Boundary Stones
The 1939 Alexandria Library Sit In Opened a New Front in the Civil Rights Movement
8/21/2024 | 4m 49s
Libraries had not been a big part of the civil rights movement but that changed in Alexandria, VA.
On the morning of August 21, 1939 five young African American men entered the segregated public library in Alexandria, Virginia and asked for library card applications. They were denied and sat down to read in silence. When the police arrived to arrest the protesters, it touched off a legal fight — and demonstrated the power of a new tactic to defeat Jim Crow.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Boundary Stones is a local public television program presented by WETA
Boundary Stones
The 1939 Alexandria Library Sit In Opened a New Front in the Civil Rights Movement
8/21/2024 | 4m 49s
On the morning of August 21, 1939 five young African American men entered the segregated public library in Alexandria, Virginia and asked for library card applications. They were denied and sat down to read in silence. When the police arrived to arrest the protesters, it touched off a legal fight — and demonstrated the power of a new tactic to defeat Jim Crow.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Boundary Stones is a local public television program presented by WETA