CRC Survey Shows Bias in Housing
By Fred Zimmerman
A survey just completed by the Civil Rights Council indicates that about 43 per cent of the landlords in Lawrence will not rent to Negroes.
Stephen S. Baratz, Lawrence graduate student and chairman of the CRC, said in an interview last night that ten members of the Council interviewed 100 landlords chosen at random from the housing lists of the University.
THEY WERE ASKED if they had ever rented to minority groups, and if they would be willing to. The survey was conducted in a recent 3-day period. Official results will be announced at a CRC meeting at 8 p.m. tomorrow in the Kansas Union.
Baratz said results of the survey have been broken down with respect to the race of the person making the interview.
He said that about 58 per cent of the landlords interviewed by white
Stephen S. Baratz
students said they would not rent to Negroes. Only about 13 per cent told Negro interviewers they would not rent to Negroes.
"ONE SIGNIFICANT THING I learned from this survey," Baratz said, "is that if the University were to remove from its housing lists landlords who discriminate, the school probably would lose fewer renters than it supposes."
He said he felt the administration thinks a screening process would result in the loss of a large number of landlords.
He added that other universities have removed discriminatory landlords from approved housing lists without suffering severely.
REFERRING TO A questionnaire
Laotians Refuse To Attend Talks
GENEVA —(UPI)— The Pro-
Western Royal Laotian government balked today at attending the Geneva
conference on Laos.
Only two hours before the scheduled opening of the previouslypostponed 14-nation meeting of the future of Laos the Royal Laotian delegation disclosed it had received instructions from its government in Vientiane not to attend the conference.
THE ANNOUNCEMENT raised the possibility that the Laos conference would get under way without a representative of the western-recognized government of the embattled nation.
There was no immediate reaction from the United States which earlier had denied a flurry of rumors that its delegation would not attend the opening session of the conference if the Laos government backed out.
THE ROYAL GOVERNMENT decision against attending was made in protest against the Big Powers' decision to allow the pro-Communist Pathet Lao rebels to attend the conference with rights equal to those of the government delegates.
the CRC recently sent to all Greek organizations at KU, Baratz said he has learned that 13 fraternity presidents had a clandestine meeting and agreed among themselves not to send the CRC a reply.
The questionnaire asked if the charter of each sorority or fraternity had a discriminatory clause. It also asked if the organization would be willing to pledge "a qualified member of a minority group."
Baratz said eight replies have been received. None was identified. All eight said their charters had no discriminatory clauses. Each answered affirmatively to the question about pledging a member of a minority.
"WE DONT WANT to tell the Greeks whom they must take in." Baratz said.
"We are just asking for the elimination of discriminatory clauses that prevent the development of certain inter-personal relationships."
He said the Greeks are acting like ostriches, "sticking their heads in the sand and hoping everything will go away.
"WERE NOT GOING to go away." Baratz asserted.
He added that the CRC, displeased with the lack of response by local Greeks, has sent letters to the national organization of each KU chapter. These letters ask essentially the same questions as the letters sent to the KU Greeks.
"This problem is no worse with the Greek houses than anywhere else," Baratz said. "But this is one area we intend to work in."
He said that at Kansas State University a civil rights group is working on the same problem. The Civil Rights Council recently joined with groups at K-State and Washburn University to form the Kansas Collegians for Civil Rights.
THE CIVIL RIGHTS Council will sponsor a public showing of the Nashville, Tenn., sit-in at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Fraser Theater. The film, produced by NBC, is entitled "White Paper No. 2."
Such an action is being contemplated by the administration and the traffic department.
Jayhawk Boulevard may be closed in the future to cope with the rising traffic problem on campus. The action may be five or ten years away.
Jayhawk Blvd. May Close
Campus Police Chief Joe G. Skillman said, "The traffic problem is increasingly worse between classes and since our duty is to protect the pedestrian student, we will have to
Daily Hansan
58th Year, No.142
HOURLY MESS—The intersection of Jayhawk Blvd. and Sunflower Road is clogged every hour as students change classes. Speculation is increasing that sometime in the next few years traffic may be banned from Jayhawk Blvd. during the class day.
He added that the large number of cars crossing the campus has so compounded the traffic situation that automobile vs. pedestrian has become a major problem.
ask the cars to leave if they are a menace."
LAWRENCE, KANSAS
New KU Gym Could Be Built With Kansas Inactive Funds
Chief Skillman explained that the congestion problems are worse just before vacations and near final week because students return home and bring back parent's cars.
(Editor's note: Future articles will discuss the traffic problem.
(Editor's Note—This is the first of a series on the Kansas state inactive funds.)
By Carrie Merryfield
(Copyright 1961 University Daily Kansan.)
"New Gymnasium Dedicated Today”the headline on the college paper might read.
This headline is possible. The University of Kansas could have a new gymnasium if interest on the state inactive funds were increased or the funds could be invested in government bonds.
The Kansas inactive funds total $74,000,000. This is money deposited by the state that is not needed in the day-to-day governmental operations or in the two-year period covered by the current budget. The inactive fund is rarely drawn upon for any purpose.
BUT THE LAWS governing these funds allow neither.
