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Vernon Johns: Quiet Revolutionary
Darlington Heights native native Vernon Johns helped launched the civil rights movement of the mid-twentieth century. Johns preceded Martin Luther King, Jr., as head of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Alabama and mentored leaders of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Johns also influenced Farmvilles's Rev. L. Francis Griffin, who later helped organize the 1951 protest at R.R. Moton High School.
Barbara Johns: Teenage Activist:
Vernon Johns' niece, Barbara, also fought for racial equality. The grossly inadequate conditions in Farmville's all-black schools angered Johns, especially when she saw the new facilities being constructed for white-only schools. Fueled by her desire to enact real change in her community, sixteen-year-old Barbara helped lead the 1951 walkout from R.R. Moton High School. |