Betty Randolph: Seeing the world on both sides

Betty Jean Barr Randolph was born in the small rural town of Greelyville, South Carolina in 1942. As she said, “If you were Black, you were human, but you may not have had the same experiences as others. At a very young age, she saw chain gangs working across the street from her home. She was called the “N” word for nothing more than riding her bike to the store for some candy. Randolph was attending North Carolina Agriculture and Technology (A&T) University in Greensboro, North Carolina in 1960 when four young Black students from the university started a sit-in at the segregated Woolworth’s lunch counter. Refusing to leave after being denied service, they were beaten and arrested. She and many other students participated in the ensuing protest marches. Randolph and her husband, Louis would go on to call Washington, North Carolina home, becoming well known for their service to the community.

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