William "Bill" Lucy Oral History Interview: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

The oral history consists of five digital files: 2011.174.94.1a, 2011.174.94.1b, 2011.174.94.1c, 2011.174.94.1d, and 2011.174.94.1e.

William "Bill” Lucy discusses his role in the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) in the 1960s, especially how he and the union supported the 1968 sanitation workers' strike in Memphis, Tennessee. In 1966, Lucy started to work for AFSCME in Washington, D.C., as the Associate Director of the Department of Legislation and Community Affairs. Lucy explains AFSCME's support of the Civil Rights Movement, especially the push to expose the economic exploitation of African Americans. Lucy narrates the events of the 1968 sanitation workers strike in Memphis, discusses the involvement of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and describes the union's strategies. Lucy also discusses his involvement in the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists and the Free South Africa Movement.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: June 25, 2013
• Created by: Civil Rights History Project, American, founded 2009
• Interview of: William Lucy, American, born 1933
• Interviewed by: Dr. Emilye Crosby Ph. D., American
• Subject of: American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, American, founded 1932
• Subject of: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., American, 1929 - 1968
• Subject of: Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, American, founded 1972
• Subject of: Free South Africa Movement, American, founded 1985
• Type: video recordings
• Type: oral histories
• Type: digital media - born digital
• Medium: digital
• Dimensions: Duration: 1 hr., 18 min., 24 sec.
• Dimensions: Total: 132.31 GB
• Place collected: Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: Memphis, Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, North and Central America
• Place depicted: South Africa, Africa
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Activism
• Topic: Africa
• Topic: American South
• Topic: Associations and institutions
• Topic: Civil Rights
• Topic: Labor
• Topic: Local and regional
• Object number: 2011.174.94.1a-e
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in partnership with the American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture and The American Folklife Center, Library of Congress Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.