Memories of a Civil Rights Leader

Wednesday February 4, 2015

The KKK tried to kill her.
A mob surrounded her house.
Shunned by the white community, she was safe only in the African American community.

And yet she led other civil rights activists and made history.

It's maybe your last chance to hear a 1960s civil rights leader.

Come hear the fascinating and gripping story.
Told by River Falls resident Julie Coates Draves.

"Memories of a Civil Rights Leader"
Wednesday, February 4, 2015
River Falls Public Library
7 - 8 pm     FREE and open to the public.  

Complimentary desserts too. Bring the kids!

 

Kids! Free Selfie with a Civil Rights Leader

Kids - come and get a free selfie

with a 1960s civil rights leader.
 Maybe your last chance.

Thanks to Lyndsay Rogers (with Julie) for making posters, post cards and flyers for the big event.

Pictures from the First Black Beauty Pageant

Kids at the first black beauty pageant in North Carolina, which Julie organized (see post below)

"We were stupid. Then we were scared, just hopin' to God"

Driving through the countryside one evening, Julie and other civil rights activists made a mistake and stopped to eat at a diner in a small town.

Julie explains that one in their group, Bennie Teel, was a nerd, funny, and totally harmless - - but he was a black male. 

After they left the diner 2-3 pick-ups chased them through the night down dirt country roads, Julie trying to escape.  They drove for awhile without their lights on, but they couldn't shake those trying to get them. Finally Julie pulled into the driveway of a darkened farmhouse and they hid in the barn.
"We just hoped no one was home at the farm," Julie said. 

"We were stupid to stop at the diner," Julie said.  "After they started chasing us, we were scared, just hopin to God they wouldn't catch us.  It would have been a lynching for Bennie."

The racists didn't see them there with their car lights out in the farmyard and drove on.  Here's a billboard from rural North Carolina near where the incident took place.

 

"You white slut. We're going to get you"

There were two Grand Dragons (leaders in the KKK) in North Carolina.

 This is George Dorsett, who shook Julie and threatened her with the words "You white slut. We're going to get you."

Today's Update

-Thanks to Kathy Scott and everyone at the Martin Luther King breakfast today for their interest. Kathy graciously let me pass out flyers and there were two (!) announcements about Julie's program.
-Blog hits up to 169 so far. Thanks for visiting.
-Radio ads on WEVR start on Thursday.  Carol at WEVR really helpful. 

Thanks for promoting the event

-Thanks to Father Harris for putting up posters at St. Bridget.
-Thanks to Gary Campbell for telling teachers and getting out posters and post cards at Meyer Middle School.
-Thanks to Chris Silver for telling high school teachers.
-Thanks to Monique Squire for running the program in the RF Community Education brochure.
-A big thanks to Kathy Scott for announcing it at the Martin Luther King breakfast and allowing us to pass out flyers.
-And a special thanks to Katie Chaffee, event and gallery coordinator, RF Public Library, for hosting the event.  

The conference speaker is in jail - "Oh crap"

Whenever a black activist was arrested and put in jail, they often called Julie to get them out. And for some reason, the police were more amenable to releasing people  when Julie came down to the jail.

One time Julie organized a Black Power Conference on the campus of the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Radical speakers came from Berkeley, California; Washington DC; and other cities. 

Afterward, only the black speakers were arrested and put in jail on a charge of being an "outside agitator."   "Oh crap" was Julie's initial reaction when they called her from jail.  Julie went down and explained to the officers that they were not outside agitators, they were "guest presenters at the university,"  afterwich they were released.  "It was just harrassment," Julie said later.  

To Young People: This is about Your Future Too

TO YOUNG PEOPLE:  

Julie wants you to come.  She says racism is not over.  "Integration is history," she notes, "but racism is still here. Today it is just a lot more invisible."  

Special Offer: Free Selfies with a real 1960s civil rights leader!  Something to save forever.

Photo: Julie with one of her best friends Ciera.

The mob and the Imperial Wizard

One night when Julie came home there was a KKK poster tacked on her front door, the poster a clear threat.

It was personally signed by the Imperial Wizard of the United Klans of the United States, Robert Shelton. See his wikipedia entry.

Soon after a mob surrounded her house. 
Julie got out and away.

For two weeks afterwards, the police stationed an armed officer on her front porch every night, all night, to protect her.  Photo: nationally famous Imperial Wizard Robert Shelton

 

Getting tutors out of jail

Julie was in charge of 400 tutors from 5 colleges who went into the projects and tutored black children.

The white community did not approve.  One night a couple dozen of the white female college students who were tutors were arrested by the police, allegedly for prostitution.  Julie explains, "The rationale was that what else would a young white woman be doing in the projects."  So after spending a night in jail, for tutoring, the women were released when Julie intervened with the police.