Tent City Protests

By Orion Collins-Silva

AndCidjud Felix

Overview Mel King: Life, Political activism

The Protests: When, where, and why they took place

The Effect on the Community: The CHANGE in other communities

Mel KingMel king was born in 1928 in Boston

Massachusetts. His family immigrated from Guyana in the 1920’s. When he went to collage he got degrees in Mathematics and Education.

Mel King (con.)He has been a active member

of his community. In 1983 he ran for mayor of Boston but sadly he did not win.

The ProtestsThe protest started April 28th, 1968.

They started because the Boston Redevelopment Authority wanted to tear down housing in South End Boston to make a parking lot.

Post Protests Mel King formed the C.A.U.S.E organization which fought to stop the development and have the BRA make affordable housing for low income citizens.

The Effects on the CommunityThe community was changed greatly because of one act that Mel King Helped start.

Many neighboring areas started to build affordable housing complexes in reaction to what happened with Mel King.

Effects on community (con.)

The South End Technology Center

The South End Technology started after the protest it was started after the protest and gives technology training to people in the South End area

Important EventsApril 25th 1968C.A.U.S.E. stages a sit-in at the Boston Redevelopment authority’s office to protest the tearing-down of affordable housing in Boston.April 26th, 1968The picket line at the corner of Dartmouth Street and Columbus Ave in the South End begins. This started the four day long protest that was known as the Tent City Protests. Later in the day, 23 people (including Mel King) were arrested after a brief scuffle.April 27th, 1968The parking lot at the corner of Dartmouth and Columbus Ave is turned into “Tent City” and hundreds of protesters camp out in the parking lot.April 30th, 1968The police ordered the protesters to vacant the parking lot and, deciding that they had made their point, the protesters left.1979The Tent City Corporation was formed to be a "community controlled development organization dedicated to the preservation of decent, affordable housing and a multi-racial, multi-ethnic community of low and moderate income people in the South End."April 30th 1988The aptly named “Tent City apartments” were dedicated on the site of the Tent City protests.

Pictures

Interview of Mel King

This is an interview WBGH did with Mel King that happened 11/07/1983http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/tocn-mla000396-interview-with-mel-king-tape-1-of-1

Sources http://

cache.thephoenix.com/secure/uploadedImages/The_Phoenix/News/Flashbacks/Flashback_Mel_King.jpg

http://kora.matrix.msu.edu/files/50/305/32-131-318-98-african_activist_archive-a0b6r8-a_14380.jpg

http://bostonlookingbackward.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/tent-city.jpg?w=540