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MINNEAPOLIS TRIBUNE
September 14, 1967
Substituting Action
for Oratory
THE $14,000 contributed by Min-
neapolis area businesses to study the
creation of an Urban Coalition shows
a growing awareness that the total
community, public and private, must
become more involved in the effort to
solve our problems of race and pov-
_ erty.
Critics might say that the time for
studies is past. In this case, however,
there would be no point in forming
a coalition if the members had little
idea of what they could do or how they
should do it. These are the questions
that this study must answer. And at
nine weeks, it is a short one as studies
go.
Participants at the recent National
Urban Coalition meeting in Washing-
ton, D.C., resolved boldly to push for
a million more jobs, a million more
homes for the poor, better schools and
social conditions. Whether these goals
can be attained will depend greatly on
the grassroots pressure and contribu-
tions of key leaders at the local level.
This is where the Minneapolis coali-
tion comes in. This is where the white
community must show Negro critics
at the national meeting that it is not
attempting to substitute oratory for
action.
Earl Ewald, president of Northern
States Power Co. and temporary chair-
man of the contributing local business-
men, said that none of them sees merit
in creating just another organization.
“But maybe a new kind of organization
like a genuine ‘Urban Coalition’ can
help,” he said. “‘We hope to find out.”
We hope the findings are affirma-
tive.
NEW YORK TIMES
October 10, 1967
URBAN COALITION
MOVES ON SLUMS
Panel Set Up to Help Local
Leaders Form Groups
By SYDNEY H. SCHANBERG
The Urban Coalition, the re-
cently formed prestigious na-
tional alliance of business,
labor, municipal, religious and
civil rights leaders, took a step
here last night to help local
communities fight a more or-
ganized battle against slum
problems.
A three-member panel was
set up by the nationwide coali-
tion to help community leaders
form local coalitions to press
for solutions to crucial urban
needs, particularly jobs, hous-
ing and education.
The panel was announced at
a meeting of the Urban Coali-
tion’s 33-member steering com-
mittee in the Time & Life Build-
ing, at 50th Street and the
Avenue of the Americas. It was
the first gathering of the high-
level committee, one of whose
members is Mayor Lindsay,
since the convocation of the or-
ganization on Aug. 24 in Wash-
ington.
The members of the local-
coalition panel are Mayor Jo-
seph M. Barr of Pittsburgh, Ar-
nold Aronson, executive secre-
tary of the National Leadership
Conference on Civil Rights, and
Charles P. Taft, Cincinnati law-
yer,
The next step by the task
force will be to hold a meeting
of community leaders interested
in forming local units. Leaders
in about 50 cities have expres-
sed interest in the idea and are
expected to be at the meeting,
scheduled for a week from to-
day in Chicago.
Mayor Lindsay, one of the
founders of the Urban Coali-
tion, has already organized a
local coalition for New York
City and is expected to an-
nounce its chairman and other
members very soon.
About 50 persons, many of
them aides to members of the
steering committee, attended
last night’s committee meeting.
In addition to Mr. Lindsay,
the participants included Mayor
Barr; Mayor Jerome P. Cava-
nagh of Detroit: Andrew Heis-
kell, board chairman of Time
Inc.; Joseph D. Keenan, secre-
tary of the International Broth-
erhood of Electrical Workers,
and David Sullivan, president
of the Building Service Em-
ployes International Union.
Also, Frederick J. Close,
board chairman of the Alumi-
num Company of America;
Gerald Phillippe, board chair.
man of General Electric; Harold
Fleming, president of the Po-
‘omac Institute in Washington,
rnd A. Philip Randolph, presi-
ent of the Brotherhood of
leeping Car Porters.