Evening star., 1953-06-05
Housing Group
Fire on
Racial Issue
Step-by-Step End
To Segregation Is
Hit by Both Sides
By George Beveridqe

The National Capital Housing
Authority formally voting STEP
by-step end to segregation in
public housing, was under Wig
orous fire today, both for going
too far and not going far enough.
The directly contradictory
blasts, not unexpected, attacked
the agency's decision to: Cd De-
clare an intention to end seq
regation and (2) apply the in
tegration policy to specific prof.
ects on an individual basis.
On the one hand, the WASH
ington Urban League and the
District Chapter of the National
Association for the Advancement
of Colored People took the agen-
cy to task for not ending segre-
cation at all projects in one fell
SWoop.
Davis Hits Board.
On the other hand. Democratic
Representative Davis of Georgia
called the board "a group of
bureaucrats encouraged by a
group of local left-wing radicals
promulgating their crack
pot theories in defiance of the
wishes of Congress and District
residents.
After formally approving the
new policy by unanimous vote
at a board meeting yesterday.
the members read and filed tele-
grams from the league and the
NAACP. The board got no
chance to answer Mr.. Davis
attack. made in lengthy, fiery
statement on the House floor
late in the day.
NCHA Director James Ring
obviously was peeved, however,
by complaints that the board
had not gone far enough. He
said there are two answers to
the argument that segregation
should be wiped out with a sim
gle stroke.
The first, he said, is that
some neighborhoods do not
have schools, Fairgrounds and
other facilities that can take
care of both groups. In these
cases, he said, integration will
be deferred" until the facilities
exist.
The second answer. he said,.
is that switch to integration
demands so much NCHA staff
work that the projects must be
considered on an individual
basis.
First Step Outlined.
AS first step. the board voted
to integrate one project imme-
diately, and four others-two
now colored and two now white
as of September /. Mr.. Ring told
a reporter that others, however,
will be placed before the board
for consideration at it's July
meeting.
The new policy superseded one
adopted last March, when it was
stated that all projects planned
or built after September. 1851,
would be integrated. Mr.. Ring
said that policy was not feasible
because it ignored existing seq
regated projects and applied a
blanket integration policy for
some neighborhoods that would
not support both white and coll
ored families.
"Our new policy is no retreat
from our earlier stand" he told
the board. THE projects consid-
cred were purposely limited be-
cause OF the workload that would
be imposed on the staff"
The Washington Urban League
statement told the board that
integration decisions on a STEP
by-step basis promotes tension
and invites conflict" It said
that a clear policy firmly ad-
hered to" is "the only way to
avoid continuing friction"
Sees Segregation Favored.
Mr.. Davis statement. however.
contended that Congress and an
overwhelming number of the
self = supporting. tax paying,
property-owning people of WASH
ington" favor segregation. As
serting that an end to segrega-
tion would bring the city big
financial losses. he charged
agitation for breaking it down
has been stirred up by "con-
scienceless politicians busy
bodies, meddlers and crackpots."
Meanwhile, in other actions at
its board meeting yesterday, the
NCHA:
/. Voted an agreement with
the RedeVelopment Land Agency
to cooperate in finding new
homes for families displaced
both by public housing devel-
opment and by the Area B rede-
velopment program in South
west Washington.
Q Called a special meeting
for next Friday to discuss re-
visions in the rent schedule set
up for low-income families liv-
ing in public housing units.
MI. Ring declined to disclose
the rental changes proposed, but
said they would result in little
change in revenue and give a
better break to lower income
families.
OF present families in the
units, he said, 80 per cent have
incomes below $4,000 a year, and
another 10 per cent have in
comes below $4,000.
Pofnmnr Roen Sne;nS1,