The first complaint under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, charging religious–instead of racial–discrimination, was filed in Washington today, at the Department of Justice by the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith. Arnold Forster, general counsel of the ADL, alleged that The Breakers Hotel, at Palm Beach, Fla., is guilty of violating the new law by refusing to reserve rooms sought by applicants whose names seemed Jewish.
Among the prohibitions in Title II of the Civil Rights Act, hotels, among other enterprises serving the public, are forbidden to discriminate against anyone, not only on racial grounds but also on grounds of religion.
Mr. Forster, demanding that the Department of Justice start a civil action against The Breakers, declared that the ADL had six sets of letters, requesting accommodations, sent to the hotel by an equal number of persons with “non-Jewish” names and with “Jewish” names. In each instance, the complaint declared, the “non-Jews” were given reservations, while those with “Jewish names” were told there was no room and referred to other hotels.
In this practice, Mr. Forster stated, the hotel was “adhering to its consistent practice of denying accommodations to Jews,” noting that The Breakers had been listed by the ADL in the past as an establishment discriminating against Jews.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
