It's appalling that in 2004, a businessman trying to establish arestaurant in Cicero can claim the idea was squashed because, he wastold, it would "attract the black population."
The allegation, made by Jeffry Pesek, who is suing town officialsin federal court for allegedly blocking his venture, is a throwbackto the pre-civil rights era.
Ironically, the suit comes at a time the AARP, the LeadershipConference on Civil Rights and the Library of Congress arecollaborating to collect vignettes about the everyday people involvedin the civil rights movement. The "Voices of Civil Rights" project isexpected to arrive in Chicago on Oct. 5. Archivists and journalistshave begun to gather stories from blacks and whites about the racialhatred they experienced under apartheid in America.
If Pesek's charge are proved, shame on Cicero for being so out ofstep that the civil rights project could include this incident in itshistorical collection.
The racial hatred reflected in the alleged sentiments isintolerable, and an ugly reflection on our region and our state.
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