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Building A Bridge:
The AFT and Brown v Board of Education
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Above: Segregated school, n.d.
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Above: Linda Brown in her segregated classroom, circa 1954.
Photo courtesy of Carl Iwasaki/Time-Life Pictures
Below: Segregated school, n.d. |
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Since the founding of the AFT in 1916, the principles of equality and social justice were made quite clear. Local 9, an all-black local from Washington, DC was chartered that same year, and racially integrated locals were welcome in the AFT. Moreover, segregation was denounced at AFT conventions; delegates called for black history classes in public schools; and equal pay for black and white teachers was encouraged.
The AFT is and was a union of action. In 1934 the AFT switched convention hotels when it was discovered that black delegates had to use freight elevators. Henry Callis was elected as the first black vice president in 1936. Layle Lane, chairwoman of the AFT Human Relations Committee in 1948, ensured passage of a resolution that altered the AFT constitution. From that point forward, no segregated union would be chartered.
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Right: Segregated union meeting, n.d. |
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Left: Layle Lane, AFT vice president and chair of the Human Relations committee, n.d.
Below: Layle Lane and the Human Relations committee working on the resolution that no charters would be issued to segregated locals, 1948.
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Above: Charter application for Howard University, second line signature is from Nobel Peace prize winner, Ralph Bunche, 1936. |
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