The teacher called to invite him to speak at Marion Street School, to give students a living history lesson about the Civil Rights Movement. McNeil gladly agreed, beginning an annual tradition that has bridged nearly two decades. Each year, McNeil visits the school to share his experiences with a new group of third graders, and each year, to honor McNeil, the students put on a show illustrating some aspect of the civil rights movement.
This year, to commemorate the election of President Barack Obama, the third-grade teachers and students prepared a special tribute to McNeil, entitled "Paving the Road to the White House: A History of Civil Rights in America," in which students represented many of the great American heroes who fought for civil rights over the past 150 years. In this original play, students showed how Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglas and Abraham Lincoln "stood" for freedom, McNeil and Rosa Parks "sat" for justice, Ruby Bridges and Jackie Robinson "walked" across color barriers, and Elizabeth Stanton, Susan B. Anthony and Martin Luther King, Jr. "marched" for equal rights, ultimately making it possible for Barack Obama to "run" for President of the United States.
Forty-nine years ago, McNeil and three of his classmates at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College made history by staging a sit-in at Woolworth's "whites only" lunch counter in Greensboro, refusing to leave until they were served. Their act of bravery inspired thousands of young people to challenge injustice and racial inequality, and ultimately led to the desegregation of all public facilities throughout the South. He went on to lead a distinguished career in the Air Force, retiring as a two-star major general. Mr. McNeil related his story to the children, and answered questions about his personal experiences with discrimination and civil disobedience.
"We all have choices in life," explained Mr. McNeil. "My conscience told me that racial segregation was wrong. My friends and I decided that we had to stand up against this injustice through non-violent protest. When you are faced with choices in life, I want you to choose to follow your conscience, to choose non-violence over violence, and to respect one another and protect human dignity whenever you can."
As an added treat, students invited their pen pals from P.S. 161 in Brooklyn to share the experience of meeting McNeil, and also to meet one another for the first time. It was a fitting tribute to all of those who gave so much to further equality, that although the two groups of children came from very different backgrounds, they were more than happy to sit together over juice and cookies to celebrate all they had in common.
