Memorandum on Unusual Urban Renewal Litigation

Press Release
December 15, 1967

Memorandum on Unusual Urban Renewal Litigation preview

Cite this item

  • Press Releases, Volume 5. Memorandum on Unusual Urban Renewal Litigation, 1967. 52dcfc57-b892-ee11-be37-00224827e97b. LDF Archives, Thurgood Marshall Institute. https://ldfrecollection.org/archives/archives-search/archives-item/bd5428a5-ddab-4a55-b2d6-6e6815d56e79/memorandum-on-unusual-urban-renewal-litigation. Accessed May 18, 2025.

    Copied!

    68 

NAACP LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND, INC. 

10 Columbus Circle, New York, N.Y. 10019 * JUdson 6-8397 tu legal! za 

& December 15, 1967 

MEMORANDUM 

TO: SELECTED WASHINGTON REPORTERS 

RE: Unusual urban renewal litigation 

WASHINGTON---An injunction against Housing and Urban Development 
Secretary Robert Weaver in behalf of a San Francisco citizens' group 
was sought here today in U.S. District Court. 

The Negro and Japanese plaintiffs ask the court to halt Secretary 
Weaver's approval of that city's Western Addition Area A-2 Urban Re- 
newal Project. 

The complaint terms Secretary Weaver's "continuing approval of 
Federal financing" of this project as being "arbitrary, capricious 
and contrary to law." 

Three groups of attorneys are active in the case. 
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. 
sidiary, 

They are the 
(LDF) and its sub- 

the National Office for the Rights of the Indigent. 

They are working in conjunction with the San Francisco Neighbor- 
hood Legal Assistance Foundation, a legal services for the poor 
organization. 

These attorneys are representing the Western Addition Community 
Organizations (WACO), an association of churches, political, economic 
and social organizations, and local residents. 

If allowed to continue, San Francisco Urban Renewal Project will 
replace the present dwellings with new housing which "will rent at 
prices beyond the financial means of the majority of Negro and Japanese 
residents and elderly of all races in the area," the attorneys state. 

The plaintiffs specifically ask for a ruling declaring: 

* that they are "protected by the First Amendment both against 
arbitrary and unnecessary governmental suppression of their 
joint and several rights to associate for the promotion and 
advocacy of political and social goals..." 

the San Francisco Urban Development Project “unlawfully destroys 
and suppresses" their right to associate in violation of the 
freedom of speech and association under the First Amendment and 
the due process clause of the Fifth Amendment; 

* that Defendant Weaver enjoin urban renewal activities in San 
Francisco pending "such time as this court may be satisfied that 
said Federal funds are not being used tp deprive plaintiffs of 
the rights under the First and Fifth Amendments; 

* that Defendant Weaver be enjoined from approving and financing 
the San Francisco Urban Renewal Project "and to cease using 
Federal funds to demolish buildings and to acquire additional 
properties" until such time as the project plan is "found to 
be in conformity with Federal law..." 

=S0= 

NOTE: Please bear in mind that the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational 
Fund, Inc. (LDF) is a separate and distinct organization from the NAACP 
serving as the legal arm of the entire civil rights movement and repre- 
senting m bers of all groups as well as unaffiliated individuals.

Copyright notice

© NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.

This collection and the tools to navigate it (the “Collection”) are available to the public for general educational and research purposes, as well as to preserve and contextualize the history of the content and materials it contains (the “Materials”). Like other archival collections, such as those found in libraries, LDF owns the physical source Materials that have been digitized for the Collection; however, LDF does not own the underlying copyright or other rights in all items and there are limits on how you can use the Materials. By accessing and using the Material, you acknowledge your agreement to the Terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the Materials.


Additional info

To the extent that LDF includes information about the Materials’ origins or ownership or provides summaries or transcripts of original source Materials, LDF does not warrant or guarantee the accuracy of such information, transcripts or summaries, and shall not be responsible for any inaccuracies.

Return to top