1960s Timeline

• "In some areas, the urban renewal process proved to be highly successful. On the lower east side, for example, several high-rise luxury apartments were built, and Lafayette and Elmwood Parks--residential areas of tree-lined, spacious apartments and condominiums--lured people back to the central city... the urban renewal process in Detroit during the 1960s was long, complicated, and bureaucratic. Much of the land planeed for renewal stood vacant for long periods of time." (Woodford 169)
• "The Arab immigration pattern changed abruptly in 1966 when the federal laws were revamped to allow easier immigration of people who were relatives of American citizens. The new wave of Arab immigrants who took advantage of the change were primarily dark-skinned Muslims with little formal education. The newcomers invariably worked in heavy industry, where they got the same dangerous and arduous jobs as blacks. The Arab community in Detroit swelled to 85,000 and began to take on a dual quality." (Georgakas 76)
• "Parents' dissatisfaction continued, however, and in 1967 blacks boycotted the Detroit Public Schools to protest racism in the city's educational system." (Woodford 229)
• "Possibly the only group exploited more than blacks at Dodge Main was the recently immigrated Arabs. In 1968, they already numbered 500, and in the next six years that number would multiple fourfold." (Georgakas 37)
• "In the autumn of 1968, Wayne Statue University had almost 35,000 students." (Georgakas 53)
• "Policemen wanted to move their families out of the city too, but the city had a rule that its police must live within the city. False addresses and other ways of evading this provision became common and were winked at when they involved whites. The department also allowed an officer a one-year period of grace to find a Detroit address after being hired, and in a key ruling the department permanently exempeted 400 officers from having to comply with the rule at all. A Police Community Relations Sub-Committee staff memo of March 25, 1968, described the situation as intolerable. 'The people in the black community see this move as one allowing an occupation army to occupy the city during the day and return safely to their homes in the white suburbs at night. " (Georgakas 189)
• April 26-29, 1969- Black Economic Development Conference (BEDC) held in Detroit: "Financing for the conference was obtained through a grant from the Inter-religious Foundation for Community Organizations (IFCO), a nonprofit foundation begun in 196 by one civic foundation and nine Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish agencies. BEDC (pronounced "bed-c") was to explore various economic strategies for black people in America." (Georgakas 94)
• June 1969- Incorporation of Revolutionary Black Workers: "The League published numerous documents and position papers and had a finely drawn organizational chart, but it never functioned with the precision of a capitalist corporation or a Marxist-Leninist Party." (Georgakas 84)
• "Over fifty million dollars were immediately earmarked by some fifty Detroit firms for a massive waterfront rebuilding plan which led to the formation of a separate organization called Detroit Renaissance. Two hundred Million dollars in short-term mortgage loans were arranged for Detroit Renaissance by a group of thirty-eight banks led by the National Bank of Detroit.” (Georgakas 2-3)