Mall closes at Texas Relays [split]

[Cooter Brown]

The Texas Relays scares white people.

There's been a few articles in the local paper about the subject this week. Here's the latest...

http://www.statesman.com/news/conten...407relays.html

[TrackDaddy]

The Texas Relays scares white people.

There's been a few articles in the local paper about the subject this week. Here's the latest...

http://www.statesman.com/news/conten...407relays.html

Article excerpt:

Noble said there is typically no more reported crime at Highland Mall during the Relays than at any other time. The Texas Relays, SXSW and Mardi Gras all draw fairly similar-sized crowds downtown, Noble said, though music festival revelers tend to be inside bars and clubs while Relays visitors tend to be out in the streets. Mardi Gras has a mix of both, Noble said.

Nelson Linder, president of the local chapter of the NAACP, said those and previous crime statistics show that Texas Relays does not make the city more dangerous.

"We're dealing with people's perceptions," Linder said. "What they call a threat is overblown. This is a classic case of xenophobia."


Highland Mall, near North Interstate 35 and U.S. 290 East and a frequent destination for Texas Relays attendees, closed at 2 p.m. Saturday "because the safety and security of our shoppers and retailers is our top priority," General Manager Jeff Gionnette said in an e-mail last week.

Linder said the mall's closure had no basis in statistics and suggested that the mall's owners "have issues with black people." In addition to the protest Saturday, he is asking African Americans not to spend money at the mall.

:lol:

Ah...such is life in the Big City. :lol:

[Marlow]

The excerpt above left out a key part. Merchants reported a huge DOWNswing in sales then, so they closed due to financial considerations.

[TrackDaddy]

The excerpt above left out a key part. Merchants reported a huge DOWNswing in sales then, so they closed due to financial considerations.

Was that left out of the excerpt or the article? :?

I asked because I dont remember reading that and it would be a reason it wasnt in the excerpt I provided.

Also, the article leaves out the fact that most of the 'black people' are kids. College and high school.

Sort of like a Spring Break type function and where thousands of college and high school age students congregate there are management issues. Regardless of what color they are.

I'm not sure how many students participate in the TR but that number alone is probably staggering. And obviously that doesnt include the student bodies of the respective institutions and the fans/families.

Do the other functions that were mentioned involve this many students?

For some reason I'd think that would be notable regardless of what color they are.

[gh]

Austin police already have next year's Relays on discussion list (see story now posted on front page) (note also that one of the big things that happened this year was greatly reduced staffing--can you say budget cuts?--by the cops).

[lonewolf]

This year was the 57th anniversary of my first Texas Relays. I missed some in the 50s and 60s but not many since the 70s. I did not have occasion to visit the mall this year but I drove past it several times in the course of four days and was not even aware it closed. Nor can I understand the necessity other than the report that low traffic made security unaffordable. .
There are annual events other than the Relays that week which contribute to the throng. I have never been aware of any racial discord among Relay athletes or spectators or their interaction with the general public.
I was a little skeptical of the report that $250,000 was spent for 50 extra security officers. $5000/officer for four days seems like a pretty good gig..

[mrbowie]

A lot of malls would love to have some customers right about now and the main color they would be looking for would be green.

[gh]

http://socialistworker.org/2009/04/22/s ... -on-blacks