Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Another Example of Kentucky's Proud Civil Rights History
The Cincinnati Post - Longtime civil-rights activist dies: "Braden, who was white, also was active in anti-war and women's liberation movements, but it was her efforts in civil-rights campaigns that brought her the most attention.
'We have truly lost an icon in this community,' said state Rep. Reginald Meeks, D-Louisville. 'I think the influence that she and her husband had reverberated throughout the South.'
In 1954, Braden and her husband, Carl, bought a home in southwestern Jefferson County for a black World War II veteran and his family. The black family was spurned when attempting to purchase the home. The Bradens used the family's money to purchase the house, then deeded it over to them, Fosl said.
A few weeks later, the house was bombed, but no one was injured.
The Bradens later were charged with sedition, and Carl Braden was convicted and given a 15-year prison sentence, Fosl said. He served seven months before his conviction was overturned.
Anne Braden was never tried on the state sedition charge.
The Bradens worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and other notable civil-rights leaders. 'Her legacy is to have been among the most forceful voices in U.S. history that racial justice is white people's business, too,' Fosl said."
This story was new to even me, but supports my thesis that the state has much to be proud of as it relates to civil rights. I am not suggesting by any stretch that there are not idiots in the state of Kentucky, rather just reminding that there is a rich history of civil rights visionaries in the state. An appropriate rebuttal would be that it was likely a Kentuckian who bombed the house. First, I do not know that to be true, but if it were, the one being honored in the paper today is not the bomber, but rather the buyer.
'We have truly lost an icon in this community,' said state Rep. Reginald Meeks, D-Louisville. 'I think the influence that she and her husband had reverberated throughout the South.'
In 1954, Braden and her husband, Carl, bought a home in southwestern Jefferson County for a black World War II veteran and his family. The black family was spurned when attempting to purchase the home. The Bradens used the family's money to purchase the house, then deeded it over to them, Fosl said.
A few weeks later, the house was bombed, but no one was injured.
The Bradens later were charged with sedition, and Carl Braden was convicted and given a 15-year prison sentence, Fosl said. He served seven months before his conviction was overturned.
Anne Braden was never tried on the state sedition charge.
The Bradens worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and other notable civil-rights leaders. 'Her legacy is to have been among the most forceful voices in U.S. history that racial justice is white people's business, too,' Fosl said."
This story was new to even me, but supports my thesis that the state has much to be proud of as it relates to civil rights. I am not suggesting by any stretch that there are not idiots in the state of Kentucky, rather just reminding that there is a rich history of civil rights visionaries in the state. An appropriate rebuttal would be that it was likely a Kentuckian who bombed the house. First, I do not know that to be true, but if it were, the one being honored in the paper today is not the bomber, but rather the buyer.
