Two Public Facilities Discrimination Cases Won
Press Release
January 7, 1960

Cite this item
-
Press Releases, Loose Pages. Two Public Facilities Discrimination Cases Won, 1960. ec6fd9b7-bc92-ee11-be37-00224827e97b. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/9d5bcd30-727e-407d-b61e-d29e8fd13990/two-public-facilities-discrimination-cases-won. Accessed May 15, 2025.
Copied!
PRESS RELEASE® @ NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND 10 COLUMBUS CIRCLE « NEW YORK 19,N.Y. © JUdson 6-8397 DR. ALLAN KNIGHT CHALMERS oa THURGOOD MARSHALL Director-Countel President January 7, 1960 TWO PUBLIC FACILITIES DISCRIMINATION CASES WON New York, N, Y., Jan. 7.--Two public facilities discrimination cases were won this week by Thurgood Marshall and his NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund attorneys. In Atlanta, Ga., a federal judge ordered the Dobbs Houses Restaurant in the Atlanta airport to cease screening off white and Negro patrons in its dining room. In Baltimore, Md., another federal court judge ordered the end of discrimination in a moving picture theater in Frederick, Md., which is owned by the city but leased to a private operator. The Atlanta airport case was instituted last year by a Birmingham, Ala. insurance man, H. D. Coke, against the Atlanta Municipal Airport following an incident when he was informed that he could not be served in the Dobbs Houses Restaurant on the same basis as white patrons. He would have to sit behind a screen which separated the races in the dining room, Mr. Coke was told. Dobbs Houses is the main restaurant in the Atlanta airport. United States District Judge Boyd Sloan, in ordering the restau- rant to cease screening off patrons because of race, also announced he will instruct the Atlanta Municipal Airport to stop its discriminatory practices, The decision in the Maryland case resulted from a suit filed by 3 Negrces acainst the Marva Moving Picture Theater in Frederick. They were forred to sit in the balcony because of their race. The theater maintains a separate box office and other facilities for Negroes. United States District Jucge Roszei Thompsen announced Wednesday that he wili issue an order instructing the theater to cease makiuec racial distinctions. Attorneys for Mr. Coke in the Atlanta case were Donald L. Holloweil of Atlanta, Ga., Peter A. Hall of Birmingham, Ala., end Jack Greenberg end Thurgood Marshall of New York. In the Frederick, Md. case, attorneys for the Negroes were Juanita Mitchell and Tucker R. Dearing, both of Baltimore, Md., and Thurgood Marshall and Jack Greenberg of New York City. Peter