Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes weren’t trying to make history when they drove 70 miles from their hometown of Atlanta through KKK-riddled towns. They just had dreams and ambitions to pursue like every other student.
But white supremacy made sure their journey wouldn’t be simple or easy.
No Black student had ever stepped foot on the University Of Georgia’s campus. It took two years of legal fighting before a federal judge ordered the university to admit them.
So when Hunter and Holmes arrived to register for classes, a mob of thousands of white supremacists, including students and local klansmen, harassed them and rioted!
The mob set fires, threw rocks, and hurled racial slurs at them for days. The university backpedaled and forced them to withdraw, and the racists rejoiced!
But Hunter and Holmes weren’t going out like that.
They fought back – and another court order landed them back at the university, where Holmes eventually graduated from the school of medicine and became a surgeon, and Hunter became an award-winning journalist.
Their paths weren’t easy, but they were determined to be in control of their destinies.
We must always stay committed to our dreams despite how white supremacy may try to snatch them from us. We get to determine our own futures – not them!