Marion and Ray West were an interracial couple living in Seattle, and active members of the Christian Friends for Racial Equality and later, CORE. The Wests owned an apartment building in the University district and rented to people from all races, an anomaly in the segregated North End of Seattle. On June 3, 1958, a cross was burned in their front yard in retaliation against their open renting policy. This is a report from the Civic Unity Committee, a board formed by the city to negotiate racial tensions. See also streaming video excerpts from an interview with Marion West in 2005. [Digitization of documents courtesy of the Special Collections Library, University of Washington (CORE, Seattle Chapter Records, 1961-1970, Manuscript Collection 1563). Copyright (c) reserved.]
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