By Charlie Smith
Charleston
Saturday’s headline in the Post and Courier’s Business section heralding the planned expansion of The Burroughs and Chapin Company into the South Carolina Lowcountry would seem on the surface to be good news for the Charleston real estate market. The reality is actually just the opposite. The reason being is that for 113 years this Myrtle Beach-based real estate company has made discrimination a central theme of its business operation. The Horry County Court House is filled with deeds dating from the early days of what is now The Burroughs and Chapin Company that contain such language as:
The property hereby conveyed shall not be sold, devised, mortgaged or donated to any person of the negro race nor to any corporation whose stock is controlled by members of said race, nor shall any members of said race be permitted to rent, lease or reside on said property without the joint consent of the grantor and a majority of the bona fide adult residents of Myrtle Beach and upon such terms as may be by them jointly agreed.
Later deeds excluded Jews, Asians and all other non-Caucasian races with language such as:
“Neither this property nor any part thereof, nor any interest therein shall ever be sold, leased or conveyed to anyone other than a person of the Caucasian race, or to a corporation owned and conducted by persons of the Caucasian race.”
Burroughs and Chapin continued this practice until a U.S. Supreme Court ruling forced them to change their policy on racial and religious discrimination. But the company was back at it again in the late 1990s, this time targeting the gay and lesbian citizens of Myrtle Beach. When then-Myrtle Beach Mayor Mark McBride called Gay and Lesbian citizens of the city “garbage” The Burroughs and Chapin Company was the first to jump on the bigotry bandwagon leading the charge to disrupt the 1998 Gay and Lesbian Pride events in Myrtle Beach. The company prohibited the 1970s-era musical group The Village People from performing on the grounds of a local night club during the event asserting their rights as the owner of the land on which the club had been built.
They also banned any events associated with the festival from being held at any of its other properties such as the Broadway at the Beach shopping and entertainment complex. The media battle that ensued over their bigotry lasted for more than six months and resulted in a tremendous loss of credibility for the company and a huge black eye for Myrtle Beach tourism. It also resulted in the largest Gay and lesbian Pride event South Carolina has ever witnessed.
Most of the churches in the Myrtle Beach area sit on land that was given to them by the Burroughs and Chapin Company. Representatives of the company are often allowed by these churches to make annual presentations to the congregations during which the company reps tell the church folks all about their plans for expanding their business in Myrtle Beach over the coming year. The great PR they achieve through these efforts tends to pay off handsomely at the ballot box for the candidates endorsed by Burroughs and Chapin for public office in Myrtle Beach and Horry County…candidates such as former Mayor Mark McBride.
The long and the short of it is that Charleston does not need the bigotry and political manipulation of The Burroughs and Chapin Company. What we need are companies that understand and appreciate the diversity of the people who have created this beautiful city in which we live and are willing to be good corporate citizens. The Burroughs and Chapin Company has a 113-year history of doing just the opposite.