A poll of residents of the restricted national capital residential area of Spring Valley, where many government leaders reside, revealed a majority oppose restrictive covenants barring Jews although they sign such agreements to buy homes in the fashionable suburb. The poll was sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League of B’nai B’rith.
Many members of Congress and high-ranking federal officials live in Spring Valley and have signed anti-Jewish covenants. The ADL cited the findings as “additional evidence that such religious restrictions are largely imposed by real estate developers and agents.”
A total of 58 percent of Spring Valley residents revealed they would have been equally willing to purchase their homes if there had been no covenant against Jews. Thirty-five percent of those polled said they did not know or refused to comment when asked if admission of Jews to Spring Valley would cause them to move out. Sixty-five percent said they would remain.
Terming Spring Valley “a pocket of anti-Jewish prejudice,” the ADL said: “The fact that some government officials persist in supporting a restrictive covenant is an act of gratuitous offense and raises a serious question as to their fitness to serve all the American people.” W.C. and A.N. Miller are the developers and Realtors of Spring Valley. Purchasers are also required to retain the Millers as agents for resale.
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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.
