Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-02-28
District Aide
Proposes Unit
To Fight Bias
City Heads Get
Plan on Council
With Advisory Role
BY JAMES G. DEANE
Star Stan Writer

Creation of a five-member
council on human relations
was proposed to the District
Commissioners today by a COM
mittee headed by Henry F..
Hubbard, District government
personnel officer.
The proposed council would
combat racial discrimination
both in the District govern
ment and in the community at
large. 1t would be only adj
viSory and would have no en-
forcement powers, however.
The council plan, which was
handed to the Citizens Ad-
visory Council for study, was
drafted by Mr.. Hubbard, Cor
poration Counsel Chester H.
Gray, Julius w. Hobson, vice
president of the Federation Of
Civic Associations, and Sterling
Tucker, executive director of
the Washington Urban League.
Mclaughlin in Accord
Commissioner Robert E. Nc
Laughlin, who ordered creation
of the Hubbard group last Oc-
tober, said the proposals are
generally in accord with his
views. He said he feels the
council plan should be tried out
before the District considers
creating any group with broad
er powers. Mr.. Gray said
today that congressional au-
thorization would have to be
obtained for any antidiscrim-
nation body having enforce
ment powers outside the Dis
trict government itself.
Mr.. Hubbard told the advis-
DRY group that the proposed
council would not be a fair
employment-practice group Gin
the usual sense" Such groups.
in many communities, have
prosecuting authority to act
against private businesses ac-
cused of discrimination. he
said,
without Teeth"
From this standpoint, he
conceded, the proposed council
here would be without teeth. -
He also said that there is no
plan for the council even to
handle grievances within the
District government. There is
already a grievance procedure
for city employees, and the coun-
ellis function with respect to
the city government would be
to oversee the handling of dis
elimination problems in a gen.
eral way as an advisory group
to the Commissioners.
Mr. Hubbard and Mr.. Tucker
differed somewhat in discussing
the possible role of the council
in dealing with discrimination
cases in privately industry.
I'VE are not recommending
an agency that would have the
power to go out and investigate
anything" Mr.. Hubbard de-
clared. Mr.. Tucker, however,
said it was his understanding
that under the proposal the
council could initiate confer
ence with private businesses,
even though it would have no
power to settle cases.
Formal Outline
In a fromal outline of pro-
posed council duties, it was
suggested that the group should
review the District govern
ment'S nondiscrimination pol
icy and procedures and recon-
mend any changes it saw At
1t was also suggested that the
group might recommend to the
Commissioners community ed
ucation programs to eliminate
racial tensions.
The Hubbard group did not
recommend any pail staff or
budget for the proposed coun-
Gil. although it said the Dis
trict should furnish some staff
assistance. Members of the cit
liens advisory group immedi-
ately questioned this point, sug-
costing that without a full-time
staff the council might be
greatly hampered.
The advisory group agreed to
take up the proposal on March
] IA.