A mall in Aurora is under fire for allegedly using a new ban on "gang related" clothing and other means to harass blacks and Hispanics.

Almost 50 shoppers surveyed since last summer "have given alarming testimony of racial discrimination" at the Aurora Town Center, on East Alameda Avenue and Interstate 225, according to a report by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now.

The American Civil Liberties Union is conducting an investigation of the claims and is considering legal action, Mark Silverstein, legal director for the ACLU, said Friday.

Officials with Simon Property Group, which manages the mall, did not return calls for comment Friday. But in a March 2 letter to the Aurora Human Relations Commission, Simon's lawyer said the company takes the allegations seriously and is conducting an internal review of its policies.

"I would first assure you that we are confident that there is no pattern or practice of discrimination at Aurora mall," Simon managing attorney Michael Hunter Freese wrote. "As a company, Simon Property Group condemns discrimination and will not tolerate discriminatory actions by employees or contractors."

The Aurora mall's relationship with the black community soured in 2004 after a leasing agent was caught on tape saying the mall's plan was to try to attract tenants likely to bring in white shoppers.

The next summer, a young man opened fire in the mall, killing a 19-year-old woman.

The 30-year-old mall, which was in the midst of a $100 million face-lift, instituted a new code of conduct in the wake of the shooting aimed at making the mall more family friendly and comfortable for all its users.

ACORN, which describes itself as an advocate for lower- and middle-class Americans, alleges in its report that the mall may be using the code to target and harass young shoppers who are minorities.

"I feel like they're picking out young black, African-American males," Freddy Locc, an 18-year-old who was one of those surveyed, said in a telephone interview Friday.

Locc said he stopped going to the mall last year after a female security guard followed him, his brother and their friends, telling them they had to pull the hoods of their jackets off their heads.

The mall's code of conduct bans attire "commonly recognized as gang-related."

ACORN representatives have met with the Aurora Human Relations Commission and have submitted their survey respondents' complaints in writing.

The commission has forwarded copies of those complaints to the mall.

bargec@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5059