Danville was a tobacco and textile town of about 50,000 residents, a third of whom were black.
In May 1883, the town’s black majority helped elect the Readjusters—a political coalition of moderate whites, Republicans, and African Americans—and blacks were appointed as aldermen and policemen.
On May 31, 1963, a group of blacks met under the auspices of the Danville Christian Progressive Association.
Like their counterparts in Birmingham, the protesters in Danville pressed for desegregated facilities, equal employment opportunities, representation in city government, and creation of a biracial commission to monitor racial progress.
The city resisted the demands of the movement, and with every strength of power, created a hostile environment which included seeking injunctions under a pre-Civil war “John Brown” statute against any person conspiring to incite the black population to uprise against the city.
