This article was originally published in The Notebook. In August 2020, The Notebook became Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
November 17 marked the 40th anniversary of the landmark Black student walkout and march on the School Board in 1967 demanding African American studies and other school improvements. The David P. Richardson Education Coalition, named after the late state representative who was a leader of that protest as a high school student, organized a series of commemorative events for the week. These included student testimony at the School Reform Commission, a conference, and a November 16 rally (above) at School District headquarters on North Broad Street.
At the rally, students from the coalition led the crowd in a call-and-response activity, with drum accompaniment, recognizing the contributions of national and local leaders to struggles for educational justice. Local figures honored included Marcus Foster, John Anderson, David P. Richardson, Cecil B. Moore, and the student demonstrators from November 1967.