What was going on in Greensboro during the sit-ins?
During the beginning of the 1960’s segregation was still present in Greensboro and other southern states. African Americans were refused service at certain restaurants and lunch counters in town. Four freshman students from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, a local college in Greensboro, decided that something must be done to stop the unfair treatment of African Americans in Greensboro and around the United States. Joseph McNeil, Franklin McCain, David Richmond, and Ezell Blair Jr., who later became known as the “Greensboro Four”, became very close and would meet every evening in their dorms for “bull sessions”. Most of these meetings consisted of the freshmen discussing their opinions on the segregation rules in Greensboro and around the United States. They were not pleased with how African Americans were being treated (Murray, n.d.).
During those meetings, the boys started discussing what they could do to try and gain equal rights in a non-violent way. It was then that McNeil suggested the sit-in tactic. He knew something must be done after he was refused service at a Greensboro bus terminal while on Christmas break in December, all because he was a man of color. Months before the sit-in occurred, McNeil had attended a concert where other African Americans had acted tactlessly, and he wanted to make sure that whatever they did they did not repeat this error. It was important to him that the sit-ins be non-violent and disciplined. The freshmen decided on a sit-in at the Woolworth’s five-and-dime store, which was a local store located in downtown Greensboro that sold supplies (Murray, n.d.).
On Monday February 1st, 1960 the plan to stage a sit in a Woolworth’s store was put into action. The boys walked all the way across town into the heart of downtown Greensboro where Woolworth’s is located. The four college freshman entered the store at around 4:30 p.m. and purchased merchandise at the counter. The four men then sat down at the lunch counter that was “whites only”, to order some coffee ("The Greensboro Chronology | International Civil Rights Center & Museum", n.d). The boys had thought they would encounter some type of ruckus, but they were ignored and felt almost invisible. They were soon told that the lunch counter was for whites only. After showing the waitress their receipts, they asked why their money was good at other places in the store, but not at the lunch counter. When the students refused to leave the manager of Woolworth’s, Curly Harris, ran over to the police station to see the police chief. He told Mr. Harris that as long as the students were acting properly that there was nothing he could do (Schlosser, 1998). The freshman remained seated at the lunch counter until the store closed at 5 p.m. They then left and went back to their dorm rooms on the A&T campus. When one of the “Greensboro four” was asked how he felt walking back to campus McCain replied, “I never felt so good in my life” (Schlosser, 1998, p1). Many people were not aware of the start of the sit-in due to the lack of media attention. The four college students went back to campus to recruit other students for the sit-in the next day ("The Greensboro Chronology | International Civil Rights Center & Museum", n.d).
On February 2nd, twenty five men and four women, including the “Greensboro four”, returned to Woolworth’s store in down town Greensboro. The students sat at the lunch counter from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. As the students sat at the lunch counter people harassed and teased them to try and make them leave. Unaffected by the heckling, the students stayed seated at the lunch counter where they were still refused service. McCain said he had awful thoughts about what might happen that day at Woolworth’s. “I was fully prepared mentally not to ever come back to the campus. ... I thought the worst thing that could happen to us is we could have had our heads split open with a night stick and hauled into prison" (Schlosser, 1998, p1).
With media attention growing, more and more students continued to show up throughout the week. The protest continued every day for a week. More than fourteen hundred students showed up at the Woolworth’s store to take part in the sit-in. White students from a nearby women’s college even took part in the sit-in as well. The protesting started to reach other stores across Greensboro and the southern United States. The sit-ins reached Woolworth’s stores in Charlotte, Winston Salem, and Durham. Soon other supply and department stores across other southern states were being targeted (Murray, n.d).
The sit-ins continued until February 20, 1960. A human relations committee was developed to help bring forth a compromise that would make both the store owners and the customers satisfied. However, most store owners did not want to allow their stores to be integrated, so they continued to keep their stance on the issue. North Carolina attorney general Malcolm Seawell mentioned that there were no laws prohibiting businesses from serving colored and white people: however, there was also no law forcing business owners to serve people that they did not wish to serve. The lines seemed to be grey. Governor Hodges thought that the sit-ins were a threat to the law and order of the state. However, not all white people were against the sit-ins. Some thought it was something that needed to be done. In an interview, McCain says that one white elderly woman walked up to them at the lunch counter and said, “Boys, I am just so proud of you. My only regret is that you didn't do this 10 or 15 years ago” (Schlosser, 1998, p1). I think this comment gave the “Greensboro four” reassurance that they were doing the right thing and that they had support. Not only were the African-Americans supporting them, but so were white people. The issue was no longer about race, it was about right and wrong and how no person should be treated like that. It was a time where people sat aside their issues and came together to fight for equality and fairness. Although most African Americans supported the sit-ins, others thought that the sit-ins were making their race look bad (Tyner, 2010). I can understand how an African American person might feel this way. They were already looked down upon, and certain people did not want their race to be stereotyped anymore than they already were. Even though support was being given to the protesters, there were still no compromises being made (Alston, n.d.).
