Oct. 11, 1961 - Dizzy Gillespie (pictured), the jazz trumpeter, charged today that he had been denied access to a swimming pool in a hotel in Kansas City, Mo., because he was a Negro. He said he was investigating the possibility of court action. “I have been given the runaround on this thing,” Mr. Gillespie said. The 43-year-old musician was in the news last week when he was told he could not play in New Orleans because his group included an Argentine pianist, Lalo Schifrin. Mr. Gillespie said Louisiana had a law banning the mixing of races on stages. “I have been discriminated against, and I am going to get satisfaction,” Mr. Gillespie said of the swimming pool episode. “They had me running up and down stairs all day trying to get a pass to the swimming pool, and they finally told me no passes were available.”
#jazz #jazzfunk #jazzmusic #jazzy #jazzguitar #jazzdance #civilrights #civilrightsmovement #civilrightsactivist #civilrightsmuseum #civilrightsleader #civilrightstosilverrights #civilrightsera #CivilRightsIcon #civilrightswalk #civilrightsactivists #civilrightsmovements #civilrightsphotography #MLK #mlkday #mlkjr #MLKWeekend #mlkmemorial