Kimberly A. Matthews Livres

February 22, 1960, bore witness to an event that would forever change the social, political, and economic life of a city, a state, and millions of inhabitants. The arrest of 34 Virginia Union University students during a sit-in protest at the most upscale department store in Richmond, Virginia, heralded the upending of a long-established way of life and a change of direction from which there would be no turning back. The students would see their actions galvanize a community into effecting wide-ranging reforms in desegregation and play a significant role in ending the nearly 70-year grip on power of one of the nation's strongest political machines. Bafflingly, their achievement faded into obscurity, and only in recent years has its importance been recognized.

The Richmond Crusade for Voters, founded in 1956 to directly oppose Massive Resistance and the Stanley Plan, has served the city of Richmond for 60 years. Despite efforts to suppress minority voter turnout, the Richmond Crusade for Voters thrived at motivating voters to participate in local, state, and national elections. The organization was skilled at mobilizing African American voters, and its purpose, then and now, is to increase the voting strength of the citizens of Richmond. Images of Modern America: The Richmond Crusade for Voters provides a pictorial history of one of the nation's most influential voter education and voter registration organizations through vintage and contemporary images.