On April 1st, 1960 college students decided to finish what they started with the sit-ins. Over 1,200 A&T University and Bennett College students came together to protests at local businesses. They wanted to follow in the footsteps of several civil rights activists, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall. As the sit-ins continued in Greensboro and throughout the south, local and small businesses started to take a major hit. Many stores knew that the only way they would be able to continue to make a living would be if they started to allow integration, so little by little they did. Clarence “Curly” Harris was the manager at the Woolworth’s store in Greensboro where the sit-ins originally started. He knew that his store would soon have to integrate, because an order was given to him by the Woolworth’s regional office (Alston, n.d.).
Many local department and supply stores started to close down their lunch counters. Some even closed their stores for days at a time hoping the madness would end, but the protesters were not going down without a fight. Stores all over North Carolina were starting to be targets for the protesting. As the Greensboro sit-ins continued, so did the protesting in Charlotte, Fayetteville, Durham, and Winston Salam, as well as all over the southern United States. A student from Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, NC stated that, “Of course, this movement here and those in Greensboro, Winston-Salem and Durham are interrelated. In that they are parts of my race's efforts to secure God-given rights” (Schlosser, 1998, p1). People from all over North Carolina were joining together to fight for what they thought was right. It was almost impossible for anyone to stop them. The fact that they were doing it in a non-violent way just made their attempts stronger. When Franklin McCain was asked about how he felt when he heard of the other protesting going on around the state, he mentioned that the only thing he thought was, “Dear God, let it still remain non-violent. Because I really felt that was our secret weapon” (Upfront, 2010, p1). By the end of February, over thirty cities in seven states were actively engaged in the sit-ins and protesting (The Digital Library of Georgia, n.d.). Students in Virginia, South Carolina, and Tennessee began to take action as well. By the end of three months over 55 cities were partaking in sit-ins in their community ("Remembering the Greensboro Sit-In « Publishing the Long Civil Rights Movement", n.d.).
On Thursday July 21st, 1960 Woolworth’s manager Clarence Harris held a meeting with an advisory committee in his store and announced that he would soon allow anyone who was well dressed and acted properly the right to store services, no matter what race they were. On July 25th Woolworth’s employees Charles Bess, Mattie Long, Susie Morrison, and Jamie Robinson were the first African Americans to eat at the lunch counter. Finally, on Tuesday July 26th, 1960 Woolworth’s store became desegregated (Murray, n.d.).
During those meetings, the boys started discussing what they could do to try and gain equal rights in a non-violent way. It was then that McNeil suggested the sit-in tactic. He knew something must be done after he was refused service at a Greensboro bus terminal while on Christmas break in December, all because he was a man of color. Months before the sit-in occurred, McNeil had attended a concert where other African Americans had acted tactlessly, and he wanted to make sure that whatever they did they did not repeat this error. It was important to him that the sit-ins be non-violent and disciplined. The freshmen decided on a sit-in at the Woolworth’s five-and-dime store, which was a local store located in downtown Greensboro that sold supplies (Murray, n.d.).
On Monday February 1st, 1960 the plan to stage a sit in a Woolworth’s store was put into action. The boys walked all the way across town into the heart of downtown Greensboro where Woolworth’s is located. The four college freshman entered the store at around 4:30 p.m. and purchased merchandise at the counter. The four men then sat down at the lunch counter that was “whites only”, to order some coffee ("The Greensboro Chronology | International Civil Rights Center & Museum", n.d). The boys had thought they would encounter some type of ruckus, but they were ignored and felt almost invisible. They were soon told that the lunch counter was for whites only. After showing the waitress their receipts, they asked why their money was good at other places in the store, but not at the lunch counter. When the students refused to leave the manager of Woolworth’s, Curly Harris, ran over to the police station to see the police chief. He told Mr. Harris that as long as the students were acting properly that there was nothing he could do (Schlosser, 1998). The freshman remained seated at the lunch counter until the store closed at 5 p.m. They then left and went back to their dorm rooms on the A&T campus. When one of the “Greensboro four” was asked how he felt walking back to campus McCain replied, “I never felt so good in my life” (Schlosser, 1998, p1). Many people were not aware of the start of the sit-in due to the lack of media attention. The four college students went back to campus to recruit other students for the sit-in the next day ("The Greensboro Chronology | International Civil Rights Center & Museum", n.d).
On February 2nd, twenty five men and four women, including the “Greensboro four”, returned to Woolworth’s store in down town Greensboro. The students sat at the lunch counter from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. As the students sat at the lunch counter people harassed and teased them to try and make them leave. Unaffected by the heckling, the students stayed seated at the lunch counter where they were still refused service. McCain said he had awful thoughts about what might happen that day at Woolworth’s. “I was fully prepared mentally not to ever come back to the campus. ... I thought the worst thing that could happen to us is we could have had our heads split open with a night stick and hauled into prison" (Schlosser, 1998, p1).
