Alexandria Library Sit-In

On August 21, 1939, five young African-American men—William Evans, Edward Gaddis, Morris Murray, Clarence Strange, and Otto Tucker—entered the Barrett Library, then a whites-only segregated public facility in Alexandria. After they requested library cards and were refused, each selected a book, sat down, and began to read. Police were summoned, and despite the men's polite demeanor, they were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. Samuel W. Tucker, a local attorney, civil rights advocate, and chief organizer of the protest, represented them in court. They hoped to challenge the library's policy and win equal access for Alexandria's African American residents, but the city delayed the case and no ruling was ever issued. In 1940, Alexandria opened a separate facility for African Americans, the Robert H. Robinson Library, which many saw as a positive outcome but not the equality Tucker sought. That library now houses Alexandria's Black History Museum. In 1959, the library system began to take steps toward desegregation.

Alexandria, Virginia · United States