Activist and political consultant Don Rose, who served as the media director for the 1963 Boycott (see footage of him in 1963) writes for The Chicago Daily Observer about our 50th anniversary event and reflects on the legacy of the Boycott:
The boycott’s point was to protest the intentional segregation of Chicago schools and the unequal treatment of the black schools—which then warehoused half the school population. Today, with the white school population around 10 percent, anything resembling integration is virtually impossible, but unequal treatment persists—as witness the closings of 49 black and Latino public schools with more to come.
Read the full article.
As part of his media strategy, Don wrote “These Schools Are Your Schools” to the tune of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land” and had folk musicians record the song, which he then broadcast on the radio and from sound trucks to promote the Boycott. Listen to that song, which he references in the article.