Waterloo Crisis
While the commission normally met slightly more than once a month, there
were times when more frequent meetings were required. One such occasion
was the crisis which developed in Waterloo following the death of a 23 year
old Negro male in the Waterloo City Jail on June 1, 1966. The death of Eddie
Wallace Sallis and the circumstances surrounding his arrest along with Howard
Calvin Saunders prompted the invitation to the Iowa Civil Rights Commission
to conduct an investigation of the matter. During the week immediately following
June 1, 1966, the commission and staff spent approximately 203 man hours
investigating the case.
The primary role of the commission in the midst of the crisis was to keep
an open line of communication between city officials and Negro leaders.
It is testimony to the potential for real future progress in Waterloo that
the city administration and responsible Negro leaders agreed upon a coordinated
plan which included such things as a guarantee that a Human Relations Commission
would be staffed and would have a budget; improvements in Negro areas in
city facilities such as lighting and.paving,; stricter enforcement of sanitation
ordinances in Negro areas; active recruitment of Negro policement and firemen;
and in-service public relations training for police officers.
On June 28, 1966, at 7:00 p.m. at Grant School in Waterloo, Director Thomas
read the report of the commission at an open meeting by invitation of the
newly re-established Waterloo Human Relations Commission.