Shelby unveils Civil Rights trail marker
Haywood Homsley sat down at the front counter of Smith’s Drug Store, undeterred by the drama unfolding around him. As his white counterparts surrounded him, he stood his ground.
“It was a moment filled with different emotions,” said Homsley. “One of excitement, one of commitment and then there was another feeling of wondering how you were going to be treated.”
He, along with more than a dozen of his classmates, were fed up with discrimination in Shelby. Segregation, ordering food from the back of the restaurant and countless restrictions placed on Black individuals who were desperate to have the same luxuries as individuals who aren't Black.
Homsley knew time was limited. If he and friends continued to wait for things to change, change may never come.
But it did.
The sit-in in which he partook on Feb. 18, 1960, sparked progress in the civil rights movement.
“We made the news,” said Homsley. “We were in newspapers. But I think it woke people up in the community and that was the important thing. People started to realize they were not doing the right thing. After that, schools were integrated and people could drink from the same fountain.”
More: Shelby approved for Civil Rights marker
Saturday, Homsley watched as Shelby unveiled a Civil Rights trail marker to commemorate the sit-in that happened 62 years ago. The ceremony took place at 104 E. Warren St. at what is now Buffalo Creek Gallery and what used to be Smith’s Drug Store.
“This initiative is one we feel very strongly about and, in partnership with the Earl Scruggs Center, the Uptown Shelby Association and community members, we were successful in receiving a grant from the North Carolina African American Heritage Commission to erect a permanent sign through the North Carolina Civil Rights Trail Marker Program,” said Justin Merritt, assistant city manager for the city of Shelby.
The installation is part of the North Carolina Civil Rights Trail, a project that aims to have markers form a trail across the state acknowledging critical events to the civil rights movement in North Carolina.
Chip Nuhrah, spokesman for the city of Shelby, said the project has been in the works for two years.
“In all of this you have to look at the positives,” said Nuhrah. “What’s so worthy of recognizing is that high school students were brave enough to do this. They chose to take a stand. Because of what they chose to do, that advanced the efforts for desegregation across our country but especially across the South. Although they got a lot of opposition for doing it, it did help progress change.”
Homsley credits his parents and others who stood by their decision, saying it gave him confidence to face adversity head-on.
“I went to the old Cleveland High School,” said Homsley. “We made the decision that it was the right thing to do. The good thing about it was we had the parental support and the community support in terms of the NAACP and people that were committed to bringing about change or at least to identify where change was needed. The frustration of going to the back door to get a sandwich — we went through those kinds of things.”
When police arrived, Homsley said they followed their orders. They were not there to cause a physical altercation. They wanted to start a movement.
“We were told you can’t sit down, but we forced our way in and got a seat,” said Homsley. “As we sat down, people got up. At some point, we were asked to leave the building and obviously we refused. After a while the police came. Then we were told we had to get out. They even tried to remove the seats from the lunch counter so we would not have a place to sit down.”
Homsley and his classmates knew it would take time before things changed. The sit-in was an attempt to put a sense of urgency on the situation.
“We knew we were not going to be served, but we were determined to let them know we had every right to be in that seat as our white counterparts,” said Homsley.
The passive action ended with several arrests.
Homsley pointed out women were at the forefront of the movement, saying their courage should be commended.
“Some of the strongest advocates were females,” said Homsley. “They were right up front with us. They stood tall.”
Having a sense of identity as a black man fueled Homsley and his friends to stand firm in the thick of things and believe they would see better days.
“We were secure in who we were,” said Homsley. “But we also, through that security, were able to identify things that were wrong. We tried to bring about change, and we did.”
Latrice Williams can be reached at 704-669-3339 and lwilliams6@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Shelby unveils civil rights marker to commemorate a 1960 sit-in
