"Taking a Seat for Justice: The 1960 Baton Rouge Sit-Ins" Documentary

LBF has awarded Southern University Law Center a $5,000 grant for a documentary project based on the Garner v. State of Louisiana case which was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1961 and is a result of peaceful sit-in demonstrations conducted by Southern University students. The documentary will be a video project on the students whose historic actions prompted the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on sit-ins in protest of racial discrimination in public accommodation during the 1960's civil rights movement. In revealing the legal and historical importance of the case, the project is aimed at increasing quality and quantity of documentaries and other educational materials on the law and work of lawyers available to the public.

The documentary will be an appropriate way of preserving Louisiana’s part in the history of the law and social change. The goals and objectives of the documentary mirror those of the Louisiana Bar Foundation. It will preserve and honor our system of justice by identifying, acquiring, and documenting photographs, oral histories, video and audio recordings on a significant civil rights case involving Louisiana attorneys. It will enhance the legal profession by promoting an understanding of the role of the lawyer in effecting positive social change and by advancing a reality of equal justice under the law. In its presentations, pubic broadcast, and use in education programs to youth and adult, the documentary also will support and enhance legal education in Louisiana.

For more information on this documentary go to http://www.sulc.edu/form/WebsiteAnnouncement.pdf