Black History in Your Backyard pt. 1

The A&T Four

Honestly you don’t have to look far to find black history…one word OBAMA.  And everyone knows about Malcolm and Martin and the sacrifices they made.   So instead of talking about the ‘big dogs’ of Black History we decided to keep it local and check out the history in our own backyard!

North Carolina A&T State University Greensboro NC

A&T is best known for the A&T Four.  On February 1, 1960 four African-American males went to the Woolworth’s lunch counter and sat down, even though black customers were not allowed.  The next day the four students, along with 27 other young men and women showed up at Woolworth’s to protest. As the days went on, more and more students from the Greensboro area participated in the Woolworth sit-in.  This strategic act of defiance spread to other southern cities and started the ‘Sit-In’ movement of the Civil Rights Era.  These four brave gentlemen are the late David Richmond, Franklin McCain, Jibreel Khazan (Ezell Blair Jr.), and Joseph McNeil.  They were only freshman at A&T when they decided to make the bold statement of sitting-in.  To honor their legacy A&T erected a statue of them, and named four of their residence halls after them:

 

Blair Hall

McCain Hall

McNeil Hall

Richmond Hall

 

 

Next up Dr. Ronald E. McNair…