On 19 July 1958, a key early successful sit-in protest of the US civil rights movement began in Wichita, Kansas. A group of Black students began to sit silently at the whites-only counter of the Dockum's Drug Store in protest at segregation. The aim was to prevent sales and so inflict enough economic damage that segregation was dropped. They faced repeated harassment by police and white racists, and they brought clubs, knives and a gun to protect themselves, although did not end up needing to use them. After 23 days, the owner caved in and desegregated his entire chain. While the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) did not initially support the sit-in, after the success in Wichita it adopted the tactic and it led to desegregation of lunch counters in multiple states.
Dockum Drug Store sit-in - WCH | Stories
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