Membership discrimination in California clubs facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Membership discrimination in California social clubs means that some clubs in California used to stop people from joining based on things like their gender, race, or religion. For a long time, many of these clubs were only for certain groups of people, often men or people of a specific race or religion.

However, starting in the late 1980s, many social clubs began to change. They started allowing people from different racial or religious backgrounds to join, and then they opened their doors to women too. It's important to know that clubs that are truly private and don't get special tax breaks can still choose their members based on social standing. But if a club acts like a business or gets help from the government, like tax benefits, then it usually has to follow rules against discrimination.

What are Social Clubs?

Social clubs are groups where people with similar interests or backgrounds gather. They often have special buildings or places where members can meet, relax, and socialize.

Early California Clubs

Some of California's oldest and most famous social clubs include:

The Bohemian Club: Started in San Francisco in 1872 by journalists. It grew to include powerful business and political leaders.
The California Club: Founded in Los Angeles in 1888. It originally had some Jewish members, but over time, it became a place where Jewish people were not allowed to join.
The Jonathan Club: Another well-known social group established in Los Angeles in 1894.

Laws Against Discrimination

Over the years, California passed laws to make sure businesses and organizations treat everyone fairly.

The Unruh Civil Rights Act

The Unruh Civil Rights Act, passed in 1959, is a very important law in California. It makes it illegal for businesses to discriminate against people based on their age, background, skin color, disability, where they come from, race, religion, or gender. This law applies to many places, including stores, restaurants, and even housing.

Rules for Clubs with Liquor Licenses

In 1976, a state law said that any club with a liquor license (meaning they can sell alcohol) could face trouble if they discriminated based on race, color, gender, religion, or background. However, this rule didn't apply to private clubs that had a policy of choosing their members in a specific way.

Also, the state stopped businesses from getting tax breaks for money spent at private clubs that discriminated.

Los Angeles City Law

In 1987, Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley signed a new city law. This law banned discrimination at most large private clubs in the city, especially those with more than 400 members that hosted events for non-members.

U.S. Supreme Court Ruling

In 1988, the highest court in the U.S., the Supreme Court, made an important decision. It said that cities could, in some cases, make large private clubs accept minority members and women. The court explained that clubs that serve meals and rent out their facilities to people who aren't members are more like businesses. Because of this, they don't have the right to ignore anti-discrimination laws.

Changes for Minority Groups

For many years, some social clubs in California did not allow people from certain minority groups to join. But over time, things began to change due to laws and public pressure.

1960s: Early Challenges

In 1965, the Jonathan Club was accused of not allowing Black people or Jewish people to join.
The Anti-Defamation League, a group that fights against prejudice, reported that in 1962, many top country and city clubs in Los Angeles only allowed Christians. By 1969, fewer clubs had these rules.
In 1969, the California Club had no Jewish members, and the Jonathan Club had only one, and hadn't accepted any new Jewish members for decades. Groups like the American Jewish Committee worked hard to change this.

1970s: More Pressure and Progress

Examples of Unfair Treatment

In 1975, a choir from the U.S. Air Force Academy canceled a concert at the Jonathan Club because they learned the club didn't allow Black people.
In Pasadena, a city council member named Loretta Thompson-Glickman recalled that in 1977, she and another female director had to use a side door to enter the University Club.
In 1978, a businessman was told by the Jonathan Club's membership committee that "Jews and blacks were not welcome."
The Los Angeles Country Club and the Jonathan Club were known for not allowing Jewish members. However, the Hillcrest Country Club was known as a "Jewish" club, and its chairman, Lew Wasserman, said it sometimes discriminated against non-Jewish members.
The Los Angeles Athletic Club had allowed Black members since the 1960s, but in 1975, it was found that they were admitting Black members more slowly than white members. The club quickly changed this policy after complaints.
Some clubs, like the Zamorano Club, were accused of using excuses like not admitting communists to keep out Jewish members.

Outside Pressure on Clubs

Businesses started to take action.

In 1975, Wells Fargo Bank and Bank of America stopped holding meetings at clubs that discriminated. They also said they wouldn't pay for their employees' memberships at such clubs.
Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley also stopped attending meetings at the Jonathan and California clubs.
The Jewish Federation Council urged major companies in Southern California not to hold events at the California Club or pay for executive memberships there.

Clubs Begin to Change

In 1970, the Bohemian Club tried to get Black members to join, but some declined.
In 1976, the California Club admitted its first Jewish member, Harold Brown, who later became the U.S. Secretary of Defense. This happened after a long discussion among club members.
The Los Angeles Chancery Club, for lawyers, started admitting Jewish members around 1966. By 1976, it had a Black member.
In 1977, Warner Heineman, a Jewish vice chairman of Union Bank, was admitted to the Jonathan Club. He felt this was a big step forward. The club's president said they were starting to accept all applications based on their merit, including those from minorities and women.
Also in 1977, two Jewish men joined the Los Angeles Country Club.

