European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 4, 1967, Darmstadt, Hesse New York s Lindsay seeks racial peace the who walks h is City by night by Jean Heller a staff writer the tall Blond Man unwrapped himself from the Back seat of his limousine and with Long sure strides crossed East a Lith St. An old woman reached out for his right hand but some one else was shaking it. She looked crushed. A 10-year-old boy rushed up grabbed his left hand and held it tightly. John Lindsay 45, smiled and slowed his Pace so he would t outdistanced the youngster. A crowd gathered on the Street Corberand chanted Lindsay Lindsay Lind say Viva Lindsay the mayor of new York City had the sleeves of his Blue shirt rolled up to the elbows. His Grey Slacks were Wrin kled. He wore neither coat nor tie an was unshaven. He looked As though he had leaped from bed into the first clothes he could find. In fact he had. For in the Small dark hours of that humid morning the Tele phone at his Long Island Retreat where he goes for some rest had brought news mat on the Street he now walked there had been a riot. It was t a Detroit or a Newark. But the Rock throwing fire bombing wave of mob violence could have wrecked what he had worked shard for this summer peace. It was to save that peace that Lindsay set out that morning on foot unescorted through the broken Glass and shredded emotions of Spanish Harlem to find out for himself what had happened and what he could do to keep it from happening again. Hey who flipped out que Pasa he asked falling easily into the language and vernacular of the streets he prowled. Why Don t you come in Here see what this place is really like storekeeper challenged the mayor. Lind say followed him inside. When they emerged five minutes later Lindsay smile was gone. Hey stood at the doorway a moment. A Roach trekked out of a baked bean can on the sidewalk. You see the storekeeper nodded soberly and moved on. The storekeeper seemed satisfied that he had made his Point. Almost nightly Lindsay walks unannounced through one of the City s slum areas and one of the reasons isto Check up on the City s sanitation department. When he comes across a Lile of trash or accumulating garbage he gels on the phone. And frequently he hangs around to supervise the cleanup. When Republican Lindsay won City Hall from the deeply entrenched democrats almost two years ago his per Sonal Appeal got much of the credit. And he s using that same kind of Appeal to try and win his Battle against tension. Residents of the City s slums see Himin the newspapers and on television sit Ting costless and timeless with a Little negro girl in his Lap. They see pictures of him leaning into a shouting mob grasping the calloused hands of the underprivileged. And on almost any evening they might look up from the littered Doorstop and see him striding Down the Street with along line of shouting children skipping along behind him. Theatrics his critics say. But civil rights leaders from the moderate to the militant Are lavish i their Praise of his efforts. Several said they would like to Sud the keep it Cool programs continued into the fall. The mayor is go King across to the people the Point inline has a genuine interest in their problems and an honest desire to do so Meijung about them said a spokesman f Socia Tion for the a the National As Ija Cement of col ored people. The people know a w that or. Lind say has t turned i Back on them and has t tried to disc rfcs them the Way i in other a member of the Gress of racial -. Got to credit his programs there have teen a lot of jobs they be been dismiss Sammy Doughty militant Harlem co Equality said you and tensions Are rela receptive. Most of the seeing him out on tag. The mayor i people appreciate streets. If i have any or ism it s that the programs Are going Ife end when sum Mer ends. That s the people who might cause trouble Are a mfg to be Back on the Street Corners t inking about Rob Bing a store. But sol far As summer s concerned it s been Feal the Effort to pruent disturbances Lias been helped immeasurably by the interest and activities of John Lindsay " said or. Eugene Cal Lender executive director of the new York Urban league. The people in the Community feel he sincere. He is primarily the one who s kept the City Calm. In Salem does t Usu ally see a mayor unless he s Campaign ing. But we see or. L Nosay in our restaurants or getting is shoes shined it s impressive and it s Bertram Beck executive director of mobilization for Wuth called Lind say s approach finc f this is not Only Odd work he said it s a reflection of the intensely human Way in which or Lindsay involves himself in the woes of the people of but one har Lemite complained walk ing through Here making pals in t going to help. This is a a dle lot of fanfare and we Don t need fanfare. We need i i Lindsay sometimes wander through two or three slum areas in one Day. On one recent excursion he covered the Corona Section of hams Burg Section of Al t7j,j Al Itlo l Lidl Jem and the South Brodix widely scattered areas in a City Queens the Wil Oaklyn East har Ith 6,000 Miles of streets spread Over 4 Square Miles. The night before a was in Bedford Stuyvesant known Lem across the Ritj me As the Ilar when rioting the stars and stripes began in negro Ilaf Ilem in 19 j4 it jumped the River i a Fily into Bedford Stuyvesant. Man i want to Weijk a negro told the mayor. And Lin suy wrote Down his name and Addre Sij on one walk a i u rican leaped out of a second Ston window to shake the mayor s hand. Ait Lindsay leaned Over the Hood of a a to talk to him. A Man complained juju he could t get books to fill his or 4i Bronx Library. You la be contacted on this Lindsay promised. There is another to the Lind say tactic aimed uie City s youth keep them so Busy of nig the Day and evening that they re 4 � tired at night to do anything but Tolj Mie to when Lindsay pc 4 two children s monday sept ref or 4, 1967 new York s mayor Lindsay reaches across car Hood to shake hands with residents of Spanish Harlem upion one of his night prowls of a to. Lindsay s face mirrors anxiety about City. A up Lindsay often Breaks off formal affairs to Rush to disturbances As at this Brooklyn fire. Clubhouses in the South Bronx Short of furniture and books he filled the Short Ages. When he went Back to seek How the children were getting along they thanked him with fresh peaches. In August the City began a series of weekend boat cruises up the Hudson River for Young people from poverty areas. The trips were four hours Long Complete with music dancing and free hotdogs. An airline provided a Jet prop plane and Crew for 15 hour Long sightseeing flights for slum youth during the sum Mer. The sixth in the series of flights was turned Over to 8 5 members of a militant disenchanted Black Muslim Oriente group of negro youths who Call them selves the five percenter. They say that the other 5 per cent of american negroes have sold out to Whites. And yet they made the trip an seemed to enjoy it with the City s White mayor. When the five percenter Leader Allah came to the Airport to see the flight off Lindsay commented Allah is working with me. He s teach ing me Muslim in july the City began operation sound search a City wide Talent Hunt. The Talent Van moved through har Lem or Bedford Stuyvesant carrying three popular local disc jockeys a judges. The $17,500 Cor the project came from an Oil company. The slum communities also Are be ing treated to free first run movies on Street Corners. The motion picture Industry donated the films and Mobile equipment. A Union projectionist donated his time. When the advertise ments say cat Ballon now showing on 102nd Street they mean right on the Street. The new symphony orchestra per formed Handel s water music on pier 17 at the Fulton fish Market and a cigarette company donated $15,000 for a City wide Tennis tournament. Lindsay has set up Booths around the City so residents could easily donate used basketballs baseball gloves roller skates footballs and jump ropes to under privileged kids. A theater group Tours East Harlem performing plays in Spanish. The City has a travelling danc Mobile to demonstrate modern dancing Lia Shired a Fleet of buses to take slum Chil Dren to the beaches and Lias installed Shower attachments