A report made by the research department of the Kansas Legislative Council entitled "Interest on Inactive State Deposits," states that only once between 1939 and 1955 has a withdrawal been made from the inactive funds.
This withdrawal was made in 1955. Since 1955, no withdrawals have been made, according to the Council.
These earmarked funds are presently deposited in 575 Kansas banks, drawing .8 of 1 per cent interest annually.
BILLS ATTEMPTING to increase the rate of interest on the funds have been introduced repeatedly during recent years, but
the attempts have been unsuccessful.
At one time, Kansas did draw 2 per cent interest on the average daily balance of the state's deposits, but this amount was reduced by law in 1935.
THE LAW SAID that state depositories would pay interest on the average daily balance at rates that were stated in the accepted bid of the bank, but the rate could not be less than 2 per cent. (Banks were required to send bids stating the rate of interest to the state in order to receive the deposits from the state.)
In 1905 the depository law provided that interest be collected on state deposits until 1937.
From. 1905 until 1938, more than $3,400,000 in interest was collected from the bank deposits. For most of this period, the minimum interest rate collected was 2 per cent, and rates of 3 to 4 per cent were not unusual.
IN 1937 the state deposits were by law classified into three accounts: active, inactive and emergency accounts.
In 1935, however, the minimum interest rate was reduced from 2 per cent to 13/4 per cent on inactive accounts.
The major reason for the 1937 change was that, under the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation law of 1933, as amended in 1935, an insured bank was not allowed to pay interest on demand deposits. (Demand deposits are those which are not time or savings deposits.)
Tuesday, May 16, 1961
The demand deposits included
the active as well as the inactive accounts. (There is nothing in the federal law, however, which would prohibit the state from attempting to secure interest on its regular inactive accounts by changing their status from "demand" to "time deposits.")
THE ACTIVE ACCOUNTS are funds needed to carry on the dayby-day operation of state government. They resemble the checking accounts used by private citizens.
Emergency deposits are made during the peak periods when the state may have an amount of money on hand in excess of the deposits allocated to the active and inactive accounts. When this occurs, the State Treasury Board of Examiners places this excess into the emergency deposits.
The present treasury depository law provides that public funds be deposited largely into the two general types of accounts—active and inactive—and under certain circumstances, some deposits are made in the emergency accounts.
IF THE CHANGE in status from demand to time deposits could be accomplished, the headline and the new gymnasium would be realities. The increased interest could pay for it.
Why aren't the deposits changed?
Why aren't the deposits changed?
Why don't the funds draw greater interest?
(Tomorrow's article will discuss two bills that would increase the interest rate on inactive funds and the opposition they received. These bills were submitted at a recent legislative session.)
Nikita's Note To Kennedy May Ask Talks
WASHINGTON — (UPI) — President Kennedy today received a personal message from Premier Nikita Khrushchev involving U.S.-Soviet relations which possibly could pave the way for a face-to-face meeting between the two men.
Soviet Ambassador Mikhail Menshikov handed Khrushchev's note to Kennedy during a 30-minute morning meeting at the White House, held five hours before Kennedy was to leave for Canada on his first official visit outside the United States.
BOTH THE AMERICANS and the Russians said Khrushchev's note was in reply to a message Kennedy wrote him last Feb. 22, and whose contents never have been disclosed. The message was delivered to Khrushchev in Siberia by U.S. Ambassador Llewellyn Thompson.
It was reported at the time of delivery that the President's message expressed confidence in Thompson as a diplomatic negotiator.
However, the note also is understood to have contained Kennedy's expressed hope for fruitful negotiations with the Russians.
One Moscow report said the note urged Khrushchev to deal directly with Thompson, a reflection of the Kennedy Administration's interest then in normal diplomatic negotiations rather than summit meetings.
Former British Prime Minister Clement Attlee saw Kennedy after Menshikov left. Asked whether he thought the Kennedy-Khrushchev meeting would take place next month, he told reporters "I understand it's coming off, isn't it?"
IT HAS LAIN dormant since then, while U.S.-Soviet relations have deteriorated during the Laotian and Cuban crisis. The fact that Khrushchev has now chosen to answer it is significant in view of the spate of reports that Kennedy wants to meet the Soviet Leader in a neutral European capital next month.
But when a reporter inquired whether Kennedy had told him so, Attlee shook his head and said, "I know no more about it than you do."
MENSHIKOV, WHO had sought
(Continued on page 8)
Peace Corps Will Go to Colombia
WASHINGTON —(UPI)— President Kennedy today announced the second project of the Peace Corps, a force of 64 volunteers to work with native counterparts in small farming, handcraft, rural construction and sanitation projects in Colombia.
The first project of the Peace Corps was to assist the government of Tanganyika with a farm-to-market road surveying program.
The Peace Corps volunteers, according to today's announcement by the President, will assist small rural communities to develop their own economic resources, educational and sanitary facilities.
"I am particularly pleased to announce that the second project of the Corps will be in Latin America, because of the many ties of mutual respect and mutual ideals which bind us together as brother republics in this traditionally free and democratic hemisphere," the President said.
Weather
Generally partly cloudy today through tomorrow. A few showers likely today. Highs today and to-morrow will be in the 70s. Lows tonight 50 to 55.