Winston Churchill needed all his skill at parliamentary parrying of touchy subjects. Cocky Tom Driberg, Independent M.P., had risen in the House of Commons and asked the Prime Minister to "make friendly representations to the American military authorities asking them to instruct their men that the color bar is not a custom of this country." The Prime Minister thought the suggestion "unfortunate," hoped "'that without any action on my part the points of view of all concerned will be mutually understood and respected."
But the question had peeled the blanket of official silence off...