Description

Button promoting the 1976 Labor Day March for Human and Labor Rights in Raleigh. The button has a black background and includes a central drawing of protestors. Gold-colored text reads: "Labor Day March For Human And Labor Rights/ Sept. 6, 1976/ Raleigh, North Carolina." Dimensions: 75 mm diameter.The 1976 Labor Day march in Raleigh was organized by African American civil rights leaders, including Angela Davis and Julian Bond, to advocate for the freeing of political prisoners, elimination of the death penalty, reform of the prison system, and abolition of "right to work" laws in the state. To bring pressure on the state to make these reforms, the protesters called for a boycott of the economically significant North Carolina tourism industry. A major source of existing tension was the 1970 trial of the "Wilmington Ten" in which ten people in Wilmington, North Carolina, were convicted of arson and conspiracy. Several key prosecution witnesses later recanted their testimony and in 1980 a U.S. Court of Appeals overturned the convictions.

Record Contributed By

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Record Harvested From

North Carolina Digital Heritage Center