Cecil A. Partee Memoir - University of Illinois Springfield

matter of fact--with the head of the real estate group in the state and he
said, "No, Cecil," and he slammed his hand down on the table and developed
just a torrential nosebleed. They rushed him to the hospital. We were
really arguing the whole thing out at the dinner and next morning when he
woke up in the hospital there were a dozen roses there from me. Although
he was my adversary, I just felt that I wanted to do that. But in the
housing, the real estate people were very much opposed.
Q: Who was that individual?
A: I was trying to think of his name when I was telling you that. I don't
remember at the moment, I just don't remember his name. He was the man
who preceded Bob Cook. Bob Cook is now the head of the real estate group.
He was the man who preceded Bob Cook.
I
Q: There were some other relatively minor bills related to this. Senator
Swanson, again in 1967, introduced a bill to prohibit discrimination against
unwed mothers and their children in housing. Do you recall that bill?
A: I recall it. I think it was kind of tongue-in-cheek because Senator
Swanson was one of the ones who was a member of that famous Ozinga committee
that was killing all the housing bills. So I sort of think that was kind of
tongue-in-cheek. What happened to the bill, you recall?
Q: It failed, sir.
A: Yes. I don't think it would have much chance.
Q: Evidently it was voted on. There were a couple of others like that.
Senator Smith had a bill which stated that no.housing projects under the
housing authority could have discrimination in them in the management or
the construction work and all that sort of thing. Another one was intro-
duced by Senator Newhouse--all
of these, of course, had your participation
in it--which said that real estate broker's licenses could be rescinded
if . . . So there were a number of others that were involved in that.
A: Sure. We took as many approaches to the subject as we could think of.
Q: You mentioned that Swanson was on the Ozinga committee. Now, I notice
that, again in 1967, there were a tremendous number of bills, eighty or
nfnety, in which you cosponsored with Senator Swanson in regard to the
housing authority. Most of them--well, I shouldnlt say most of them, but
about twertty let's say--had to do with substituting a regional housing
authority far the local housing authority and for the land clearance commissions.
Do you recall that situation?
A: Yes, I think I do. Those I felt were reasonable. They had to do with
making sure that there was more housing built. I think that's basically
what it meant:. Yes.