Link to February 26, 2010, AllBusiness article, "The 50th anniversary of the Petersburg library sit-in, the first of the civil rights era".
Excerpt: On a crisp, cold winter morning 50 years ago, a group of African-American protesters, led by the Rev. Wyatt T. Walker and the Rev. R.G. Williams, did the unthinkable. They entered the strictly segregated Petersburg Public Library at 137 S. Sycamore St. through the front door on the first floor, which was reserved for the exclusive use of white patrons.
Walker approached the counter of Petersburg's central library and asked for a biography of Confederate hero Gen. Robert E. Lee. That simple walk up the steps of the William R. McKenney Central Library on Feb. 27, 1960, marked the beginning of racial integration in Petersburg, a city with a total population of 38,500, among them 18,000 African-Americans.
It also marked the first library sit-in held in the nation, according to the American Library Association. What followed was a nine-month struggle to integrate the library that involved three sit-ins, the arrest of 11 people, turmoil in city government and finally a victory in the early struggle against racial injustice.
What would later follow was the desegregation of the entire city -- from lunch counters to restaurants, from bus terminals to public swimming pools and, eventually, public schools. But it started with the sit-in on Feb. 27, 1960, with 23 African-Americans and the integration of the library later that year.
Related article:
A time when public libraries weren't open and free to all. (4/25/2010)
No comments:
Post a Comment