|
We hope you enjoy this “replay” of our first On the Journey Celebration,
originally published April 10. Please consider submitting a mini-bio about an inspiring black author, artist, change-maker, or innovator.
Victor Green
Postal Worker, Entrepreneur, Innovator
This week, we want to celebrate Victor Green, creator of the “Green Book”. From the 1940s through the 1970s, Black American travelers were restricted from many of the hotels, attractions, services and restaurants that catered to the larger, white population. Green’s travel guide specialized in providing information to travelers who were people of color during the Jim Crow era. The book warned Black American drivers about routes to avoid and promoted positive recreation experiences for Black Americans traveling the nation’s highways. Eventually, as with public transit and the larger college industrial complex, travel accommodations & services expanded to African Americans in part because providers realized although their skin was black, their money was still green. In this way, Victor Green helped African Americans force their way into the American dream of leisure, travel, and the open road.
Learn more about the Green book at this virtual Green Book exhibit, and read about Victor’s story at the Federal Highway of Administration’s website, or watch the real story of the Green Book (4:16) on youtube, produced by Vox.com
Thank you, Don Merrill, for submitting this article! |
