Special Events

Conferences

"A Time to Share and Problem Solve" was a regional conference held in Des Moines, hosted by the Iowa Civil Rights Commission. Civil rights agencies in Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, and Wisconsin were invited to participate in the conference. Mediation, case processing, public relations and community image, and employment testing, were some of the workshop topics.

Iowa local commissions were the participants in "Human & Civil Rights: An Iowa Perspective," held in conjunction with the Des Moines Human Rights Commission's Annual Symposium. Participants were offered workshops on the role of commissioners, substantial equivalency, Study Circles and town meetings, and an update of Americans with Disabilities Act issues.

"From War Stories to Best Practices: Improving How We Do Mediations" was the title of a conference held in West Des Moines for the Commission's volunteer mediators and civil rights agencies' staff. Small group problem solving teams worked on case scenarios, as well as attending sessions on skillbuilding techniques and taxability of settlements.

"The Changing Face of Iowa in the 2 1 st Century: A Conference on the Implications of Diversity and Immigration" was held in Waterloo. The co-sponsors of the conference included Ecumenical Ministries of Iowa, Iowa Bureau of Refugee Services, Iowa Civil Rights Commission, Iowa Council for International Understanding, Iowa Division of Latino Affairs, Iowa State University Extension, Hawkeye Community College, The Des Moines Register, and The Stanley Foundation. The program covered a broad range of topics on making Iowa a welcoming place for newcomers and the related workplace, education, social and community issues. The conference was also broadcast to five other sites around the state through the Iowa Communication Network (ICN).

"Tackling the Tough Issues: A Fair Housing Conference" was held in conjunction with the Neal and Bea Smith Law Center, Drake University Law School, Des Moines. Small groups addressed scenarios on specific legal issues, and participant also attended workshops on legal resources available on the Internet, legal update on housing cases, and update on current fair housing enforcement in Iowa.

Friends Civil Rights Awards Ceremony and Banquet

The Friends of Iowa Civil Rights, Inc. is a non- profit organization founded to further civil rights efforts in Iowa. Their annual civil rights awards ceremony and banquet was held in October 1997. The public is invited to make nominations for the civil rights awards. The following individuals, businesses, and organizations were awards winners:

Indiuidual: Greg Naylor; Rosa Maria de Findlay
Business: Cenex Land OLakes; Avery Brothers Sign Company
Community: Creative Visions; Iowa Protection and Advocacy Services, Inc.
Education: First Friday Breakfast Club, Inc.; Marshalltown Diversity Committee

Civil Rights Victory Celebration

July 7, 1998, marked the fiftieth anniversary of a Des Moines and Iowa civil rights event. It was a day of laughter and tears, of joy and sorrow, in remembrance of our Iowa civil rights pioneers whose actions foreshadowed the modern civil rights movement.

The celebration started with the dedication of a plaque installed on the building at the corner of Seventh and Locust Streets in downtown Des Moines, which in 1948 housed the Katz Drug Store. On July 7, 1948, Edna Griffin, her infant daughter Phyllis, John Bibbs and Leonard Hudson entered the store and ordered ice cream at the lunch counter. The manager refused to serve them, saying, "It is the policy of our store that we don't serve colored."

This event triggered subsequent sit-ins and picketing directed at Katz and other local lunch counters refusing to serve patrons because of their race. The Polk County Attorney's Office prosecuted the Katz manager under Iowa's only civil rights law, a criminal statute prohibiting discrimination in public accommodations. The manager was found guilty by a jury and fined $50. The Iowa Supreme Court upheld the conviction in 1949. One week before the Supreme Court ruling, local attorneys and the local NAACP Legal Redress Committee negotiated an agreement with successfully ended Katz' discriminatory practices.

Later in the day of celebration, a Reception/ Reunion/ Reenactment was held at the State Historical Building. Edna Griffin, Phyllis Griffin, and John Bibbs were present and honored; Leonard Hudson is deceased and his family was present. The Langston Hughes Players performed a dramatic presentation of the Katz Drug Store incident. The celebration ended with an address, "Where do we go from here?" by Dr. Lawrence Howard, Professor, University of Pittsburgh.

The celebration planning committee has continued to meet, to make plans for providing information, curriculum materials, and a video of these historic civil rights events to schools throughout Iowa.