Minneapolis spokesman. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1934-2000, 1959-09-18
| NAAcP Moss
Meeting Topped
Report Continued

they are said before the meeting
Is adjourned.
Number one is. In the event that
there are police officers carrying
out their duties In this particular
community that have abused, have
been offensive, have committed any
form Of act we do not feel Is cor
rect or conducive to the position
that beholds. report those Incl
dents to the NAACP, TN confirm
in writing and wen arrange to
see TO Il that such steps necessary
to correct It are taken. That's
number one. There's no sense IN
one person after another getting
up and saying an officer did this
or that and what have you. We
might Just a. wei make up our
minds that wen use the tools that
we have to try to correct some
thing which we find wrong.
Number two. Frank Smith re-
ferred to this and I have to make
some observations In the same dir
ection. A few years ago they clear
ed all the housing between West
ern and Rice, Rondo, Iglehart, Car
ron, Central and st. Anthony. Not
all the houses on Iglehart. In 50
doing a great number Of people
were not replaced. The housing
market il not and has not been
opened to Negroes to purchase
homes where they wish or to move
where they wish and as a result
crowded into the section between
Western and ftlrtherest toward
L Lexington. Further congestion
which was already somewhat Of a
problem. This area was cleared
under the guise Of a redevelop-
ment which was going to bring
about our neighborhood low rent
housing. It IL still vacant. It has
been sold for very, very substan-
tial sum Of money-Sears RoebuclS
and various other enterprises. The
NAACP, Urban League, most OF
the ministers and most other agen-
cies supported the redevelopment
program because II was going To
bring new, better, low rent housing
for them-the people suppressed
in the area.
The city council did not main.
tain good faith with you and did
not bring this into reality. Let's
face II. We moved ahead from
there and II was determined that
a highway should be routed on
Rondo and st. Anthony Avenues
displacing an additional Ats fam
lilies. No place to go and what was
the normal reaction, they crowded
more into the same existing hous-
ing, primarily between SeIby and
University. Western and Lexing-
ton, with the few that escaped out
at Wheelock.
(At this point the entire audi
ence laughed).
You may think it is funny but
it really isn't funny because the
same Illustrations and problems
which are creating the ghetto is
creating the Little riot which Is
creating this attitude toward the
Police Department to a large de-
gree is brought about by the frus-
trations by the housing in which
you are living. There lis no real
good reason for a man to want "a
go home II he has to sleep in a
room with five or six other people
That exists on Rondo. ST. Anthony
Iglehart and Carroll. Where is he
going to 20. Obviously he's going
into the street. When II gets hot
In the summer he Is not going
to stand inside Of one Of these
taverns, he'd rather stand outside
on the sidewalk and we do protest
lettering because it's bad. It looks
bad and II is also conducive in
some Of the crimes that we have
had. The people. normally resent
police officers trying to herd them
inside or OF the street. The prob
lem Btill remains up above-the
housing. You can't get away from
IT. We tried to bring about a Law
IN the city-we tried II on q STATE
level. The last one was In the city
Just 10 make II poasible-we never
said that we had four hundred
families moving In there. we said
we wanted q law TO give you the
right to move II You chose 70 Dc
30 and after three, almost -four
years the city attorney ruled II
Unconstitutional. Now what hap
pened during these four years.
The mayor Of the city Of st. Paul
appointed q twenty-one man com.
mission to determine discrimina-
ton In housing but somewhere az.
ter the appointments and after the
names were shown in the news
papers II died. Now we have moved
ahead from there and they said
no. we can't touch open occupancy
this year because it's an election
year. This IL too controversial an
act. The forces seeking this kind OF
law said alright, wen. go along
with you wen hold Il up for
another wear. A year later Frank
Marzitelh left. the city council and
they argued four months down
there to find a successor and they
said we can't do anything TIL we
get settled. So, we waited again.
In each instance we have been
agreeable to wait. trying to get
cooperation from the city author
tiles.
In the year 1859 we grew tired
Of waiting. We said we have 70
push this thing one way or the
other 30 we did II took us nearly
five months to get a hearing before
the city council. II involved letters
TO Mayor Dillon that were I'M
answered. II involved phone calls
to his office that he wouldn't re-
turn. II involved the threat OF
bringing thousands Of people TO the
city council for him TO send out a
notice that ON May 22nd a hear
ing win be held. I don't know II
we could have gotten q thousand
people but we told him we could
We had q hearing on May 22nd
and the proponents far outweighed
those who opposed this type OF
legislation. We made such an i'm
pact that Il was generally be-
heved that you were on the verge
Of passing a law IN the city Of
81. Paul which brought the forces