Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike

Title:
Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike
Years:
1968
Description:
Longstanding tensions between disgruntled African American sanitation workers and Memphis city officials erupted on February 12, 1968 when nearly one thousand workers refused to report to work demanding higher wages, safer working conditions, and recognition of their union, local 1733 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees. Despite organizing city-wide boycotts, sit-ins, and daily marches, the city's sanitation workers were initially unable to secure concessions from municipal officials. At the urging of Reverend James T. Lawson, Martin Luther King, Jr. agreed to come to Memphis and lead a nonviolent demonstration in support of the sanitation workers. On March 29 over five thousand demonstrators, carrying signs which read "I Am A Man," participated in King's march. However, the peaceful demonstration took a turn for the worse when an estimated two hundred participants began breaking storefront windows and looting. The ensuing violence resulted in the death of Larry Payne, a sixteen year old African American who was killed by Memphis police officers, the imposition of a city-wide curfew, and the mobilization of nearly four thousand National Guard troops. Deeply troubled by the violent outbreak, King vowed to return to Memphis to lead a peaceful demonstration. On April 3, 1968, nearly two months after the initial start of the strike, King returned to Memphis and delivered what would be his last public speech. The following evening King was assassinated on the second-floor balcony of the Lorraine Motel. In the wake of King's death, President Lyndon B. Johnson sent James Reynolds, undersecretary of labor, to Memphis to help resolve the strike. Nearly two weeks later on April 16, the Memphis sanitation workers' strike ended when the city agreed to issue raises to African American employees and recognize the workers' union.
Archival Collections And Reference Resources:

364 items in 10 collections (expand all)

AFL-CIO supporters of striking Memphis sanitation workers, 1968

Creator:
Memphis press scimitar
Date of Original:
1968-03
Collection:
1968 Sanitation Workers Strike
Contributing Institution:
University of Memphis. Libraries. Special Collections Department

Aftermath of protest on Beale Street, Memphis, 1968

Creator:
Memphis press scimitar
Date of Original:
1968
Collection:
1968 Sanitation Workers Strike
Contributing Institution:
University of Memphis. Libraries. Special Collections Department

Armed police on Beale Street, Memphis, 1968

Creator:
Memphis press scimitar
Date of Original:
1968
Collection:
1968 Sanitation Workers Strike
Contributing Institution:
University of Memphis. Libraries. Special Collections Department

Cleaning up broken glass on Vance Avenue, Memphis, 1968

Creator:
Memphis press scimitar
Leaptrott, William
Date of Original:
1968
Collection:
1968 Sanitation Workers Strike
Contributing Institution:
University of Memphis. Libraries. Special Collections Department

Curfew violators, Memphis, 1968

Creator:
Memphis press scimitar
Date of Original:
1968-04
Collection:
1968 Sanitation Workers Strike
Contributing Institution:
University of Memphis. Libraries. Special Collections Department

Debris-strewn Memphis street, 1968

Creator:
Memphis press scimitar
Date of Original:
1968-03
Collection:
1968 Sanitation Workers Strike
Contributing Institution:
University of Memphis. Libraries. Special Collections Department
See All 72 Items

Anne Stokes, 2010

Date of Original:
2010-03-05
Collection:
Crossroads interviews
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Bill Short, 2007

Date of Original:
2007-07-27
Collection:
Crossroads interviews
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Charles Mercer, 2006

Date of Original:
2006-05-19
Collection:
Crossroads interviews
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Cheryl Fanion Cotton, 2015

Date of Original:
2015-07-09
Collection:
Crossroads interviews
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Dorothy Crook, 2007

Date of Original:
2007-05-21
Collection:
Crossroads interviews
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Eddie Mae Hawkins, 2006

Date of Original:
2006-06-16
Collection:
Crossroads interviews
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College
See All 18 Items

Coretta Scott King

Creator:
Uffelman, Minoa D.
Date of Original:
2008-03-12
Collection:
Encyclopedia of Alabama
Contributing Institution:
Encyclopedia of Alabama (Project)

Bill Farris, City Commissioner, 1982

Date of Original:
1982-05-14
Collection:
Everett R. Cook Oral History Collection
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Henry Loeb Jr., son of Memphis Mayor, 2004

Date of Original:
2004-06-21
Collection:
Everett R. Cook Oral History Collection
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Hunter Lane Jr., Public Works Commissioner and City Councilman, July 2004

Date of Original:
2004-07-14
Collection:
Everett R. Cook Oral History Collection
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Walter Armstrong, Board of Education President, 1982

Date of Original:
1982-05-11
Collection:
Everett R. Cook Oral History Collection
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Warren Lewis, head of the Black Knights, 1983

Date of Original:
1983-10-04
Collection:
Everett R. Cook Oral History Collection
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

King's Last March

Creator:
Smith, Stephen
Date of Original:
2008
Collection:
King's Last March
Contributing Institution:
American Public Media

Coretta Scott King (1927-2006)

Creator:
McCarty, Laura
Date of Original:
2006-11-03
Collection:
New Georgia Encyclopedia
Contributing Institution:
New Georgia Encyclopedia (Project)

"Death of Bessie Smith" Cast Discussion, c. 1968

Date of Original:
1968
Collection:
Sanitation Strike Tapes
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Anthony Sabella, AFSCME Attorney, 1968

Date of Original:
1968-09-04
Collection:
Sanitation Strike Tapes
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Arthur Crowns, Prof. of Sociology at Memphis State Univ., 1968

Date of Original:
1968-05-13
Collection:
Sanitation Strike Tapes
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Ben Branch, Eye Witness to MLK Assassination, 1968

Date of Original:
1968-08-15
Collection:
Sanitation Strike Tapes
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Bert Ferguson, President of WDIA Radio, 1968

Date of Original:
1968-06-13
Collection:
Sanitation Strike Tapes
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College

Bill Ross, Memphis AFL-CIO Labor Council, 1968

Date of Original:
1968-07-16
Collection:
Sanitation Strike Tapes
Contributing Institution:
Rhodes College
See All 164 Items
Educator Resources:

2 items in 2 collections (expand all)