Major Events

Civil Rights Protests

On the first of February 1960, four black college students from North Carolina A & T University staged the iconic Greensboro Sit-In in Woolworth’s diner. The simple, yet incredibly brave, protest by these young men sent waves throughout the entire nation, making headline after headline and inspiring countless others to host protests of their own.…

Food Workers Strike

In February 1969, the Food Workers’ Strike, also known as the Lenoir Food Workers’ Strike, began at UNC-Chapel Hill.  Prior to this, in April 1968, the Black Student Movement (BSM) had urged black university employees to strike against the unfair working conditions and unjust hierarchy keeping them from fair wages. Twenty-three demands were brought to…

Silent Sam and Other Important Monuments

Joseph Caldwell Monument – 1847 The Joseph Caldwell Monument is a marble obelisk, made in 1847,  with a shield carved with oak leaves, a train wheel, and engineer’s transit. The original Caldwell monument was created of Sandstone, shortly after Caldwell’s death in 1835, and moved to the Old Chapel Hill Cemetery. Wilson Caldwell Memorial –…

Public Speaking Ban

On June 25th, 1963, the “Act to Regulate Visiting Speakers” was passed. This would later be known as the “Speaker Ban Law”, as the bill served to restrict the freedom of speech on North Carolina public college campuses. The ban targeted and prohibited self proclaimed communists and those who pleaded the 5th when asked if…