Danville Demonstrations, Court Steps

In 1963, employment in the Danville municipal government was all white; there were no African Americans on the 70-man police force. Black leaders had repeatedly petitioned city council for changes but their entreaties produced no results. When demonstrations began on May 31, the focus was on the Municipal Building, a contested site where granite steps lead past a statue of longtime mayor, Harry Wooding (1844-1938), a Confederate veteran.