Series: The Ten O'Clock News
Date: 1987-10-29
Duration: 00:03:21

Subject: Discrimination
People: Bulger, William; Flynn, Raymond; Kelly, Hope;
Geography: South Boston (Boston, Mass.)|

Clip Description
Hope Kelly reviews the history of public housing in Boston. Kelly notes that the first public housing project was built in South Boston in the 1930s. She adds that the tenants were all white. Kelly reports that the public housing projects in South Boston remained white even as the non-white tenant population grew in the rest of the city. Kelly's report includes shots of photographs of white and African American public housing tenants in the 1940s and 1960s. Kelly reviews statistics concerning the numbers of white and non-white families on the waiting list for public housing. Kelly reports that the waiting list for public housing in Boston is currently 80% non-white. She notes that the waiting list for white families is shrinking while the waiting list for non-white families is growing. Kelly reports that there are no African American families living in the housing projects in South Boston in 1987. Kelly reports that the Boston Housing Authority (BHA) went into receivership in 1979 due to mismanagement. She notes that Ray Flynn (Mayor of Boston) was named receiver of the BHA in 1984. Kelly reports that Flynn must integrate the housing projects, but is likely to meet opposition from South Boston residents. Kelly's report is accompanied by footage of Flynn from the 1983 mayoral campaign and by footage of African American and white public housing tenants.

This edition of the Ten O'Clock News also included the following item:
Meg Vaillancourt reports that Ray Flynn (Mayor of Boston) has pledged to integrate public housing projects in South Boston by next year
South Boston housing projects

Series Description
A local program aimed at the Boston audience, The Ten O'Clock News debuted on January 15, 1976. Its two immediate predecessors were The Reporters and Evening Compass. A news and public affairs show focusing on neighborhood, local and state issues, The Reporters was produced and broadcast on WGBH from 1970 to 1973. The Reporters was then replaced by Evening Compass, which expanded into a twice-nightly news broadcast during the tense moments of Boston's busing crisis. On the air from 1973 to 1975, Evening Compass found an audience through its in-depth coverage of school desegregation in Boston, which began in 1974. The Ten O'Clock News stood out as an in-depth news program. It strove for a balance between local and national stories, between politics and the Arts. The last The Ten O'Clock News program was broadcast on May 30, 1991.

See also: http://main.wgbh.org/ton/programs/5385_02