Other Protests
"There will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights."
-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "I Have a Dream"
-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "I Have a Dream"
Other Sit-Ins
The Greensboro Sit-In spawned many other sit-ins across the nation, many fighting for the same cause.
"By August 1961, more than 70,000 people had participated in sit-ins, which resulted in more than 3,000 arrests. Sit-ins at "whites only" lunch counters inspired subsequent kneel-ins at segregated churches, sleep-ins at segregated motel lobbies, swim-ins at segregated pools, wade-ins at segregated beaches, read-ins at segregated libraries, play-ins at segregated parks and watch-ins at segregated movies." -International Civil Rights Center and Museum Website |
March on Washington
"They wanted to send a clear, strong message: The U.S. government must pass laws to protect African-Americans from discrimination, segregation, and violence. The marchers believed that racism was wrong, and they had come to Washington to demand that the government do something about it."
-March on Washington: Uniting Against Racism
-March on Washington: Uniting Against Racism
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"On August 28, 1963, more than 200,000 people gathered on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in a call for African American equality that would be heard across the nation and around the world." -This Is the Day: The March on Washington |
"My expectations were that the March would be a militant challenge to a foot-dragging government-an angry, yet jubilant wake-up alarm to the nation, that black American and its allies were demanding jobs, justice, and freedom from a backwards vicious South..."
-Bob Zellner, a participant at the March
-Bob Zellner, a participant at the March
Martin Luther King Jr. also delivered one of his most famous speeches that day, entitled "I Have a Dream."
"One hundred years later the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself in exile in his own land. So we've come here today to dramatize this shameful condition." -Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., "I Have a Dream" |
Freedom Rides
"...John F. Kennedy was elected president, in large part due to widespread support among blacks who believed that Kennedy was more sympathetic to the civil rights movement than his opponent, Richard Nixon. Once in office, however, Kennedy proved less committed to the movement than he had appeared during the campaign. To test the president's commitment to civil rights, CORE, (Congress of Racial Equality), proposed a new Journey of Reconciliation, dubbed the 'Freedom Ride.'"
-African American History Website, "Freedom Rides"
-African American History Website, "Freedom Rides"
The Greensboro Sit-In inspired people to fight for their rights, and C.O.R.E. did just that. By bringing back the idea of "freedom rides" from the 1940s, they peacefully protested for equal transportation rights.
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"If the Freedom Riders had been stopped as a result of violence, I strongly felt that the future of the movement was going to be cut short. The impression would have been that whenever a movement starts, all [you have to do] is attack it with massive violence and the blacks [will] stop." -Diana Nash, freedom rider |
"I think it is particularly important at this time when it has become national news that we continue and show that nonviolence can prevail over violence."
-Jim Peck, freedom rider
-Jim Peck, freedom rider
Protests In Other Countries
After the mass of sit-ins and peaceful protests in the U.S., they eventually spread overseas.
"As the Greensboro/SNCC fiftieth anniversary year of 2010 drew to a close, Britain, France, Greece, Italy, and Spain experienced a new eruption of student protest..."
-Iwan Morgan, From Sit-Ins to SNCC
-Iwan Morgan, From Sit-Ins to SNCC