J. D. B. News Letter

The Committee on the District of Columbia reported favorably to the House of Representatives the bill recently introduced by Congressman Samuel Dickstein of New York, to provide a fine and penalty upon any person or persons liable to excite a breach of public peace by exhibiting posters, notices or signs in the District of Columbia referring to any religion, creed or race.

The Bill amends Section 857 of the Code of Law for the District of Columbia by adding thereto another section reading as follows:

“Sec. 857a. Any person who shall exhibit or display in any public place any sign. poster, or notice containing matter which, because of reference to any religion, creed, or race, is liable to incite a breach of the peace, shall be punished by a fine of not exceeding $500 or by imprisonment for not exceeding one year, or by both such fine and imprisonment.”

The Committee’s report states:

“The enactment of this bill into law is of vital importance to the District of Columbia which has a cosmopolitan population, in that it shall add to the Code a statute that will prevent any individual or group of individuals from displaying publicly any poster or sign tending to create dissention or bitterness of feeling among citizens and residents of the community by holding to ridicule racial or religious traits or characteristics, or tending to cast aspersions thereon.

“The desirability of the enactment of the bill (H.R. 16723) is emphasized by an episode of recent occurence in the District of Columbia, wherein a proprietor of a small department store conspicuously and publicly displayed a sign tending to cast reflection upon a particular race. (The sign read: “This is not a Jewish store.”) The sign attracted considerable attention and resulted in bitterness of feeling and a flood of protests. It plainly indicated that the proprietor did not possess certain particular traits supposedly attributed to said race, and that, therefore, in the conduct of his business he should not be interrogated in that respect.

“Enactment of the bill would result in all persons within the jurisdiction of the District of Columbia being entitled to full and equal accommodation, advantages, facilities and privileges of any place of public utility or accommodation, subject only to the conditions and limitations established by law and applicable to all persons alike. It would further prevent any person who is an owner, proprietor, lessee, manager, superintendent, agent or employee of such a place of public accommodation or utility, from directly (Continued on Page 4)

or indirectly refusing, withholding, or denying to any person any of the accommodations, advantages, facilities or privileges thereof, or directly or indirectly publishing, circulating, issuing, displaying or posting any written or printed notice or advertisement to the effect that any of the accommodations, utilities. advantages. facilities and privileges of any such place shall be refused withheld from or denied to any person because of racial or religious aspersions.

“Where persons are denied these privileges, accommodations, and utilities by reason of publicly posting, exhibiting or displaying any sign, poster, or notice containing matter, because of reference to or casting reflections upon. any religious creed or race, it undoubtedly results in bitterness of feeling and is conducive of disturbance of the public peace.

“The enactment of a law, such as provided by H.R. 16723. would lead generally to the creation of greater harmony and in time the total elimination of certain prejudices now in existence.”

It is uncertain whether the Dickstein bill will be voted upon before adjournment.