With media attention growing, more and more students continued to show up throughout the week. The protest continued every day for a week. More than fourteen hundred students showed up at the Woolworth’s store to take part in the sit-in. White students from a nearby women’s college even took part in the sit-in as well. The protesting started to reach other stores across Greensboro and the southern United States. The sit-ins reached Woolworth’s stores in Charlotte, Winston Salem, and Durham. Soon other supply and department stores across other southern states were being targeted (Murray, n.d).
The sit-ins continued until February 20, 1960. A human relations committee was developed to help bring forth a compromise that would make both the store owners and the customers satisfied. However, most store owners did not want to allow their stores to be integrated, so they continued to keep their stance on the issue. North Carolina attorney general Malcolm Seawell mentioned that there were no laws prohibiting businesses from serving colored and white people: however, there was also no law forcing business owners to serve people that they did not wish to serve. The lines seemed to be grey. Governor Hodges thought that the sit-ins were a threat to the law and order of the state. However, not all white people were against the sit-ins. Some thought it was something that needed to be done. In an interview, McCain says that one white elderly woman walked up to them at the lunch counter and said, “Boys, I am just so proud of you. My only regret is that you didn't do this 10 or 15 years ago” (Schlosser, 1998, p1). I think this comment gave the “Greensboro four” reassurance that they were doing the right thing and that they had support. Not only were the African-Americans supporting them, but so were white people. The issue was no longer about race, it was about right and wrong and how no person should be treated like that. It was a time where people sat aside their issues and came together to fight for equality and fairness. Although most African Americans supported the sit-ins, others thought that the sit-ins were making their race look bad (Tyner, 2010). I can understand how an African American person might feel this way. They were already looked down upon, and certain people did not want their race to be stereotyped anymore than they already were. Even though support was being given to the protesters, there were still no compromises being made (Alston, n.d.).
On April 1st, 1960 college students decided to finish what they started with the sit-ins. Over 1,200 A&T University and Bennett College students came together to protests at local businesses. They wanted to follow in the footsteps of several civil rights activists, such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Thurgood Marshall. As the sit-ins continued in Greensboro and throughout the south, local and small businesses started to take a major hit. Many stores knew that the only way they would be able to continue to make a living would be if they started to allow integration, so little by little they did. Clarence “Curly” Harris was the manager at the Woolworth’s store in Greensboro where the sit-ins originally started. He knew that his store would soon have to integrate, because an order was given to him by the Woolworth’s regional office (Alston, n.d.).
Many local department and supply stores started to close down their lunch counters. Some even closed their stores for days at a time hoping the madness would end, but the protesters were not going down without a fight. Stores all over North Carolina were starting to be targets for the protesting. As the Greensboro sit-ins continued, so did the protesting in Charlotte, Fayetteville, Durham, and Winston Salam, as well as all over the southern United States. A student from Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, NC stated that, “Of course, this movement here and those in Greensboro, Winston-Salem and Durham are interrelated. In that they are parts of my race's efforts to secure God-given rights” (Schlosser, 1998, p1). People from all over North Carolina were joining together to fight for what they thought was right. It was almost impossible for anyone to stop them. The fact that they were doing it in a non-violent way just made their attempts stronger. When Franklin McCain was asked about how he felt when he heard of the other protesting going on around the state, he mentioned that the only thing he thought was, “Dear God, let it still remain non-violent. Because I really felt that was our secret weapon” (Upfront, 2010, p1). By the end of February, over thirty cities in seven states were actively engaged in the sit-ins and protesting (The Digital Library of Georgia, n.d.). Students in Virginia, South Carolina, and Tennessee began to take action as well. By the end of three months over 55 cities were partaking in sit-ins in their community ("Remembering the Greensboro Sit-In « Publishing the Long Civil Rights Movement", n.d.).
On Thursday July 21st, 1960 Woolworth’s manager Clarence Harris held a meeting with an advisory committee in his store and announced that he would soon allow anyone who was well dressed and acted properly the right to store services, no matter what race they were. On July 25th Woolworth’s employees Charles Bess, Mattie Long, Susie Morrison, and Jamie Robinson were the first African Americans to eat at the lunch counter. Finally, on Tuesday July 26th, 1960 Woolworth’s store became desegregated (Murray, n.d.).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greensboro_sit-ins
Ezell Blair Interview.mp3 | |
File Size: | 2116 kb |
File Type: | mp3 |
http://www.sitins.com/multimedia.shtml#blair
http://www.cmstory.org/history/timeline/default.asp?tp=18&ev=330
http://americanhistory.si.edu/freedomandjustice