Richard L. Copley took this photograph in 1968 at the Memphis sanitation workers' strike -- the reason Martin Luther King Jr. was in Memphis on the day he was killed.
These images are from The Negro Motorist Green Book 1940 edition. The Green Book, published from 1936 – 1964, served as a guide for African Americans traveling around the country during the Jim Crow segregation era. To explore the complete issues visit the New York Public Library Digital Collections at https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/collections/the-green-book#/?tab=ab…
Dr. Kiara Lee-Heart is a native of Richmond, Virginia. She holds a B.A. in sociology with a minor in Latin American and Iberian Studies from the University of Richmond and a master’s degree in education from the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education. She earned her Ph.D. in education at Virginia Commonwealth University and her dissertation research focused on colorism and the lived experiences of dark-skinned Black college students. She teaches first-year students writing and critical thinking skills in the Department of Focused Inquiry at Virginia Commonwealth University. Kiara
I.G. Blanchard's lyrics makes the case for the 8-hours day -- one of the main goals of labor unions in the late 1800s. Laborers desired a balance to their day—one that includes "eight hours" just for themselves. And they will band together to get it.