EASTWOOD MALL Meeting ends Santa battle

There was no financial settlement, and the mother and son say they will not sue.
By STEPHEN SIFF
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
NILES -- A mother and son have dropped their fight against Eastwood Mall after being reassured that mall owner Cafaro Corp. does not have a policy prohibiting black Santas.
Monica Beasley-Martin and her 18-year-old son, Brandon, of Youngstown, met with Cafaro Corp. vice president Anthony Cafaro Jr. on Tuesday.
At a press conference Wednesday, they said that Cafaro did not apologize for his employee's refusal to allow Brandon, who is black, to play the role of Santa Claus in a skit.
But they said that they were satisfied by his explanation that the company has no policy on the color of its Claus.
"I still have some questions about the matter, but there is only so far I can go," Brandon said.
His lawyer, Gil Rucker, emphasized that they had no intention to sue and that there was no financial settlement.
"I think both sides realized that there was a miscommunication," Cafaro said.
Beasley-Martin said that she was told by mall manager Ken Kollar at a meeting last week that there was a policy prohibiting black Santas.
Internet attacks
Since the story broke, Beasley-Martin said she has been the subject of personal attacks on Internet bulletin boards and received a hostile letter.
Cafaro said he could not comment if Eastwood Mall will have black Santas in the future, because most of the Santas in the mall are hired by a vendor, not mall management.
Brandon was to have appeared as Santa in a skit put on by Youngstown Playhouse, but mall marketing director Melissa Householder decided that his color made him an inappropriate choice.
Cafaro and Kollar stood by her decision, because they said children would have been confused if they saw a black Santa in the skit and white Santas posing for pictures moments later.