NAACP Chief Accuses 2 Cities of Slighting King Holiday

The president of the San Fernando Valley branch of the NAACP blasted the cities of Burbank and San Fernando on Monday for not designating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a holiday for their employees.

“I think these two cities are quite remiss in not recognizing what almost every other city in Southern California chose to recognize,” said Jose DeSosa, who spent most of the day overseeing a King celebration in Pacoima. “For these cities to not have a holiday for their workers is very disturbing.”

City officials from both cities acknowledged the national holiday and King’s accomplishments in proclamations, but DeSosa called the proclamations “token gestures.”

“The cities should have gone one step farther,” DeSosa said. “A proclamation is all well and good, but they should have gone farther when they saw all the cities that did declare Monday a holiday. I’m very dissatisfied with Burbank and San Fernando.”

The two cities were among a handful in Southern California that were in session on the first national holiday honoring the slain civil rights leader. Among other cities that kept their City Hall doors open Monday were Glendale, Alhambra, Pasadena and Beverly Hills.

Burbank Mayor Mary Lou Howard, when informed of DeSosa’s criticisms, noted that DeSosa had accepted the city’s proclamation last week on behalf of the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People.

‘It’s Very Expensive’

“Just because a national holiday is declared doesn’t mean you can just shut down the store,” Howard said. “It’s very expensive for a city to shut down. For one, police and firemen have to be put on overtime. It’s not easy.”

Howard and San Fernando City Manager Donald Pennman said declaring a holiday in their cities would have to be considered a negotiating item with their employee unions.

“We will celebrate it next year for sure,” Pennman said. “In our recent employee union negotiations, we designated that as one of the days they got off. But that part of the contract doesn’t become effective until next year. It’s not like we’re being insensitive.”

Howard said new contract negotiations with the three Burbank city employee unions would not start until April. “That is probably one of the holidays they will ask for,” she said.

Howard attacked DeSosa for claiming that the city was being insensitive to the holiday and King’s achievements. “It’s really unfair of him to do this now, since this is the first year,” she said. “He didn’t even approach the city about doing something until a few weeks ago. Next year is the time he should come back and be critical.”

DeSosa said efforts to make King’s birthday a holiday in Burbank and San Fernando “will start immediately. We’re not going to wait. We’re going to start writing letters now.”