prevent a failure that might have further deepened the crisis. I’m sure A.P. Giannini would have approved.

Above all else, Giannini’s life is a monument to the principle of doing well by doing good. Modern bankers should take a lesson from his life story, for those who emulate his courage and determination will not fail to overcome the challenges we all face together.

Family Trust Planning Guide
Family Trust Planning Guide explains all aspects of trusts that need to be understood by tax, financial and estate planning advisers in practical, easy-to-understand terms. The book is designed to help the financial consultant gain the knowledge needed to analyze client goals and circumstances, and bring together the right planning strategies using the most appropriate trust designs.

Lesser-known Giants of the 20th Century
The 20th Century unfolds through the life stories of 11 important men and women who experienced and influenced it. They were Polish, Italian, Jewish, German, African-American and Palestinian. They include figures from professional sports, politics, journalism, entertainment, academe and banking. "Diversity, however, was a happy by-product. I was looking for stories that amaze. And I found them."

Highly Recommended by The National History Club.

Available through Amazon.com and other on-line book sellers.