Student activists protesting in response to the policing of the UNC Food Workers Strike, February 1969
Photograph by Billy E. Barnes
Billy E. Barnes Photographic Collection, 1959-1996 (Collection Number P0034)
North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives
NC Highway Patrol guards the entrance to Lenoir Dining Hall, 13 March 1969 Photograph by Fil Hunter
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Photographic Laboratory Collection (Collection Number P0031)
North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives
Activists protest in front of Lenoir Dining Hall holding signs titled “UNC Could Help”, 2 December 1969
Photograph by Jim Sparks for the Durham Herald-Sun
Durham Herald Co. Newspaper Photograph Collection, circa 1945-2002 (Collection Number P0105)
North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives
Food Service Workers Strike, photographs 1969
The food workers’ strike began on February 23, 1969, when Lenoir Hall workers, led by women of color, left their workstations. Students, particularly the Black Student Movement, and an increasing number of community members expressed their support, while the Governor stationed the Highway Patrol on campus and the National Guard on standby in fear of violence. Although an agreement was made in late March, the privatization of food service on campus and the dismissal of the workers’ demands led to a second strike lasting through December 9, 1969.