SNCC and the Sit-ins

SNCC and the Sit-ins

What is a Sit-In?A form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area in protest. It is a form of a non-violent protest.

Greensboro, North Carolina1st February, 1960, some college students held a sit-in at the lunch counter of WoolworthsHad been denied service because they were black. Sparked a wave of college sit-ins.

What happened after?Across the country, both blacks and white black supporters joined in.Read-ins in librariesWade- ins in swimming poolsStand-ins in theatres.People in the North boycotted segregated companiesRaised money for protestors.

5Who were the SNCC?Student Non-Violent Co-ordinating Committee.Established in 1960 by Ella BakerStarted in North Carolina. Youth arm of the SCLC. Inspired by MLKs non-violent approach to racial equality. Believed that they needed to retaliate peacefully to the whites violent ways.

Martin Luther King and the SNCCKing hoped it would be a youth arm of the SCLCRemained independent of KingSNCC and SCLC became at odds with each otherStill worked together towards the civil rights movementMLK describes sit-ins as electrifying movement of Negro students. What was the reaction to SNCC and the movement?There was a lot of backlash towards SNCCMet with more violence from the whitesSNCC officers were sprayed with bullets or torched.1963, Bob Moses and Jimmy Travis shot at. Achievements of sit-insGreensboro Four spark wave of sit-ins in the South, picked up by national mediaSets stage for creation of SNCCHelped to integrate various facilitiesStudents become active participants in the civil rights movementDemonstrate success of mass nonviolent action, and combining direct public protest with legal action.Achieved recognition of NAACP and other civil rights leaders

Limitations of sit-insWhite mobs frequently attacked participants little protection provided by police despite legality of the sit-insSit-in participants arrested for disorderly conductNonviolence the participants could not retaliate to humiliation, heckling, physical and verbal attacksFirst reactions of whites to sit-ins ridiculed the Greensboro Four with stares and indifference, crowds would taunt

Black students sitting at lunch counter.Whites not impressed by what is going onAuthorities called inBlacks dont seem to be perturbed by going onSeemed focused/determined on the task at handTrying to hold in anger/ show constraint

Whites torment and humiliate blacks and white supporters participating at a sit-inThey are ignoring their tormentors, show constraint and patience. More focused on the task at hand than the taunts.White mob jeering, throwing condiments over the sit-in participants at the lunch counter.Q & ADo you think the Sit-Ins were effective? Why/ Why not?Who was SNCC?How did the Sit-Ins influence the Civil Rights Movement?What happened in Greensboro, North Carolina?The policy of nonviolence was it generally the way to go or did it pose a hindrance at times (in regards to sit-ins)?