Civil Rights Activists and California Politicians Challenge
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CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS AND CALIFORNIA POLITICIANS CHALLENGE HOUSING DISCRIMNATION IN SACRAMENTO, 1950-1966 A Thesis Presented to the faculty of the Department of History California State University, Sacramento Submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in HISTORY By Lynell Hanzel White FALL 2016 ©2016 Lynell Hanzel White ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS AND CALIFORNIA POLITICIANS CHALLENGE HOUSING DISCRIMNATION IN SACRAMENTO, 1950-1966 A Thesis by Lynell Hanzel White Approved by: __________________________________________, Committee Chair Paula Austin, Ph.D. __________________________________________, Second Reader Jeffrey Wilson, Ph.D. ____________________ Date iii Student: Lynell Hanzel White I certify that this student has met the requirements for format contained in the University format manual, and that this thesis is suitable for shelving in the Library and credit is to be awarded for this thesis. _____________________________, Department Chair _____________________ Jeffrey Wilson, Ph.D. Date Department of History iv Abstract of CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS AND CALIFORNIA POLITICIANS CHALLENGE HOUSING DISCRIMNATION IN SACRAMENTO, 1950-1966 by Lynell Hanzel White In the 1950s, real estate agents and builders steered Sacramento residents of color to the West End, an area that used to occupy much of downtown Sacramento. However, as federal dollars became available for urban renewal programs, Sacramento officials elected to tear down the West End, sending thousands of West Enders into the greater Sacramento area. Many of these individuals were again steered into areas without racial covenants, such as Del Paso Heights, Oak Park, and various areas within South Sacramento. Some of these individuals held professional careers and could comfortably afford to live in areas of their choice. Not only this, many refused to allow anyone to dictate to them where they were to reside; and, thus attempted to purchase newer homes, which in many cases were in Sacramento suburbs, traditionally off limits to people of color. These individuals sometimes resorted to having white friends purchase homes for them in these areas, later transferring the deed into their own name. Others attempted to purchase homes in exclusively white areas and when experiencing racial discrimination, challenged home owners, builders, and real estate agents in court. By the late 1950s, the population of color in California had risen dramatically; however, the practice of placing people of color in segregated areas had created a situation of congestion. Sensing the need for action, local civil rights groups and California politicians aided people of color by both equipping them with fair housing legislation and providing legal aid to challenge institutional discrimination in housing in court. In 1959, California lawmakers passed two key civil rights laws (Hawkins Act and Unruh Act) that outlawed discrimination in public housing and in business dealings. By 1963, the Rumford Fair Housing Act was passed, which prohibited housing discrimination by private parties. Civil rights groups in Sacramento aided individuals in court as they used these newly created laws to secure the housing of their choice. This thesis examines the process of getting key housing legislation passed, explores the development and efforts of local civil rights groups, and discusses noteworthy individuals who worked tirelessly to create a level housing market in Sacramento. The sources that are used in writing this thesis include: newspaper articles, scholarly secondary literature, government committee minutes, magazine articles, primary sources from local organizations, speeches, documentaries, memoirs, digital media, maps, and photographs. The conclusion reached was that the collective efforts of California politicians, local organizations, and individual citizens effectively challenged housing discrimination in Sacramento, creating a more equitable housing market, while at the same time solving immediate housing needs. _________________________________, Committee Chair Paula Austin, Ph.D. __________________Date vi DEDICATION I would like to dedicate this work to my father, Hanzel White, who taught me many valuable lessons about life. He passed away before completing my thesis. I would also like to dedicate this work to my mother, Chevelle Williams, for showing me an example of a life-long learner. I would like to acknowledge my wife, Geneva White, for her hard work in caring for our daughter while I worked on my thesis. I would also like to acknowledge my daughter, Ohana White, for reminding me of why I work so hard in the first place. And finally, I would like to thank Dr. Paula Austin and Dr. Jeffrey Wilson for agreeing to sacrifice their time in helping me complete my thesis. Thank you all. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Dedication....................................................................................................................vi Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION……………………................................................................1 2. CALIFORNIA POLITICIANS CHALLENGE HOUSING DISCRIMINATION……………………………..………………………….......26 3. INDIVIDUALS CHALLENGE HOUSING DISCRIMINATION IN SACRAMENTO...................................................................................................52 4. LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS CHALLENGE HOUSING DISCRIMINATION IN SACRAMENTO……………………………………………....……………...73 5. CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................96 Appendix A Map of Montgomery, Al..............................................................................98 Appendix B Map of the West End…. ..............................................................................99 Bibliography ...................................................................................................................100 viii 1 Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVISTS AND CALIFORNIA POLITICIANS CHALLENGE HOUSING DISCRIMNATION IN SACRAMENTO, 1950-1966 The United States Air Force transferred African-American civilian worker, Bill Rutland, to Sacramento in 1952. He arrived at McClellan Air Force Base, coming before his wife and children, and quickly began looking to purchase a home for their anticipated arrival. Newly built, affordable tract homes surrounded the base, enticing buyers to take advantage of the low down payment, which started at just $250. Rutland’s white colleagues relished this opportunity, quickly securing homes for their families, however upon attempting to purchase one himself, he experienced constant rejection. After several unsuccessful attempts at purchasing a tract home surrounding the base, the exhausted Rutland and his real estate agent decided to go to where “coloreds” could buy a home.1 His wife, Eva Rutland, explained in her memoir When We Were Colored, A Mother’s Story (Originally titled, The Trouble with being a Mama) how the family eventually acquired their dream home in 1959: I found a lot that I loved that was in South Land Park and I really wanted that lot. So I called Herman Madeira, a white friend who worked with dad, and I asked, I say, “Hern will you buy this lot for us?” He said, “Sure, I’d be glad to do that.” He bought the lot and immediately sold it to us. But when the white neighbors found that they had sold this house they began to call and they wanted to buy it 1 Eva Rutland, The Trouble with Being a Mama (New York: Abingdon Press, 1964), 42. 2 back, but of course this was our only opportunity to …have anything so we would not sell it of course.2 The Rutland family’s experience was not unusual in 1950s Sacramento. However, as the military banned discrimination in its ranks years before Rutland moved to Sacramento, the experience with housing segregation demonstrated the chasm between the military and civilian social landscape. Further, in 1948, President Roosevelt signed executive order 8802, prohibiting racial discrimination within the defense industry. This opened the doors for thousands of non-whites as many came to Sacramento, taking advantage of open positions at both McClellan and Mather Air Force Bases.3 However, like Rutland, many non-whites faced seemingly insurmountable obstacles when trying to secure the home of their choice. For the Rutlands and other people of color, racially restrictive covenants, de-facto (customary or traditional) segregation practiced by local real estate agents, builders, and private owners, and “steering” (discouraging a buyer from purchasing in certain areas) served as common practice in the Sacramento housing market. These obstacles created a heavily divided city, leaving Sacramento’s minorities with few options in choosing where to reside. The vast majority of people of color in Sacramento lived in a neighborhood located in downtown Sacramento, called the West End; this was an area without racial covenants. However, civil rights agitation in the late-1950s and 1960s led to dramatic 2 Ibid., 42. 3 Andrew Hope, "Tract Housing in California, 1945-1973: A Context for National Register Evaluation." (The California Department of Transportation Sacramento, California, 2011), 29. 3 shifts in Sacramento’s housing market. The efforts of several California politicians, namely Democratic Governor Edmund “Pat” Brown, Democratic Assembly members Jesse Unruh, Augustus F. Hawkins, and William Byron Rumford produced successful top-down civil rights legislation that served as the legal basis for effectively challenging housing discrimination,