How Dallas' Juanita Craft shaped the Civil Rights Movement
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The State Fair of Texas only allowed Black visitors on "Negro Achievement Day," but Juanita Craft fought for over a decade to change that. Photo: Courtesy of the Dallas Public Library Juanita Craft Collection
President Lyndon B. Johnson and Martin Luther King Jr. once visited Juanita Craft in her 1,300-square-foot South Dallas home to plan the future of the Civil Rights Movement.
Why it matters: Craft — though not a well-known name — was one of Dallas' most influential civil rights leaders, pushing to desegregate the UT School of Law, North Texas State University, the State Fair of Texas and Dallas ISD.
Driving the news: Juanita Craft Day is Sunday.
- The city announced the annual day of recognition in 2022, which takes place every Feb. 9 on Craft's birthday.
The big picture: Craft was the first Black woman to vote in a public election in Dallas County, in 1944.
- She worked as a field organizer for the NAACP and, at 73, became the second Black woman to serve on the Dallas City Council.
Context: Until 1961, Dallas was the largest city in the South with a segregated school system, per SMU archives.
- Dallas ISD was formally declared desegregated in 1967, after over 30 years of litigation.
The intrigue: When Craft took trains across the state for her advocacy, she would sit in "whites only" sections, refusing to move.
What she said: Shortly before she died in 1985, Craft said she hoped people of all backgrounds would visit her home and understand the importance of serving their community and nation.
- "You don't have to be rich to make an impact, but you have to work and to care," she said.
What they're doing: The Juanita J. Craft Civil Rights House hosts guided tours and community events to educate visitors about Dallas' civil rights history and the work that remains.
- "I have no natural children. I have adopted the world," Craft once said, and the quote is inscribed on a historical marker outside her former home.