(L to R) Angelina Manchuk ’30, Cate Reeder ’30, Izzy Williams ’27, and Ann Sherman-White ’06 pose for a photo with Joan Trumpauer during a post-lecture book signing. Mulholland Photos by Ana Lense ’28
“The number one thing you can do is vote for justice,” advised civil rights activist Joan Trumpauer Mulholland on Oct. 22 during a lecture at Eckerd College.
The lecture brought together more than 120 students, alumni, St. Petersburg politicians, sororities, fraternities and local community members. The event, organized by the Director of Equal Access and Campus Community Ann Sherman-White ’06, reflected Mulholland’s life as an activist, and the importance of being an ally and participant to a cause greater than oneself.
“History does not remember us simply for what we believe; it remembers what we’re willing to risk,” said Terri Lipsey Scott ’04, executive director of the Woodson African American Museum of Florida.
On the advice of her friends, Mulholland enrolled at the historically black institution, Tougaloo College, after leaving Duke University in 1961. She was inspired by the courage of her friend, Darlene Hunter, who faced violence and riots after enrolling at the University of Georgia under a state court order to desegregate that university.
Civil rights activist Joan Trumpauer Mulholland was the first white student to enroll at Tougaloo College, desegregating the school in 1961.
Mulholland concluded that for integration to work, it must be a two-way street.
She humorously recalled her enrollment at Tougaloo was unexpected, even seemingly a secret. Mulholland shared how one night, when she left to use the shared restrooms in the dormitory, she came across a fellow student at the other end of the hallway.
The Presidential Event Series lecture featuring Joan Trumpauer Mulholland drew more than 120 attendees.
“She screamed bloody murder,” Mulholland laughed. “She didn’t know a white girl was on campus … she thought I was a ghost! And by morning everyone knew a white girl was on campus.”
Her enrollment was not just unexpected—it was scandalous. The state of Mississippi had tried to shut down Tougaloo College, just because a white girl was on campus. Fortunately, because the school charter was older than the state law, those efforts were ineffective.
Mulholland’s work ethic and tenacity to attend Tougaloo had signaled to her peers that she wasn’t just here to visit. In the spring of 1963, Mulholland and 13 other Tougaloo students and faculty organized a sit-in at the lunch counter in the Woolworth’s store.
The nonviolent sit-in escalated and the activists were berated with insults, pelted with condiments, and beaten. Fellow participant Professor John Salter was beaten with brass knuckles and burned with cigarettes. Mulholland and a classmate, Anne Moody, were dragged out of the store by their hair. They promptly marched back to the counter.
Furious Ku Klux Klan members, outraged high school students, and observing FBI agents were all in the store. But, there in the middle was Mulholland, 22 years old, with her fellow Tougaloo students and faculty.
They suffered through the violence because they knew their active participation and nonviolent demonstration was one more step to their goal of equality.
Mulholland has continued her activism and still regularly speaks at public events at the age of 85.
At the end of the lecture, the floor had opened to questions and collaborative discussion for Mulholland or her son, Emmy award-winning filmmaker and author Loki Mulholland.
“It didn’t matter about race, it didn’t matter about age,” said attendee Pinellas County Commissioner René Flowers ’05. “She stood for what she felt was right. And so we now, I believe, have a responsibility to take it a step further.”
“It is important to learn from someone who was actually there when these moments happened,”
said Aissa Bailey, a junior in marine science and theatre student from Atlanta, Georgia. “I hope they (students) will take the time to register to vote, and choose the best candidate that aligns with justice and their values.”
Joan Trumpauer continues her activism at age 85 with public speeches to educate and share her message:
“I can’t do everything, but I can do something. Because nothing is not an option.”
