Mayor Interested

Mayor Interested In Working On Ways To Better Integrate Burmese On Heels Of Laundry Controversy



FORT WAYNE, IN (Indiana's NewsCenter) --- Fort Wayne’s mayor is pushing for changes to better

integrate Burmese immigrants into the local community.

It comes after a southside laundry ran into problems with some Burmese patrons over proper customer

etiquette.

Mayor Tom Henry is inviting Burmese community leaders and others to sit down and discuss ways to

make the Burmese feel more welcome, and ways to help them better understand acceptable practices

in their new culture.

Ricker's City Laundry at Calhoun and Rudisill has been at the center of a storm, and the owner has

issued formal apologies, after it was made public last week that a sign was put up in the laundry,

reading, "For sanitary purposes, there are no Burmese people allowed".

Some Burmese customers were accused of spitting inside the business.

We talked to a patron who claims to have first-hand knowledge about spitting and instances of urinating

by the Burmese.

Turquoise Harvin/Laundry Patron: " It was disgusting and I've been other places where they've done

disgusting things too, yes, and I just feel like, if you're going to be over here, that they should abide

by our rules and our way of living, otherwise, go home."

Another laundry customer told us she witnessed a store employee telling a Burmese family to get out

of the establishment.

Elizabeth Thammachack/Laundry Patron: " You can't do your laundry here, didn't you read the sign, you

can't do your laundry here, and to me, I was disgusted, because I'm like how can you tell a family to

not do their laundry there, for their background. It just doesn't make sense and when I saw that, I just

took all my clothes and left."

Several Burmese immigrants gathered outside the Allen County Courthouse on Sunday, protesting

against discriminatory practices.

The head of the Southside Business Group is speaking out for the rights of Ricker’s City Laundry.

Charlie Hire says both sides need to do better in the situation, but he believes Ricker’s needs to be cut

some slack.

Charlie Hire/Southside Business Group President: " We can't just keep saying, crucify them, persecute

the business. They'll go away and then we'll lose that business that we need. We have to realize, there

has to be a middle ground here."

We have no word from Fort Wayne's Metropolitan Human Relations Commission on whether the civil

rights organization plans to file a formal complaint against the laundry in this case.