Friday. September I9, I969

SCARLET AND BLACK

 

} Willis
(Continued from Page 5)

Civil Rights Commission acted
upon the complaint, and iound
the situation suspicious enough
to warrant precautions against
possible occurrences of discrim-
ination. Mrs. Hoyer signed an
agreement pledging to accept
non-white applicants for rooms
in her hntel. She also agreed to
report the names of all non<
white registrants at her hotel
once a month for a period of
six months.

Mrs. Hoyer said, “I was told
that ! have to report the names
of all nun-whites who register
at the hotel. It the rooms are
tilled, I’m supposed to obtain
names and inform the com—
mission of the circumstances.”

She said that the slimmer
season is a busy one for her
and that it is hotel policy to
rent out rooms which have not
been claimed on time. The
room in question was, she said,
the only one available.

There is no absolute proof
that Willis’s rights were vio-
lated, but there were a num
ber of suspicious occurrences
that evening. After Willis was
refused a room at the hotel,
he went back to the Mattausch’s
and told them his impressions
Then, according to Mr. Mat-
tnusch's report to the commis-
sion, Mrs. Mattausch called the
hotel and asked for a reserva-
tion for herself and her hus-
band. Mrs. Hoyer, perhaps
suspicious atter the incident,
told her that she didn’t accept
telephone reservations, but to
come down ti) the hotel since
there could .be a cancellation.

Mrs. Hoyer denied that she
ever said this. Mattausch’s re-
port iurther states that he and
his Wife went down to the
hotel and asked for a mom for
himself and his wife. Mrs.
Hoyer questioned the Mat-
tauschs, asking who the room
was for, where were they
irom, why so late, etc. The
Mattausclis said they were
somewhat intimidated by Mrs.
Hoyer, and that they were ti-
nally intormed that there were
no rooms available. Mrs. Hoyer
alsﬂ denies this. She said that
she didn't question anyone and
simply had no rooms. She
called the entire incident a
"misunderstanding".

However, in a telephone in-

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terview with the $8.11, Mrs.
Gllmour, the member of the
Civil Rights Commission who
r e c e l v e d Willis‘s complaint,
sald that although Mrs. Hoyer
denied that she was discrimina-
tory, she revealed a good deal
of racism by her remarks. Ac-
cording to Mrs, Gilmour. Mrs.
Hoyer told her, “What I don’t
understand is, I can understand
Why that nigger lied because
all niggers lie, but I don’t un»

derstand why those white
people lied.”

While the {acts in the case
are somewhat unclear since
there is no way to prove that
room was available in the ho
tel, the Willis incident is per-
haps typical of the type or dis-
crimination that has existed in
Grinnell tor as long as there
have been black students and
professors at the college. Re-
cent incidents of discrimination
in Grinnell have been more
covert than incidents that OC-
curred several years ago, but
the Willis incident may iridi-
cate that racism in the Grin-
nell community is not dead.

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