Media/Headlines
Counters To Remain Closed
Decision Made by 2 Stores
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Monday, February 8, 1960.
Lunch counters at two downtown variety stores, hit last week by a mass sit-down demonstration by Negro students protesting segregation of the eating places, will be closed when the stores open today.
Officials of the F.W. Woolworth Co. store announced late Saturday the closing of its lunch counter for an indefinite period.
S.H. Kress & Co. spokesmen said yesterday that the lunch counter in that store would also be closed beginning this morning.
Both stores were scenes of potentially explosive racial tensions Saturday until a fake bomb scare prompted the closing of the Woolworth store early in the afternoon.
"Interest of Safety"
The Kress store was closed minutes later "in the interest of public safety."
Hundreds of Negro students had been demonstrating all week in an effort to obtain service at the lunch counters, but were ignored by waitresses in both stores.
Gangs of white youths had heckled the Negros during the latter part of the week, with tension building steadily until the time of the bomb threat.
The A&T College students Saturday night announced they would halt their sit-down demonstration for two weeks "to allow for negotiations and study."
The announcement, however, had no effect on plans to close down the lunch counters.
Snack Bars To Open
Snack bars in both stores, where patrons are served standing up, will be in operation as usual today, store managers reported.
None of the Negro leaders or A&T officials could be reached last night, but an authoritative source said that the leaders were able to persuade the students to call a halt to the demonstrations, something they had not been able to do on Friday night.
It was believed that students from other colleges may have had a part in persuading the Negro students to postpone the demonstrations for the two-week period.
Aided Movement
Several students from Greensboro and Woman's Colleges had openly sided with the Negro movement earlier in the week, but were not present at the Saturday demonstrations on the advice of leaders of the A&T students.
Negro student leaders have said they chose the variety stores for the demonstration because Negros may purchase articles in any other department of the stores while standing up but are refused service while seated at the lunch counters.
Considerable opinion has also been expressed that chain stores were chosen over locally operated ones because the students felt they might be able to evoke sympathetic boycotts or demonstrations in other cities served by the chains.
The students have never commented openly as to whether they will press for integrated service at all eating establishments in the downtown area.
One large cafeteria, however, is reported ready to issue trespassing warrants for any Negros who refuse to leave the premises after being told they will not be served.