Not so long ago, talk about an NAACP branch in the Grosse Pointes might have sounded like the setup of a joke.
Between 1945 and 1960, Realtors assigned a point value to prospective property owners that was designed to exclude blacks, Jews and southern Europeans. The point system was dismantled as a result of a 1960 lawsuit, but the Pointes remained highly segregated for the remainder of the century, according to a metromode article by Nina Ignaczak.
Now Bill Laitner reports in the Free Press:
Organizers of a new branch of the NAACP said they are delighted by an overflow crowd of well more than 100 who attended their initial meeting Wednesday night at Rockefeller's Oyster Bar & Grill in Grosse Pointe Park.
"We are on track for launching an awesome chapter," said organizer Elaine Flowers, a retired social worker who lives in Grosse Pointe Park. She said they received applications of 124 prospects who've already paid the NAACP's dues for the year.
A new branch needs at least 50 prospects willing to pledge $30 for the first year’s dues, according to NAACP bylaws, and members of a branch may live anywhere — prompting interest from neighboring Detroit and as far away as Troy.
Greg Bowens of Grosse Pointe (right) is one of the organizers.
"We had black people, white people, Hispanic folks, old and young — more than enough to get the branch started,” Bowens tells the Freep.
He said he expects the national chapter to certify the group this fall.
