“The Black Six”

“The Black Six”. . In May 1968, a traffic stop of a Black schoolteacher, Charles Thomas, turned violent, leading to a Louisville Police officer's suspension, firing, then reinstatement. The reinstatement touched off days of civil unrest after a peaceful rally at 28th and Greenwood in the Parkland neighborhood. The National Guard was called in to restore peace. Six Black Americans, who later became known as the “Black Six,” were scapegoated and falsely charged with conspiracy in connection with the unrest and faced additional accusations of planning to blow up oil refineries in the West End and destroy private property. Members of the Black Six were Ruth Bryant, James Cortez, Walter T. ‘Pete’ Cosby, Samuel Hawkins, Manfred Reid and Robert ‘Kuyu’ Sims. Some of them barely knew each other, lost their livelihoods, and suffered irreparable harm to their reputations. The criminal conspiracy charges against them were dismissed in 1970 when Judge S. Rush Nicholson directed a verdict of acquittal, citing a lack of evidence, and threw the case out of Criminal Court 2, which was then located on Congress Alley. In 2022, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer issued an apology on behalf of the city to members of the Black Six and their families, for the harm inflicted upon them. This marker is dedicated to the Black Six, whose struggle taught us to never give up the battle for dignity and justice.