In the civil rights movement, major figures such as Martin Luther King Jr. The first stirrings of a civil rights movement in Las Vegas appear to have come in with the formation of its first chapter of the NAACP, starting on the heels of the Ku Klux Klan starting a Klavern in town. But by , fewer than African Americans lived in Las Vegas, population 5, Their pressure and a change in administrations in Washington, D. They found it little better in Las Vegas: racism and red-lining forced African Americans west of the railroad tracks, in West Las Vegas or the Westside.
The next leap came during World War II. Basic Magnesium recruited black workers from two mill towns, Fordyce, Arkansas, and Tallulah, Louisiana. Others found work in casinos and lived in West Las Vegas, where the clubs of Jackson Street rivaled the small casinos on Fremont Street. But the growing black population needed more than casinos.
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Civil rights activists in Las Vegas embraced the idea of a Talented Tenth. Ministers like Donald Clark preached at black churches, and provided another important group of leaders. A group of arrivals in the s signaled another period of growth of the black community. James McMillan became the first African American dentist. In , the Moulin Rouge opened, energizing the civil rights movement.
The most prominent leader to emerge from the Moulin Rouge was Bob Bailey, a showbiz veteran who served as emcee and hosted TV shows. They began placing candidates on the ballot and campaigning for officeseekers willing to take stands for civil rights β and they became involved in both major political parties. Accounts differ on details, but a majority of hotel-casino owners agreed to desegregate and allow African Americans to patronize their resorts.
Three years later, the lack of better jobs for African Americans prompted local civil rights leaders to plan a demonstration that would have coincided with a world heavyweight championship fight being held in Las Vegas.
