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Mr. Malcolm Ross |
August 10, 1944
AP Dispatch in today’s Washington Star Date Line Los Angeles August 10 as follows: Quote The Fair Employment Practice Committee issued a directive last night ordering the Los Angeles Railway Corp. to cease alleged discrimination against Negroes in its hiring of streetcar conductors, motormen and bus drivers.
Paragraph. “It is understood,” said a committee statement, “that a reasonable time will be necessary to eliminate the discriminatory practices found to exist. . . . But the Committee will take affirmative steps to obtain compliance.”
Paragraph. The railway corporation agreed to take immediate steps to bring its policies and practices into conformity with the national policy of nondiscrimination.
Paragraph. The company issued no denial of the charges at the hearing ended yesterday. Both company and AFL union representatives told the committee that enforcement of Negro hiring would cause disruption of transportation. Unquote.1
In conferring with War Department and White House August 5 I indicated that committee directives customarily are not issued immediately after hearings. Anticipate inquiries. Please send clarification.2
Clarence M. Mitchell
Asso. Dir. Field Operations
c/o FEPC Reg. Office
[1] For a copy of the press release that Maceo Hubbard, hearing examiner for the case, telegraphed to Mitchell, see HqR84, Correspondence Relating to Cases. (L–S) Los Angeles Railway. Maslow sent all regional directors a copy of the findings and directives in the LARY case that were issued in Los Angeles on 8/10/44, following the company’s response on 8/9/44 that it would not file any exception and would proceed to implement the order. He explained, “When the parties formally stated for the record that they had no exceptions to the findings and directives, they were made final.” He added, “The speed with which the Committee acted is of course unprecedented and due in part to the fact that the parties in effect consented to the issuance of the directive.” Maslow, Field Letter 29, 9/7/44. See also the headnotes on Strikes and Work Stoppages and on Street and Local Railways; findings, directives, and other related texts in HqR21, Records Relating to Hearings., Los Angeles Railway Corporation.
[2] On Mitchell’s conference with White House representative Jonathan Daniels on this subject, see his memorandum of 8/4/44. Mitchell praised the Committee’s quick action during the FEPC meeting of 9/9/44. See Transcript of Proceedings, 9/9/44, 65, HqR65, Central Files.
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349-350
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HqR39, Central Files. (entry 25) Memoranda, Ross, Malcolm, 1944.