Lunch Counter Sit Ins
campbellkent2020Lunch Counter Sit Ins of 1960
in 1960, dozens of lunch counter sit ins took place around the United States of America. They began in Greensboro, North Carolina, when 4 collage students dared to take a seat at the white stools in the F.W. Woolworth Co. department store.
Students at the Greensboro lunch counter sit ins, February 1, 1960
The greensboro four
The movement began with Ezell Blair, Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil, and Daid Richmond- four students at North Carolina A&T State University
How it Began:
The four young men began their protest by shopping at Woolworth department store. They chose this location because it was a major American symbol and represented segregation. They purchased school supplies in order to show how the store would accept their money, but refused to serve them. Afterwords, they made their way to the diner.
They approached the counter two by two, and fearlessly sat at the infamous stools:
Woolworth Department Store
They went into the situation with the anticipation that they would be arrested or killed but, this did not happen. Their actions quickly grasped the attention of everyone in the room, but no-one did anything anything at first. They stood in awe, eyes wide and mouths open, and even the security guard only paced back and forth. No-one knew what to do in such an unusual situation.
The Protests Continue
Over the course of the next 6 months, the lunch counter sit ins continued, However they became more intense. Each day more and more people came to support the African American's rights. Blacks and whites joined together in peaceful protest, and endured insults, threats, and attacks for months. by 1961 there had been 70,000 protesters sitting in at lunch counters and 3,000 arrests.
Cities around america joined in support
- Greensboro, NC
- Nashvill, TN
- New York, NY
- Richmond, VA
- Oklahoma city, OK
- Tallahassee, FL
- Charleston, SC
- Baltimore, MD
- Lexington, KY
- Little Rock, AR
- and many more
54 cities had held lunch counter sit ins in total
Protesters in Greensboro
People protesting in front of Woolworth in support of the sit ins
The result& impact
of the lunch counter sit ins
The sit ins had a big impact on Greensboro, and the rest of the civil rights movement. From the sit ins, the SNCC was formed which became a very prominent civil rights organization. Also, the sit ins lead to the desegregation of many stores in the south including Woolworth which had lost over $200,000
Also, it prompted many Northerners to protest prejudiced southern stores like Woolworth, and not shop at their locations in the North. The lunch counter sit ins sparked more sit ins around the south in other places like movie theaters and schools. Overall, the lunch counter sit ins were very effective and showed how nonviolent action could be very powerful
