We Have Been Waiting Too Long: The Struggle Against Racial Segregation in Loudoun County, Virginia

by Matthew Exline

In May, 1968, the all-black Douglass High School in Leesburg, Virginia graduated its last class, and the following school year almost all formerly whites-only schools in the county had at least one black student. In the words of NAACP activist Charles Houston, ending racial segregation “did not come about by love alone.” This triumphant moment was the culmination of almost forty years of struggle. In this groundbreaking study of local history with national significance, trace the journey of civil rights activists in Loudoun County, Virginia towards racial justice. Meet the colorful local characters who had the courage to stand up for what was right against the status quo, like the school teacher who pushed back against the racist assumptions of state education officials or the group of teenagers who dared to launch Leesburg’s first public civil rights protest. See grassroots organizations spring up to support and empower local activists to sway the hearts and minds of their fellow citizens. The African-American residents of Loudoun County had been “waiting too long,” in the words of one protest sign. This is their This book was written by humans. It does not contain any material written by any AI or any computer generated content.

133 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 2, 2020

Reviews

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

For any who live in Loudoun County, Virginia this is an important read, as well as for any who are interested in the history of civil rights in the greater DC/Northern Virginia area. At turns both encouraging as one tracks the progress, and discouraging as one is disappointed by the deep-seated racism, and/or lethargy of some at the time against any sort of positive movement towards change. This book is concise, well-written, thoroughly interesting, and I highly recommend it.

In full disclosure, I am acquainted with the author (having attended an educational institution together) but I was not asked to review this book nor have I received anything in return for doing so. I believe he had the opportunity to also present some of this material at some local institutions like the public library. I think highly of Matthew Exline's historical work, and even more so after having read this book. In my view he deals carefully with sensitive issues in a balanced and unbiased way based on key and often previously unreferenced original source material. An apropos read in the year 2021.

[Suzanne LaPierre · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was valuable to my research on the desegregation of libraries in Virginia. I do wish Josie Murray had been given as much credit as her husband Samuel Murray in the desegregation of the Purcellville Public Library in Virginia's Loudoun County. Both owned an upholstery shop in Purcellville and were commissioned to create drapes for President Eisenhower's sister-in-law, Mrs. Moore. They went to the library to find books on the Austrian-style drapes Mrs. Moore favored and were not allowed to check out a book due to their race. They sued and eventually the library was compelled to desegregate or lose state funding. This was in '56-'57, long after Brown versus Board ('54) and the Library of Virginia's 1946 requirement that public libraries must serve all to receive state tax funds. Jim Crow took a long time to die. See Eugene Sheel's interview with Josie Murray that was published in The Washington Post in 2001 (Google-able) for more info. Good book, though. I learned a lot.