February 1, 2021

By Nate Little and Alexander Shragis

As part of Black History Month, the Phoenix present Nate’s Favorite Facts: A Journey Through African American History.

Today marks the 61st anniversary of the Greensboro Sit-In, a civil rights protest in 1960 where Black college students refused to leave a Woolworth’s cafeteria lunch counter despite being denied service. The protest, which lasted until July 25th, 1960, was instrumental in desegregating that store in Greensboro, North Carolina, and sparked similar sit-ins and protests throughout the country in an effort to end segregation.

To read more about the 1960 Greensboro Sit-In, click here.

Today is also the birthday of James Mercer Langston Hughes (1902 - 1967). An author and playwright, Langston Hughes was one of the leaders of the “Harlem Renaissance” in the 1920s. Much of his work still influences us to this day, including his pivotal poem, “Let American Be America Again”, which highlighted the oppression and suffering of African Americans in the United States.

“ … Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed—

Let it be that great strong land of love

Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme

That any man be crushed by one above.

(It never was America to me.) …”

For the full text of Langston Hughes’ famous poem, click here.

On February 1st, we honor the struggle of those Black students in North Carolina who fought for equality, and we remember the visionary work of James Mercer Langston Hughes.