Coordinating Committee for the Enforcement of the D.C. Anti-Discrimination Laws appeal

Mary Church Terrell and Oliver Palmer appeal for public assistance after the courts ruled against enforcement of D.C. anti-discrimination laws.

Terrell was a pioneering civil rights icon while Palmer was business manager of the Cafeteria Workers Union Local 471.

Their appeal was successful when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1953 that the 1872 and 1873 laws prohibiting discrimination based on race in restaurants, hotels, theaters and other privately owned facilities open to the public were valid.

The meeting place referred to in the flyer at 1015 M Street was the offices of Local 471.