California IN BRIEF : HAYWARD : Black Man Offered New Job Interview

A black student who alleged that he was turned down for a job as a shopping mall Santa Claus because he didn’t have “fair, rosy” cheeks was offered another interview for the position this week the day after he sued. Michael Whiteside, a 20-year-old college student from Hayward, had sued Southland Mall Thursday for $1.3 million in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, charging racial discrimination and fraud. He alleged that an interviewer turned him down for the Santa job, saying, “It’s discrimination, I know, but we want fair, rosy cheeks for Santa’s image.” On Friday, the mall sent a letter to Whiteside’s attorney, John Burris of Oakland, offering Whiteside an “unconditional” interview and an immediate job if the interview was successful.