Boundary Stones

How Mary Church Terrell Beat Jim Crow in D.C. Restaurants

In the 1940s, civil rights activists discovered that the key to ending segregation in D.C.’s restaurants might be hiding in plain sight at the library. Civil Rights researchers discovered two old D.C. laws which made it a crime for restaurants to refuse service based on race. As Jim Crow tightened its grip, the laws had faded from memory but Mary Church Terrell was determined to bring them back.

How Mary Church Terrell Beat Jim Crow in D.C. Restaurants

2m 36s

In the 1940s, civil rights activists discovered that the key to ending segregation in D.C.’s restaurants might be hiding in plain sight at the library. Civil Rights researchers discovered two old D.C. laws which made it a crime for restaurants to refuse service based on race. As Jim Crow tightened its grip, the laws had faded from memory but Mary Church Terrell was determined to bring them back.

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