On February 1, 1960, Ezell Blair Jr., Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil, and David Richmond bought a few items at a Woolworth’s store in Greensboro, North Carolina, and then sat down at the store’s “whites-only” lunch counter and tried to place orders. Staff refused to serve the four students from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, so they sat at the counter the rest of the day.
They returned the next day with 20 more students, who were again refused service. More students showed up the next day and the day after that, sitting quietly at the counter where they were not allowed to order. Others showed up to harass the students, screaming insults and threats. The standoff went on for months, but the Greensboro Woolworth’s eventually agreed to serve Black customers at the lunch counter.
By that time “sit-ins” were happening at lunch counters and restaurants across the country. The sit-ins inspired by the Greensboro Four turned out to be one of the most effective tactics of the Civil Rights movement and helped lead to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that mandated desegregation in public spaces.
That Greensboro Woolworth’s store is now the home of the International Civil Rights Center and Museum, which Michael and I visited a few years ago. It was an inspiring reminder of how seemingly small actions in unlikely places can help change the world.
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