[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 18 (Tuesday, January 28, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H572]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING THE GREENSBORO FOUR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleague from 
North Carolina, Congresswoman Alma Adams, as we introduce a resolution 
recognizing the significance of the Greensboro Four sit-in protest 
which took place on February 1, 1960, 60 years ago.
  The Greensboro, North Carolina, sit-in was a civil rights protest 
that commenced when four young African American college students staged 
a sit-in at the segregated lunch counter of F. W. Woolworth department 
store in Greensboro. They refused to leave after being denied service 
only because of their race.
  The four young men--Ezell Blair, Jr.; David Richmond; Franklin 
McCain; and Joseph McNeil--were students from North Carolina A&T 
College, now known as North Carolina A&T State University. I might add 
that A&T State University is now the largest HBCU in the country.
  Mr. Speaker, I would also mention that Congresswoman Alma Adams is a 
graduate of A&T State University and served as a college professor 
across the street at Bennett College for more than 40 years.
  The Greensboro Four students were influenced by the unanimous Supreme 
Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education, 1954, wherein the Court 
ruled that State laws establishing racial segregation in public schools 
are unconstitutional even if the segregated schools are otherwise 
equal.
  The students were also influenced by the Supreme Court decision in 
Keys v. Carolina Coach Company, 1955, wherein, the Court broke with its 
historic adherence to the Plessy v. Ferguson separate but equal 
doctrine and interpreted the Interstate Commerce Act as banning the 
segregation of Black passengers on buses traveling across State lines. 
The Keys case originated at the bus station in Roanoke Rapids, North 
Carolina, located in the heart of my congressional district.
  The Keys ruling was announced 6 days prior to Rosa Parks' refusal to 
move from her seat on a segregated bus in Montgomery. And without 
question, the Rosa Parks Montgomery bus boycott, lasting 381 days, also 
inspired the Greensboro Four students.
  The students were also inspired to act following the 1955 brutal 
lynching of Emmett Till after he was accused of offending a White woman 
in a Mississippi grocery store.
  These four college students blazed a trail that ignited a movement to 
challenge racial segregation in public facilities throughout the 
segregated South. The sit-in movement soon spread to college towns 
throughout the South.
  The Greensboro Four sit-ins contributed greatly to the civil rights 
movement and served as a catalyst for the mobilization of college 
students in the movement, evolving into the formation of the Student 
Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, which was founded in Raleigh, North 
Carolina, in April 1960. Some of the organizers of SNCC were 
Congressman   John Lewis, Congressman  Jim Clyburn, and Diane Nash.
  Nationwide participation in this new movement included over 700,000 
people, including students, clergymen, and unified citizens, both Black 
and White. Many of the protestors, more than 3,000, were arrested for 
trespassing, disorderly conduct, or disturbing the peace.
  However, the Greensboro Four remained peaceful throughout the 
6-month sit-in, and their actions made an immediate and lasting impact, 
forcing Woolworth's and other establishments to change their 
discriminatory policies. On July 26, 1960, the Woolworth's lunch 
counter was finally integrated. Today, the former Woolworth's now 
houses the International Civil Rights Center and Museum, which features 
a restored version of the lunch counter where the Greensboro Four sat. 
Part of the original counter is on display at the Smithsonian National 
Museum of American History here in Washington.

  On Saturday of this week, February 1, the museum will commemorate the 
60th anniversary of this historic event at the Greensboro Coliseum. 
Past award recipients have been numerous. They include Oprah Winfrey; 
Jesse Jackson, Sr.; President Nelson Mandela; and many, many others.
  The award recipients this year will be: President Barack Obama, the 
Reverend Al Sharpton, Danny Glover, Mrs. Clayola Brown, Reverend Cardes 
Brown, Dr. Linda Brown, and Mrs. Emma Washington.
  Mr. Speaker, the resolution that Ms. Adams and I introduce seeks to 
encourage all of the States to include in their educational curriculum 
the history and contributions of the Greensboro Four. It is imperative 
that we learn the lessons from the past and reaffirm that the ethnic 
and racial diversity of our country enriches our Nation.
  We are always stronger together. We must never forget, in all things, 
to demand justice and equality for all.
  Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the Greensboro Four. I congratulate the 
International Museum, and I look forward to participating in the great 
gala they will have this weekend in Greensboro.

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