February 7 – February 13The Week in Indiana History |
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   “And you just knew without a doubt that we were going to be free! You just knew it! And two days before our time was up, the word came: ‘It’s over! It’s over! The Civil Rights Bill had passed Congress!'” Marguerite Graves (1933 -2019) Did You Know?
Marguerite Graves with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. February is Black History Month    Marguerite Graves of Indianapolis made history. As a young African American woman in the 1960s, she didn’t just read about the Civil Rights Movement, she joined it. After graduating from Crispus Attucks High School, she moved to Los Angeles. There she joined Dr. Martin Luther King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference. This led to her first meeting with the civil rights leader. The two found that they had a good deal in common.  “We had both been to Liberia,” she said, “and we both were deeply interested in the future of that African country.” In the summer of 1964, Marguerite found herself on a 2200-mile Greyhound bus trip to Americus, Georgia.  Her group marched two and three times a day in Americus. They paraded in front of government buildings. They sat in front of stores. That same summer, Congress passed the historic Civil Rights Bill. Marguerite returned to Los Angeles to continue her work in the Civil Rights Movement. A few years later, she was back home in Indianapolis, but she wasn’t finished with making history. She and associates established their own Hallmark store on West Washington Street. This was one of the first such stores to be owned by African American women. ANSWERS: 1. Jimmy Hoffa  2. James Dean 3. Florence Henderson 4. Wendell Willkie |
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