During the summer of 1963, peaceful civil rights demonstrations in Danville turned violent when advocates were met with resistance. On June 6th, 1963, 200 demonstrators marched on City Hall, leading to several arrests. Four days later, on June 10th, people attending a prayer vigil for those arrested were confronted by police officers and deputized garbage collectors, who used hoses and nightsticks to disperse the protesters. The incident resulted in 47 injuries and later became known as "Bloody Monday." These events led Martin Luther King, Jr. to visit the city in July and to consider Danville as the site of a massive civil rights campaign, although Birmingham, Alabama, was ultimately chosen. Despite the protests, Danville remained officially segregated until the Civil Rights Act was passed by the federal government in 1964.
