The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-06-01
PROTEST AGAINST
 NEW NEGRO RINK
CITIZENS BELIEVE IT WOULD BE BAD POLICY TO PLACE IT so CLOSE TO THE JEFFERSON THEATRE.

Quite storm of protest has been aroused by the announcement that d ne- gro skating rink would be erected at the corner of Seventeenth street and Sec- pressed. it seems that the plan will be nipped in the bud.
 At the last council meeting permission was granted for the erection of this structure, but the aldermen were not in- formed of its location. Since 1t has be- come known that the rink Is to be at Seventeenth street and Second avenue. just across from the Jefferson theatre, where 1t Is almost positively necessary that no large gathering place for loafing negroes be opened. the condemnation has been general, and a petition with some twenty-five names of prominent business men of the neghborhood has been drawn up, and presented to Mayor Ward. Here it is:
 'To the Honorable Mayor and Board of
 Aldermen, Birmingham, Ala
 "Gentlemen:-The undersigned citizens ane property owners beg to enter thls protest against the erection of a build ing on the lot at the southeast corner of the intersection of Second avenue and Seventeenth street, to be used as a negro skating rink.
 We feel that you are quite capable of understanding the many reasons why it is not best for such building to be erected at the point named, but beg leave to submit a few reasons which occur to us, and which we think sufficient to justify your honorable body in refusing to allow the use of such building as a place where negroes will gather together in large numbers
 '1 Observation and experience teach us that the best way to maintain peace and quiet. law and order, between white peo- pie and negroes, is to keep them sep arate and apart in social life and we be- lie-.e 1t best for the negroes that they should not be encouraged to assemble to- gether in large numbers too frequently.
 ''2. We believe that the erection of a large auditorium at the point named would mean the establishment of rem dezvous for negroes in the very heart of the city, where they will congregate not only for innocent amusement and pleasure, but where they will hold pollt- ical and other meetings, and under the heat Of passion and excitement be moved to do unlawful acts: As an illustration of this proposition we refer to the nu- merous disturbances which have occurred at Traction park.
 "3, The location referred to Is across the street from the Jefferson theatre and in close proximity to the Hippo drome. and the Bijou theatre-places of amusement where large numbers of our white population assemble, and to estab- lish headquarters for the assembling of negroes at this point will of necessity throw the whites and blacks together upon the streets coming and going from the several places enumerated. We, there- fore think that if such a place Is to be established for negroes to have meet ings that some other point in the city should be selected rather than this place, where the whites and blacks will mix on the streets and sidewalks on the way to and from the several places of amuse- ment referred to.
 A. We believe in the interest of tha negroes as well as the white people of this community that 1t Is far better to avoid and prevent ..nything that will tend to bring about disturbances between the races than to suppress trouble after it has occurred '