NAACP Drops Role in Newspaper Suit

The NAACP on Friday suspended its role in a federal suit filed against the New York Times that accuses the newspaper of violating civil rights laws by publishing real estate advertisements that almost always portray whites as the potential buyers.

Benjamin Hooks, the executive director of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People, said the organization was pulling out of the suit because, “contrary to policy, direct negotiations had not been held” with the Times before the suit was filed.

The suit, filed by the NAACP and other parties in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, said almost exclusive use of white models in pictorial real estate ads indicated a preference for white buyers.

It asked the court to declare the Times in violation of the Fair Housing Act of 1968, the Civil Rights Act and the Constitution and to order the Times to take “affirmative steps” to change its practice.

The suit also sought unspecified punitive and compensatory damages.

In a statement issued late Friday, Hooks said, “While other members of the coalition met with representatives of the Times, the NAACP was not represented and hence, the Times’ Publisher Arthur Ochs Sulzberger was correct when he complained that the lawsuit was filed without any discussion with the NAACP.”

On Thursday, the New York Times denied the charges in the suit and said the complaint appeared to be “without merit.”