The report,ย Race and Violence in Washington State, published in 1969, was undertaken by theย Washington Stateย Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Civil Disorder. The Commission was established by the Urban Affairs Council on April 25, 1968 in response to the widespread racial disorders, orย riots, that erupted in cities nationwide between 1964 and 1967.ย That national crisis led to the 1967ย Kerner Commission Report. The Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Civil Disorder was tasked with performing a similar role at the state level, educating public leaders regarding Washingtonโs potential for racial disorders and investigating why there had not yet been any significant disturbances in Washington. The Commission also rectified a perceived failing of the Kerner Commission by investigating what steps were already being taken to prevent disorders and their effectiveness.
Race and Violence in Washington State, also known as the Kramer Report, after A. Ludlow Kramer, the then Washington State Secretary of State, was organized into six chapters: โCauses of Disorderโ in which the commission evaluated a range of theories on the causes of riots, or racial disorders; โAn Overview of Washington Stateโ explored why Washington had not experienced any serious disturbances, as well as the existing factors that could lead to riots in the future; โImportance of Attitudesโ covered the nature of racism in Washington; โWashingtonโs Situation in Detailโ elaborated on โOverview,โ with an in depth analysis of the extent of segregation, discrimination and inequality in Washington and other factors that put black communities at a disadvantage; โWhat is being done?โ covered what steps were taken to alleviate the causes of disorder; โWhat should be doneโ contained a wide range of suggested reforms, restructurings, legislation, and financial commitments designed to radically and severely decrease or eliminate the underlying causes of the inherent inequality of black life in America. Lastly, โWhat you can doโ served as a concise conclusion regarding what an average citizen could do to lessen discrimination.
The commission concluded that providing โequal opportunity to the equally qualifiedโ and an end to discrimination would not be enough to end inequality.ย Instead, it believed that only by creating more โqualified people,โ by ensuring economic stability and integrating communities would black folk be able to stand on equal footing with the white middle class. As such, it called for reforms to education, housing, welfare, and taxes. It called for the creation of new anti-discrimination legislation and new government offices to respond to community complaints as well as a reworking of civil service exams; for the overhaul of police training as well as court and prison reforms. It suggested that media reevaluate how it covered black life, and called for a total reworking of business hiring practices, particularly where arrest records were concerned. The report concluded that strides toward equality would be borne out in numbers: the rate of gainful black employment and black business ownership, howย integratedย housing had become, how integrated black communities were within the greater urban community, and the quality of education a black student received. Strikingly many of the descriptions and prescriptions of the 1969 report continue to apply to todayโs racial environment in Washington state.
