10 O'Clock News | [South Boston community meeting about housing desegregation]

Old Colony housing Project

[South Boston community meeting about housing desegregation]
Original Airdate: 1/13/1988

Length: 00:03:45
Item Type: newstape - edited story master

Go back to main record.

Full Description

1:00:02
Visual: Shot of a white woman standing at the entrance to a housing project building in South Boston. Audio of Neil Sullivan (Policy Advisor to Mayor Ray Flynn) saying that the people of South Boston understand discrimination.

Meg Vaillancourt reports that residents of South Boston may understand discrimination; that some residents of South Boston also practice discrimination. Vaillancourt reports that the Boston Housing Authority (BHA) discriminates against African American families; that no African American families live in any of the three public housing projects in South Boston.

V: Shots of a white woman looking out of a window of an apartment in a housing project; of the Old Colony Housing Project in South Boston; of a sign reading, "Old Colony Public Housing Development." Shots of white project residents outside of a project building.

Vaillancourt reports that African American families were passed over on the waiting list for project apartments in South Boston; that Ray Flynn (Mayor of Boston) has promised to integrate the public housing projects in South Boston. Vaillancourt notes that Flynn met with angry South Boston residents at a community meeting yesterday evening.

V: Footage of Flynn addressing the crowd at the community meeting. South Boston residents are crowded into the room, seated at long tables. Doris Bunte (BHA) is on stage with Flynn. Flynn says that the issue is fair and equal access to public housing. Shot of a bumper sticker reading, "Stop 'forced' housing."

Vaillancourt reports that the slogan, "Stop forced housing" evokes memories of the anti-busing protests in South Boston in the 1970s.

V: Footage of school buses pulling up to South Boston High School in September of 1973. Angry South Boston residents yell and jeer at the buses.

Vaillancourt reports that South Boston residents are angry about the integration of the area's three public housing projects.

V: Shot of a white woman in the audience making an angry remark. Footage of James Kelly (Boston City Council) addressing the crowd. Kelly says that South Boston residents are going to be denied the right to live in public housing in their own neighborhood. Members of the crowd stand and cheer.

Meg Vaillancourt reports that the controversy surrounding the integration of public housing projects creates an identity crisis for Flynn; that Flynn is in disagreement with his South Boston neighbors.

V: Shot of Flynn walking to the stage at the community meeting. The crowd yells and boos Flynn.

Vaillancourt notes that an audience member asked Flynn when he was moving to Roxbury.

V: Shots of white female audience member standing to address Flynn; of another audience member raising her hand. Footage of Flynn saying that he and his family were born and raised in South Boston. The audience jeers. Footage of Sullivan saying that Flynn was probably hurt by the attitude of South Boston residents last night; that Flynn has never ducked this sort of confrontation. Sullivan says that Flynn could have refused to go to the meeting.

Vaillancourt reports that Sullivan said that the public housing projects in South Boston could begin to be integrated by April. Vaillancourt notes that no whites will be forced to move out of the projects in order to achieve integration.

V: Shot of an African American man raking leaves outside of a project building; of a white female project resident speaking to a reporter. Shots of a public housing project in South Boston; of Flynn at the community meeting; of Bunte addressing the community meeting. Footage of Flynn saying that no person will be displaced to serve the purposes of integration. Footage of Sullivan being interviewed by Vaillancourt. Sullivan says that the average Boston housing development has a turnover rate of 10% each year; that 10% is a higher turnover rate than most neighborhoods. Sullivan says that the goal of the Flynn administration is to sustain a good quality of life in the public housing projects. Shots of a white woman and white children in front of a project building; of a young white boy running around outside of a project building.

The Ten O'Clock News Home | WGBH

The Ten O'Clock News Project is a production of the WGBH Archives.
©2003 WGBH Educational Foundation.