first-new-color-48.html
0217 FEBRUARY
49 / 96
mck inle y high
school
alumni center in 1927, the modern brick mckinley high school was constructed in baton rouge
for african american stu- dents, the first of its kind in the parish. although the orig- inal high school burned down in 1998, the alumni center that stands in its place was rebuilt to honor and memori- alize the prominent school as well as provide a place for the community to gather. lincoln the ater ?e black-owned movie the- ater, built in 1950, was an entertainment mecca in a time of segregation, as well as home to many pivotal events for the african american community, and a center for other black-owned bus
iness- es in baton rouge. ?ough closed for many years and in disrepair, the theater is on the national registry and can still be visited today. mt. zion baptist church in june of 1953, reverend t.j. jemison, pastor of mt. zion, initiated the baton rouge bus boycott, the precursor to the famous montgomery bus boy- cott that would follow in 1955. under segregation, black rid- ers were restricted to sitting in the back of the bus, despite being the majority of bus pa- trons. jemison and others presented a recommendation for ordinance 222 that was ig- nored. from the pews at mt. zion, jemison organized the free ride system that allowed african americans to navigate around the city without using the bus. two weeks later, the two groups reached a compro- mise and set a precedent for peaceful transportation pro- test. although the original structure is no longer there, you can still visit mt. zion today to learn about the histo- ry of the influential church, its members, and pastor. university of louisiana at lafayette during the 1954-55 school year, southwestern louisiana institute (the current univer- sity of louisiana at lafayette) became the first all-white in- stitution of higher learning in the south to integrate. louisi- ana?s primary and secondary schools would not become to- tally desegregated until 1970. k ress building ?e current temporary down- town library branch was the site of the first lunch counter sit-in that occurred in baton rouge. on march 28, 1960, seven southern university stu- dents sat at the all-white lunch counter and refused to leave when told to do so. ?ey were arrested for disturbing the peace, but their actions inspired many others to do the same. in 1963, baton rouge leaders voted to desegregate several downtown lunch counters. william fr antz elementary school on november 14, 1960, ruby bridges, a bold six-year-old girl, walked into the doors of william frantz elementary school in new orleans to de- segregate the school. you can still visit the school and walk through those same doors ruby did 56 years ago. ne w orle ans cit y hall on october 21, 1963, civil rights activist rev. avery al- exander led a group of pro- testers to the ?white only? cafeteria at the new orleans city hall to sit-in and demand equal rights to eat at the same tables as his white peers. > february 2017 | brparents.com 49
history-african-month-50.html