12AD.3.7 Californians Against Prop 14

In 1964, Californians who sought to preserve the protections provided by the Rumford Fair Housing Act organized against Proposition 14. This flyer is an example of an appeal to voters made by people who opposed Proposition 14. Groups like Californians Against 14 made it a point to highlight how the proposition promoted bigotry and racial oppression. As evidenced by this flyer, organizers appealed specifically to Mexican Americans, who made up a significant proportion of the population of California and who would also have been subject to housing discrimination if voters repealed the Rumford Fair Housing Act.

Who does the flyer identify as the group that is against minorities in California? Why? What obstacles might have stood in the way of the goal of uniting racial and ethnic minorities to act and vote against Proposition 14? If Proposition 14 passed, how might life for people facing housing discrimination change? What do you predict would be the consequences of those changes?

This source can help students learn about how people who supported the Rumford Fair Housing legislation built a coalition in defense of the law. This source illustrates how fair access to housing influenced other aspects of lives for minorities in California. Draw students’ attention to the unintended consequences named in the flyer: higher rents, segregated schools, and employment scarcity. In addition, ask students to analyze how this document aimed to mobilize specific groups of people based on their racial identity. The flyer identifies “unscrupulous realtors” as the entity working to segregate and oppress Mexican American and minority communities. Students might be challenged to describe how the real estate industry might (or might not) gain from higher rents, unequal schools, a lack of workplace opportunity, and higher unemployment. Teachers might also explore the significance of Mexican Americans to political coalitions in California, as people who had developed into an increasingly important voting bloc.

It’s YOUR fight, too!
Higher Rents - More Slums - Discrimination
Unemployment - Segregated Schools

That’s what Mexican-Americans and other minorities can expect if Proposition 14 passes next November.

This scheme by real estate interests to write hate and bigotry into the Constitution would destroy our fair housing laws and threaten Mexican-Americans and other minorities with loss of rights.

Remember: Mexican-Americans continue to suffer from discrimination and oppression. Don’t put a stop to the progress we have made toward equal opportunity for us all.

HIGHER RENTS!
Slums and segregation lead to higher rents and fat profits for some unscrupulous realtors.

SEGREGATED SCHOOLS!
Proposition 14 would lead to more segregated schools. Your child’s education will suffer.

FAIR EMPLOYMENT NEXT!
The attack is against equal opportunity in housing today. Equal opportunity in jobs would be next.

JOBS THREATENED!
California could lose $276 million in federal construction funds. Thousands would be unemployed.

THESE ORGANIZATIONS SAY “NO” ON 14
Community Service Organization
Equal Opportunity Foundation
G.I. Forum
Latin-American Civic Association
League of Unite Latin American Citizens
Mexican American Political Association
Mexican American Lawyers Club

Vote ‘NO’ on 14
CALIFORNIANS AGAINST PROPOSITION 14, 5504 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles; 48 Second St., San Francisco