Honors and Tributes to the A&T Four
On Feb. 1, 1960, at about 4:30 p.m., Ezell Blair Jr. (Jibreel Khazan), Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil and David Richmond entered the Woolworth’s Department Store on Elm Street in Greensboro, North Carolina, to be served at the whites-only lunch counter. The lives of these four freshmen, along with the faculty and students of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College, the city of Greensboro and the entire world would never be the same again.
Sixty-five years ago, they were simply unable to purchase a cup of coffee at a segregated lunch counter. Since then, streets, buildings and scholarships have been named in their honor. The very lunch counter they had been forbidden to use is displayed in three museums today. The Woolworth’s has since become the International Civil Rights Museum. One of the most visited sites in the city is a monument to their courage.
Every Feb. 1for at least the past 40 years, thousands of Aggies, activists, Greensboro citizens, politicians and have gathered to honor them and their families, having much more than just a cup of coffee together.
The tributes and honors bestowed upon the A&T Four, along with other participants in the sit-in movement, are too numerous for a single article. However, the greatest honors can be found right here in the city of Greensboro and on the campus of North Carolina A&T.
Many of these tributes began with annual breakfasts and luncheons initiated by the February One Society in the late 1970s. For the 20th anniversary in 1980, the A&T Four were presented with A&T Alumni Association Awards by President Velma Speight ’53, Ph.D. In 1990, during the 30th anniversary, bronze footprints of the A&T Four were placed in front of the Woolworth’s and the street south of the site was renamed February One Place. In 2010, the former Woolworth’s officially became the International Civil Rights Museum and Center and in late December 2024 was designated a National Historic Landmark.
Some of the most significant honors for the A&T Four are works of art displayed on the A&T campus. At the 1984 celebrations, Chancellor Edward B. Fort and SGA President Christopher Onyemem accepted a bronze relief sculpture by Ogden Deal, which was later dedicated in 1990 at the Memorial Union Quadrangle.
The A&T Human Rights Medal was first awarded in 2001 to Lewis Brandon III. Among the many notable recipients of this prestigious medal are attorney J. Kenneth Lee (2004), the late U.S. Rep. John Lewis (2005), activist Diane Nash [JT1] (2009), and U.S. Rep. Alma Adams ’68 ’72 (2020). The medal was designed by Charles Edwin Watkins, A&T’s legendary photographer, and visual storyteller. A portrait by Watkins was also presented to the A&T Four during 40th anniversary events in 2000.
Another lasting tribute, the February One monument, was unveiled Feb1, 2002. Created by renowned sculptor and A&T visual arts professor James “Jim” Barnhill, Ph.D., this breathtaking 15-foot bronze sculpture has become the most iconic symbol on the A&T campus and its most photographed landmark, serving as a continuous source of inspiration for students and the Greensboro community.
Prior to Barnhill’s and Watkins’ works, artist James Huff, MFA – also an adjunct professor of visual arts at A&T – created a portrait of the A&T Four. Huff’s portrait was used for A&T’s annual commemorations for several years.
Thousands of Aggies have lived in Aggie Village, a residential complex comprising four buildings named in honor of the A&T Four: Ezell Blair (Jibreel Khazan) Hall (2005), Franklin McCain Hall (2003), Joseph McNeil Hall (2003) and David L. Richmond Hall (2005). A tree dedicated to Richmond stands at the edge of the complex, just across from the Student Center.
In 2022, the Guilford County Board of Education voted to rename The Middle College at N.C. A&T the ”A&T Four Middle College at North Carolina A&T State University,” effective July 1, 2022. As a high school for boys located on the university campus, it is possible the next generation of A&T Four students are already attending classes there today.
The F.D. Bluford Library Archives houses more than 20 collection boxes and vertical files on the sit-in movement, the A&T Four, the February One monument and notable faculty and alumni from the movement. For more information about the sit-ins, explore our sit-movement LibGuide or visit the F.D. Bluford Library Archives and Special Collections. You can also email us at libraryarchives@ncat.edu.