Christiansburg Garment Company v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Brief for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Public Court Documents
September 1, 1977

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Press Releases, Loose Pages. Playboy Club Suit Hailed by NAACP Legal Defense Fund Director-Counsel, 1964. 9131f77f-bd92-ee11-be37-6045bddb811f. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/914e7a12-6c95-4bb3-8cfe-099b7859fa4f/playboy-club-suit-hailed-by-naacp-legal-defense-fund-director-counsel. Accessed August 19, 2025.
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FOR: IMMEDIATE RELEASE E FROM: NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND 10 Columbus Circle July 2, 1964 New York, N.Y. PLAYBOY CLUB SUIT HAILED BY NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE FUND DIRECTOR - COUNSEL NEW YORK, N.Y.--The NAACP Legal Defense Fund this week praised the Playboy Club of New Orleans for its suit against Louisiana laws prohibiting Negroes from attending the Club. Jack Greenberg, the Fund's director-counsel, called the Playboy suit a major legal step by a private firm aimed at breaking down racial barriers in the south. "It is encouraging to see a private corporation invoke the U.S. Constitution in seeking to open its entertainment facili- ties to all citizens," Mr. Greenberg said. The Playboy suit also asks the Court to issue an injunction restraining the defendants, who include Governor John McKeithen, Mayor Victor Schiro, and other state and city officials, from enforcing the discriminatory laws or the segregationist policies they embody. Playboy International, which supervises the operations of the Playboy Clubs in eight cities, has 300,000 "key holders" throughout the United States. A substantial number are Negroes, However, the exact number is not known since Playboy Club membership applications do not ask racial, religious or ethnic information. Any "key holder" is entitled to the full privileges of all Playboy Clubs, regardless of his place of residence. But the Louisiana statute and New Orleans ordinance challenged this week make it impossible for the New Orleans Club or its manager to admit Negroes without risking fines from $100 to $1000, a jail term ranging from 60 days to one year, and loss of liquor license. =-80 =