The black kids who come over and see what’s going on and nobody gets arrested--if they did it, the next weekend, they’d be banged immediately and I think there’s a certain influence on the the black kids of an obvious legal double standard that’s being operated there.” - Bill Smith, Pastor at Westminster Church

Community Concerns and Legal Double Standards

As Pastor Bill Smith's statement indicates, one of the strongest arguments for the cancellation of Easters was the double standard of police enforcement. During the yearly chaotic celebration, a predominantly white student body engaged in destruction of property, public intoxication, disorderly conduct, and various other punishable offenses. The relaxed police response frustrated many Charlottesville residents, especially those living in the predominantly black Venable neighborhood, who worried about the affect of this visible legal double standard on their children. The president of the Black Student Alliance, Linda Quarles, voiced similar concerns about the sense of otherness and racial alienation fostered by the Easters celebration. The racial politics of the debate over Easters gesture toward the complicated intersections of identity, belonging, and power in the context of space and ownership.

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For more information on Easters, the following resources in the Special Collections Library may be of great benefit:

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• Report of Easters Weekend Commission to President Frank L. Hereford, Jr. 1975 October 1: RG-20/69/1.781

  • Consult Appendix I for general information about findings for the commission​

  • Consult Appendix III for a transcript of all deliberations held (including statements from residents of the Venable Neighbordhood)

• The University Journal: RG-23/45/1.811 Ernest Ern Letter to Robert T. Canevari 19821 December 1: RG-18/1/1.121

• Office Administration Files 1945 (Bulk 1967-1982): RG-1/2/2.841 Boxes 1 and 2

• Special Records Files of the Office of the President, University of Virginia 1968-1977: RG-2/1/3.791 Box 7