MEMBERS OF THE RICHMOND 34
On February 1, 1960, the first student sit-in occurred in Greensboro, North Carolina, as determined students from North Carolina A&T University attempted to desegregate the Woolworths's department store lunch counter. The sit-in movement spread and Virginia Union University, as the south's most venerable HBCU, located in the former capital of the Confederacy, was of crucial significance to the movement's success.
On Februrary 22, 1960, some two hundred students from VUU, lead by Frank George Pinkston and Charles Melvin Sherrod, assembled on campus and marched all to downtown Richmond, shutting down operations in Virginia's major shopping district. The climactic movement occured when thirty-four students were arrested on charges of trespassing for picketing the luxurious Richmond Room restaurant in Thalhimer's Department Store. Subjected to insult, abuse, and intimidation, the students stood firm and submitted to imprisonment. As he was being led away, Pinkston declared, "The students have set the flame. Now we challenge you to put some oil on it and keep a blaze going!"
The response was overwhelming. These courageous students had galvanized the Richmond community. They were quickly bailed out and celebrated as heroes. Their sacrifice was that day set into motion the Campaign for Human Dignity which would destroy racial discrimination laws in Richmond and change the course of history.
On Februrary 22, 1960, some two hundred students from VUU, lead by Frank George Pinkston and Charles Melvin Sherrod, assembled on campus and marched all to downtown Richmond, shutting down operations in Virginia's major shopping district. The climactic movement occured when thirty-four students were arrested on charges of trespassing for picketing the luxurious Richmond Room restaurant in Thalhimer's Department Store. Subjected to insult, abuse, and intimidation, the students stood firm and submitted to imprisonment. As he was being led away, Pinkston declared, "The students have set the flame. Now we challenge you to put some oil on it and keep a blaze going!"
The response was overwhelming. These courageous students had galvanized the Richmond community. They were quickly bailed out and celebrated as heroes. Their sacrifice was that day set into motion the Campaign for Human Dignity which would destroy racial discrimination laws in Richmond and change the course of history.
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Elizabeth Patricia Johnson
Joanna Hinton Gloria C. Collins Patricia A. Washington Barbara A. Thornton Lois B. White Thalma Y. Hickman Celia E. Jones Carolyn Ann Horne Marise L. Ellison Virginia G. Simms Frank George Pinkston Charles Melvin Sherrod Albert Van Graves Jr. Ford Tucker Johnson Jr. Leroy M. Bray Jr. Wendell T. Foster Jr. |
Anderson J. Franklin
Ronald B. Smith Larry Pridgen Woodrow B. Grant Joseph E. Ellison Gordon Coleman Milton Johnson Donald Vincent-Goode Robert B. Dalton Samuel F. Shaw Randolph A. Tobias Clarence A. Jones Richard C. Jackson George Wendall Harris Jr. John J. McCall Leotis L. Pryor Raymond B. Randolph Jr. |
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