Bradley University’s CORE chapter made headlines in the campus newspaper when they picketed six on-campus eateries that refused to serve black customers.
Carrying signs with slogans such as “Jim Crow Must Go” and “Herb McKinley, Athlete of the Year, Can’t Eat Here,” the students spent five hours outside restaurants hoping to deter customers.
The results were mixed.
On the one hand, the president of the National Bar Association, Earl B. Dickerson, promised to prosecute the local restaurants at the state level if no action was taken within the county.
On the other hand, the managers of Bidwell’s candy shop and the Steak and Shake drive-in were adamant in their resistance. They boasted that business had improved since the picketing started and vowed that they would not allow black customers to be served.