1980s: Continued Progress

In 1981, William French Smith, who was chosen to be the U.S. Attorney General, faced questions because he belonged to the California and Bohemian clubs, which had discriminatory policies.
In 1982, the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency stopped its employees from doing business at the Jonathan Club. Other organizations also started to avoid the club.
Prince Philip of Great Britain even turned down an invitation to the California Club in 1982 because Mayor Tom Bradley refused to go due to the club's policies against women and Black members.
In 1986, the CEO of Arco, Lodwrick M. Cook, announced that the company would no longer pay for executives' memberships in clubs that discriminated.
By 1987, the Hillcrest Country Club had started to recruit non-Jewish members.
In February 1988, the California Club admitted its first Black member, Joseph L. Alexander, a surgeon. They also approved Ivan J. Houston, a Black CEO. Many Jewish members had also joined in recent years.

Santa Monica Beach Club

In 1985, the Jonathan Club wanted to expand its facilities on Santa Monica beach. The city and the California Coastal Commission said the club had to adopt non-discriminatory policies before it could expand onto public beach property. This decision was upheld by the state Supreme Court in 1988.

Women in Social Clubs

For a long time, many social clubs were only for men, or had very strict rules for women members or guests. But women and their supporters worked hard to change these rules.

In 1986, a court ordered Rotary International to allow a club in Duarte to have women members, after it had been kicked out for doing so.
In 1989, the University Club in Pasadena, which had been all-male, finally voted to admit women.

John M. Robinson, from the California State Club Association, wrote in 1987 that clubs were "under broad attack." He believed that the main idea of a club was to be exclusive, meaning it could choose its members freely. He felt that if everyone had a right to join, it would no longer be a traditional club.

Beverly Hills Clubs

The Friars Club of Beverly Hills, a club for people in show business, had four women members by 1988. One of them, attorney Gloria Allred, pushed for women to be allowed to use all the club's facilities, like the health club.

Eureka Clubs

In 1974, Ellen Stern Harris, a state official, was not allowed to join her colleagues for a tour of the Carson Mansion in Eureka because the private Ingomar Club, located there, only allowed women on certain days. The state sued the club, and in 1978, the club agreed that women could enter for business or political events. The club now allows women equal access.

Los Angeles Clubs

As late as 1975, major country clubs in Los Angeles still did not allow single women to be full members and limited women's golf times.

Brentwood Country Club

In 1987, the city sued the Brentwood Country Club to stop it from banning women from its "Men's Grill" and parts of the golf course. The club agreed to change its rules.

California Club

In June 1987, the California Club voted to admit women, with a large majority in favor. After some debate, they voted again in March 1988, and the decision to accept women members was confirmed. The first women members included E. Camron Cooper and Linda Hartwick.

Hillcrest Country Club

In April 1987, the Hillcrest Country Club changed its rules to allow women as members and to let daughters and wives inherit memberships.

Jonathan Club

By 1976, women guests at the Jonathan Club could use the main elevator and lobby, which was a change from before.
In 1977, the Jonathan Club voted to admit women members. However, one woman's application faced delays, raising suspicions.
By 1988, about a dozen women had joined the club, but they were not allowed into the men's library, grill, or bar. The city attorney prepared a lawsuit to end this. In 1989, the club finally agreed to serve women in the bar and grill.

University Club

The University Club was one of the first major downtown Los Angeles clubs to admit women in February 1975. However, as late as 1976, unaccompanied women guests still had to wait in a "ladies' lounge" and use a specific door.

Newport Beach Clubs

In 1989, 25 women sued the Newport Beach Country Club, claiming they had to pay $8,500 more for memberships than single men. Gloria Allred represented them.

San Francisco Clubs

Bohemian Club

In 1987, women lawyers' groups and state officials called for the Bohemian Club's liquor license to be taken away because it excluded members based on race or gender. The city of San Francisco also passed a law to try and force the club to admit women. The club fought these efforts and continued to resist admitting women as full members. Women, even political leaders, had to use a side door and stay in certain rooms.
Some men left the club or refused to join because of its policies. The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals stopped holding its annual party there in 1979 because judges protested the discrimination.
Former California Governor Edmund G. (Pat) Brown and former U.S. Senator S.I. Hayakawa famously refused to help women join the Bohemian Club, saying women had their own clubs.

The Olympic Club, which was male-only for 130 years, started allowing women members in 1990 due to pressure.
The Pacific-Union Club, formed in 1889, also began allowing women a limited form of membership after more than a century of being male-only.

Yorba Linda Clubs

In 1988, Jan Bradshaw sued the Yorba Linda Country Club because women could only play golf in the afternoons, and on Sundays, there was only one time slot for women. She received threats because of her lawsuit. Gloria Allred was her attorney.

Images for kids

President Coolidge with actor Al Jolson at the Hillcrest Country Club in 1924
Bohemian Club owl
Harold Brown was admitted to the California Club in 1976.
Santa Monica Beach
Carson Mansion

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