Historical mural unveiled at Burnside Scholastic Academy on Thursday, June 5

Burnside Scholastic Academy is unveiling a mural which recounts protests which led to Burnside becoming an integrated school, and opened the doors for the rest of the Chicago Public Schools system.


The public is welcome to join the school at 9:30am to unveil the mural. Burnside is located at 650 E. 91st place (near 91st & St. Lawrence, behind Tuley Park).

Tony Burroughs, a student at Burnside during the movement, was instrumental in getting the mural established, and work with youth to tell the story.

Carolyn Elaine is the artist who, along the school's art teacher, helped the youth create this mural. Ms. Elaine developed the concept and details.

There is also a surprise for former students who participated in the protest.


Please see the  Facebook event page with more details.

We will try to post an update, with more information when available.

Full Disclosure: My daughter is a student of Burnside, and Worlee's child is an alum.

EDIT: Here is the official press release (please excuse the editing -- some problems on our end):

*PRESSRELEASE*

Contact:
Tony Burroughs


Email:Tony@TonyBurroughs.com
Burnside Principal Kelly Thigpen: 773/535-3300

*Burnside Sit-In Mosaic Tile Mural*
*Dedication -- **June 5, 2014***
*Burnside****Scholastic****Academy**, **650 East 91^st Place***

*Project*

A ribbon cutting for a 300 sq ft beautiful broken tile art mosaic mural will be held at Burnside Scholastic Academy on Thursday June 5, 2014 at 9:45am. The mural is dedicated to the historic 1962 sit-in at Burnside. Renowned muralist Carolyn Elaine (www.studioelainemosaic.com <http://www.studioelainemosaic.com/>), designed the mosaic with Burnside students and art teacher Sarah Didricksen. Elaine has designed mosaic murals for many buildings and public art in Chicago. Internationally known genealogist Tony Burroughs (www.TonyBurroughs.com <http://www.tonyburroughs.com/>) conducted workshops with students on Black History and Civil Rights in preparation of the mural design. Burroughs was one of the sit-in students and his mother was one of the organizers.

*Background*

May 17^th marked the 60^th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education. The movement to desegregate schools in Chicago began on January 2, 1962 with a sit-in at Burnside Elementary School. It was organized by PTA mothers and was the spark that ignited the Civil Rights Movement in Chicago. Three of the PTA mothers, in their 80s, and four of the sit-in students, in their 60s, plan to be in attendance at the dedication.

The Burnside Sit-In inspired ministers, Civil Rights workers from the NAACP, Urban League and Freedom Riders to support the protest. Momentum grew and inspired mothers at other schools to protest. This lead to The Woodlawn Organization (TWO) and the Coordinating Council for Community Organizations (CCCO) to protest Willis Wagons, temporary mobile classrooms built to relieve overcrowded schools in African American communities. This was led by a young Reverend Arthur Brazier.

CCCO, CORE and the Chicago Friends of SNCC organized a city-wide school boycott the next year on October 22, 1963. Approximately 250,000 students stayed home. It was the largest school boycott in the country. Dr. Martin Luther King said the Civil Rights Movement in Chicago was the most organized movement in the north. King came to Chicago in 1965 to support the fight for education and returned in 1966 to fight for housing and jobs.

A few June events

Some upcoming summer festivals & events are beginning even now. Here are a few (via their Facebook photos). If you are having trouble reading these, or have your own event, please email us at blog@thesixthward.us

The first is from St. James Evangelical Lutheran Church, at the corner of 80th & Michigan. See you this Friday, June 6 at 7;30pm.

And 

Chatham Academy H.S Street Festival 

Saturday 

June 14, 2014
12 noon - 8pm

90th Langley
(near 90th & St. Lawrence, 1 block North of Burnside Scholastic Academy)

CPS Strike update -- good news?

I was briefly at Burnside Scholastic Academy today. There are no photos, because there was really nothing to see.

From what I could see, there were only a handful of children at the school, and seemingly an equal number of CPS staff there (approximately 20).

One of the non-Burnside staff gathered the staff members who walked the children out, and saying they were to gather in a few minutes with some potential good news. He didn't share the details, so we shall see what the news brings.


The police officer on duty said there were approximately 50 teachers gathered outside Burnside from about 6:30am to 10:30am.  They protesters were loud (as most protetsing usually is), but peaceful.  From what he observed the teachers' plan was to picket during that time period every day.


As of 1:15 pm, there was no deal announced yet.


What were your experiences with the school strike today?

Burnside school featured on CPS Facebook page.

The Chicgao Public schools' official Facebook page today features Burnside Scholastic Academy as their  FB banner, and have posted a "Burnside Takeover" --> https://www.facebook.com/chicagopublicschools#!/media/set/?set=a.423875374299498.92097.192405757446462&type=1

Burnside Academy history comes alive on Friday.

We blogged about him in January, as he was featured in the Chicago Suntimes about the desegregation effort that Burnside was a part of.

He will now discuss his story live with the current students of Burnside Academy. Kindergaretn - 4th grade will hear him from 8:30 ~ 9:30am.  At 9:35, the 5th - 8th graders will hear him speak.

Contact Burnside Scholastic Academy for details. Burnside is located at 650 E. 91st Place, with a phone number of (773) 535-3300;  Fax of (773) 535-3230;  Email =>  burnside650 (at) yahoo.com  ;  and the website is at http://www.burnsideacademy.net/

Tony Burroughs, outside of the Burnside School 650 E. 91st Place, where 50 years ago the first demonstration against Chicago Public Schools system of segregated and unequal education took place. Friday, January 13, 2012.
Brian Jackson~Sun-Times





Burnside Academy pivotal in School De-Segregation

The Burnside Scolastic Academy's Parent Advisory Council shared this article yesterday which highlighted Burnside's pivotal role in the civil rights struggle.

We are including the whole thing,as the Suntimes is installing a paywall which may deprive some readers of access.The link of the article is here.  they also have "online extras" here.

Tony Burroughs, outside of the Burnside School 650 E. 91st Place, where 50 years ago the first demonstration against Chicago Public Schools system of segregated and unequal education took place. Friday, January 13, 2012.
Brian Jackson~Sun-Times





It was a pivotal moment for Chicago’s racially separate and unequal Chicago Public Schools system.

But for then 12-year-old Tony Burroughs, the three-week sit-in by African-American parents and students at Burnside Elementary School — 50 years ago this month — was life-changing.

“Historians tend to look at the big picture,” says Burroughs, now 63 and a noted genealogist and author.

“You don’t hear a lot about the small sparks to the fire that ignited the Civil Rights movement. This spark ignited protests against the ‘Willis Wagons’ [portable classrooms] and eventually led to the 1963 citywide boycott of the Chicago Public Schools where 250,000 students stayed home,” he says of the incident that began on Jan. 2, 1962.

Spearheaded by the Burnside Parent Teacher Association — primarily its president Alma Coggs, member Zenia Gray, and Burroughs’ mother, Mary Ellen Burroughs — it fueled the school desegregation movement of the ’60s.

And the protests that followed, according to Chicago Urban League papers the University of Illinois Chicago Library holds in its Special Collections, in turn “focused the city’s attention on racial segregation and inequality, created a new militancy among many Chicagoans, and set the stage for the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s decision to move his wing of the national civil rights movement to Chicago in 1966.”

READ THE WHOLE THING!

Anyone have any thoughts or memories?