Ethnic data from 1960 | Federal Way letters

Published 8:34 pm Thursday, May 6, 2010

When reading about the Washington state law requirement for ethnic data from schools, I am reminded of 1960.

In 1960, I was a young soldier serving in the U.S. Army in Louisiana. One day I was dispatched to nearby Shreveport with a military vehicle. A serviceman was at the Greyhound bus depot needing a ride to the army base.

I looked all around, but did not see our unit supply room clerk named Billy Rogers. I asked the man at the ticket counter if there was a soldier needing a ride. He directed me to the back room. People of one race had a room with the “colored” sign over the door.

Elbert Field, Federal Way