FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          CR
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1997                           (202) 616-2765
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888
                                 
         LOUISIANA NIGHTCLUB REACHES AN AGREEMENT WITH 
    JUSTICE DEPARTMENT TO OPEN ITS DOORS TO AFRICAN AMERICANS


     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A Louisiana nightclub that allegedly
turned away prospective black patrons agreed today to end its
discriminatory policies and inform the public that it is open to
all persons regardless of their race, the Justice Department
announced today.

     The agreement, filed together with a complaint in the U.S.
District Court in Lake Charles, resolves allegations that the
owner of Evelyn's Lounge in Holly Beach, Louisiana violated Title
II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by excluding African-Americans.  
                    
     "It is disturbing that discrimination like this is not a
thing of the past," said Acting Assistant Attorney General for
Civil Rights Isabelle Katz Pinzler. 

     The Department first learned of the alleged practices after
receiving a complaint from the Cameron Parish (Louisiana) branch
of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
People.  The complaint charged that on July 1, 1995, Evelyn's
Lounge refused to serve a pair of friends because one of the pair
was black.  

     According to the complaint, the pair approached the bar and
the bartender told them that they needed to have memberships in
order to be served, although several white friends had been
served without memberships minutes earlier.  When the pair
offered to purchase memberships, the bartender told them none
were available and ordered them to leave the club.  A short time
later, the local police arrived, escorted the pair off the
premises and arrested each on the charge of remaining after being
forbidden.

     A subsequent investigation by the Department revealed that
the owner of the Evelyn's Lounge repeatedly refused to serve
African-Americans.  A paired test conducted by two agents from
the Federal Bureau of Investigation -- one white, one black --
confirmed that the club served white patrons without requiring
proof of membership but refused to serve African-Americans on the
pretense that they were not members.

     "While many nightclubs in this area serve people regardless
of their skin color, unfortunately some do not," said Michael D.
Skinner, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana. 
"Our office will continue to vigorously enforce the civil rights
laws."

    The owner of Evelyn's Lounge has agreed to:

    no longer exclude African-Americans patrons; 

    undergo training on civil rights issues; and,

    publish advertisements in local newspapers emphasizing that
    the nightclub is open to all members of the public.

     The agreement has been approved by the Court.
                              # # #
97-058