The neighbors were disturbed by the presence of the attending black shop stewards and insisted they leave the area, and when Bindman refused this request two days of rioting began.
This is a very interesting and perhaps overlooked flash point in the history of the civil rights movement because it marks a place where the struggles of labor moved beyond the plants and into the larger community where it joined forces with other activist organizations.
They publicized and formed a committee that brought considerable pressure to bear upon Mayor Kennelly, who flatly refused to make any statement about the disturbance, demanding that he ensured adequate police protection.
A well-publicized move to research mayoral impeachment prompted Kennelly to issue a statement and meet with the commissioner of police.
The committee also help expose the exploitative practices of banks and real estate companies that were promoting and profiting from "white flight.