Segregation was a big part of the United States for a long time. The people who took a stand and risked their lives for equal rights are the people who ended segregation. These are also the people who make our country proud. Four young students took a stand and started the movement known by many, The Greensboro Sit-in.
The beginning. Joseph McNeil, Franklin McCain, Ezell Blair Jr., and David Richmond were all freshmen attending North Carolina A&T University. Although they were young, they had all grown up in a country where segregation was present throughout the south. Almost all public places in the south were segregated. Movie theaters, drinking fountains, public swimming pools. They even had separate waiting rooms for white people vs. colored. Segregation had lasted long enough and it was time for a change.
The need for change. When Joseph McNeil went to Woolworth's after a long day, he bought himself a few items for the rest of the night, and then sat down at the lunch counter where he was denied service. McNeil went back to his friends and told them what happened. That’s when they decided enough was enough. They started planning the Greensboro Sit-in of 1960. The four students had read about peaceful protests, and they decided that’s what they wanted to do. The Sit-in began on February 2, 1960. First they bought toothpaste to prove that the store would sell them items. Then all four boys sat at the lunch counter for four hours the first day until closing time. The following day they were joined by more than 70 other people, ⅓ of them being women. The manager and surrounding police officers didn’t make any arrests that day because the protesters weren’t being violent or using brutality.
Woolworth's & Greensboro. The Woolworth's lunch counter is located in Greensboro, North Carolina. Colored people were allowed to buy items from the store but they were not permitted and would not be served if they sat at the lunch counter. This infuriated many. If the store allowed them to buy items from the store and make money off them, then why couldn’t they sit at the lunch counter? The building opened in 1929 and is on 123 Elm Street. F.W. Woolworth is now a museum located where the original location is and they also give daily tours.
Non-violence. When the NAACP got word of the protest, they sent people from the CORE group to teach the protesters the correct way to a successful and peaceful protest. They were taught to be friendly at all times, not to laugh out loud, sit straight and stare forward, and not to fight back when they’re being harassed. The NAACP provided bail money for any protester that was arrested for trespassing, disturbing the peace, unlawful assembly, and disobeying police orders to move from their seats. The surrounding police officers and the manager of Woolworth's let the students protest as long as it was peaceful and they weren’t causing a disturbance. The protesters took up all 66 seats of the L shaped counter. Being there and standing up for what was right got the attention of tons of other people from around the country.
Moving Forward. The Greensboro Sit-in movement ended in a success. Woolworth's opened their lunch counter to colored people on Tuesday, July 26, 1960 after closing for a few days. But it didn’t end there. The Greensboro sit-ins caused a movement in the south. Students started protesting against segregation all around the country. After the movement, the country desegregated many public places such as amusement parks, movie theaters, beaches, hotels and libraries.
55th anniversary. This year in January was the Greensboro Sit-ins 55th anniversary. The event was held at North Carolina A&T University. Jibreel Khazan (Ezell Blair Jr.) and Joseph McNeil (the only living members of the Greensboro four) were there in attendance and also both spoke at the event. Throughout the day there was many things that were done to commemorate the four young men and this great achievement. There was a breakfast, a wreath laying ceremony, and a question and answer with the surviving members. What these four men did bettered our country and had a hand in ending that terrible thing known as segregation.