The Sisyphus Comments

Civil Rights History Made Here

This past weekend, my wife and I took another trip to North Carolina. This time our end destination was the North Carolina Zoo, located in Ashboro, NC. We traveled south on Sunday and stayed over in Greensboro. Since we arrived early, we decided to head downtown and check out the sites.

Greenboro appears to be a city on the move, with major renovations in various stages of completion. The downtown area is comprised of new high-rise buildings that house practically every major major bank, insurance company and investment company in the South. Since it was Sunday and Labor Day weekend, most of the businesses had closed by the time we took our walk. However, we did experience a pleasant surprise.

Growing up in the 60’s and 70’s, I can distinctly remember the civil rights struggles of blacks throughout the United States. Of course there were several defining moments in that struggle. The country recently honored Rosa Parks who refused to surrender her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama 40 years ago – triggering a bus boycott that lasted 381 days.

I remembered another defining moment but I had forgotten that it took place in Greensboro, NC. Feb. 1, 1960 began as an ordinary day in Greensboro, N.C., but four black freshman students at North Carolina’s Agricultural and Technical College began something extraordinary. The four original protesters were Ezell Blair, Jr., Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil, and David Richmond.

These students walked into F. W. Woolworth’s, sat at the ‘Whites Only’ lunch counter, and ordered food. They were refused service, but stayed until closing.

Another set of students returned the next day, and another the next, as increasingly large numbers joined the protest. By day four, three white female students from a neighboring school joined in. By day five, more than 300 demonstrators showed up. Woolworth’s responded with half-hearted offers of concession. Dissatisfied, the students continued their sit-in.

The city of Greensboro responded with stricter segregation laws, and 45 students were arrested and charged with trespassing. This only fueled the protests, as students launched massive boycotts of segregated lunch counters across the city. Store revenues fell sharply, and storeowners were ultimately forced to give in.

Six months after that fateful February day, something else extraordinary happened. Those same four freshmen returned to Woolworth’s and were served lunch. The rest, as they say, is history. It was serendipitous that we ended up walking past the very place where history was made.

Oh, by the way, if you want to visit a zoo, go to the National Zoo in Washington, DC. Although the North Carolina Zoo was a great place to walk, we didn’t see nearly the number of animals that we expected to see. The zoo is set in a natual habitat so there is not guarantee that you will see the animals. I think many of the parents found out that their kids lost interest very quickly based on the amount of crying we heard. Also if you think the $10 per person entrance fee is a little steep, wait until you get inside and order one of those $2.50 drinks. My advice – bring a picnic lunch.