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By EUGENE FINLEY, JR. (Staff Writer) The Galesburg Human Rela tion Commission’s proposal to merge the commission and the Equal Opportunity Office ap peared to be dead today. Commissioners took no for mal action Wednesday night at iCity Hall, but the consensus was the community wants two sepa rate agencies. The commission had received little support during a public meeting held earlier this month to seek opinions on the pro posed merger. Let Others Decide “Let the City Council and city manager ‘decide what they’re, i going to do with Equal Oppor tunity Office. I’m ready to work with ‘the Human Relations Com mission and to leave the Equal Opportunity Office alone,”’ Mrs. Darla Blackwell, a commission er, said. “‘We should be getting groundwork from them (City Council and city manager) and not setting up groundwork our selves.” “Um with Darla 100 per cent,” said Mrs. Louise Wilder, the Hu man Relations Commission’s executive director. Mrs. Caroline Goltermann, commission chairman, said some people have indicated she was being used by the City Council and City Manager Thomas Herring in proposing the merger. “Twas not, I thought it was a good idea, but obviously a lot of other people did not,’’ Mrs. Gol termann said. Directors Difter Mrs. Goltermann felt she did have some support for her proposed merger. Mrs. Wilder supported the idea, and Mrs. Iona Hendricks, Equal Oppor tunity Office executive director, opposed it. Mrs. Goltermann said she suggested the merger because she felt there was a duplication of programs by the commission and the Equal Opportunity Of fice and the poor communica tion between the two directors. In other action, Mrs. Golter mann appointed Commissioner Frank Young to work with Mrs. Wilder in preparing the com mission’s 1973 budget to be pre sented to the council during its budget hearings. James Harris, commissioner, said: “The commission should go for all possible — and if we fall a little bit short, we have ac complished something.” Deadline Dec. 27 The proposed budget has to be submitted to Herring by Dec. 27. During a discussion on com mission liaison with civic groups, Young said the com mission should cultivate in formal contacts in a more con scientious way than it has. The commission members de cided not to act on recommen dations submitted to the com mission by Larry Hendricks, president of the Galesburg Branch of the NAACP. Com missioners felt it was a concern of the City Council. Had Asked Probe ‘Hendricks recommended the creation of a fact-finding board to investigate the credibility of the Equal Opportunity Office and the Human Relations Com mission. He said a report should be prepared and presented to the City Council and that the agen cies” == governing regulations should be revised., Hendricks has supported the idea of two Separate agencies. He submitted his recommen dations to the commission earli er this month and to the City Council at its meeting Monday night. The commission had a private ‘Session to discuss replacements for. Commissioners Luke Ander son and Claude Piggee. Candidate Attends Anderson submitted his resig nation but was not at the meet ing last night. He is leaving the community to take a YMCA job in New York. Piggee resigned earlier this fall after expressing dissatisfaction with the commis sion. Mayoral candidate Robert L. Stroops attended the commission meeting last night. He told the Register-Mail he attended to be informed. Stroops said he is in favor of keeping the commission and the Equal Opportunity Of fice separate.
Newspaper Details
Galesburg Register Mail
Galesburg, Illinois, US
Thu, Dec 21, 1972
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Kim T.
USA 13 Feb 2026
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