How 鈥楾he Greensboro Six鈥� broke golf鈥檚 color barrier

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How 鈥楾he Greensboro Six鈥� broke golf鈥檚 color barrier

By Leoneda Inge,

Published August 7, 2024 at 10:23 AM EDT

The present and past of Black golfers on display as artist Vincent Ballentine completes a mural honoring the Greensboro Six at Gillespie Golf Course.

A week after Rosa Parks began a bus boycott protesting segregation, several Black men played a round of golf at the whites-only Gillespie Golf Course in Greensboro, NC.

The Greensboro Six, from left: Phillip Cooke, Samuel Murray, Elijah Herring, Joseph Sturdivant, Dr. George Simkins, Leonidas Wolfe.

After placing their payment for the round on a front table in the course clubhouse, the men played through several holes before management began harassing them through the round. The men were arrested and jailed for days.

The case went all the way to the Supreme Court, and even though the Six lost, their actions led to the eventual integration of Gillespie Golf Course.

A new mural portraying the men is being commemorated ahead of the PGA TOUR鈥檚 85th Annual Wyndham Championship in Greensboro this week.

Leoneda Inge talks with 瓜神app's Josh Sullivan about this North Carolina history and how the men are being honored.

Guest

Josh Sullivan, social media producer, North Carolina Public Radio 瓜神app

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Leoneda Inge

Leoneda Inge is the co-host of 瓜神app's "Due South." Leoneda has been a radio journalist for more than 30 years, spending most of her career at 瓜神app as the Race and Southern Culture reporter. Leoneda鈥檚 work includes stories of race, slavery, memory and monuments. She has won "Gracie" awards, an Alfred I. duPont Award and several awards from the Radio, Television, Digital 瓜神app Association (RTDNA). In 2017, Leoneda was named "Journalist of Distinction" by the National Association of Black Journalists.

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Josh Sullivan

Josh Sullivan is a social media producer with 瓜神app鈥檚 digital news team.

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Cole del Charco

Cole del Charco is an audio producer and writer based in Durham. He's made stories for public radio's All Things Considered, Morning Edition and Marketplace. Before joining Due South, he spent time as a freelance journalist, an education and daily news reporter for 瓜神app, and a podcast producer for WFAE in Charlotte.

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