Tent City
Protests
By
Orion Collins-Silva
And
Cidjud Felix
Overview
 Mel
King: Life, Political activism
 The
Protests: When, where, and why they
took place
 The
Effect on the Community: The
CHANGE in other communities
Mel King
Mel king was born in 1928 in Boston
Massachusetts. His family immigrated from Guyana
in the 1920’s. When he went to collage he got
degrees in Mathematics and Education.
Mel King (con.)
He has been a active member
of his community. In 1983 he ran for
mayor of Boston but sadly he did not
win.
The Protests
The protest started April 28th, 1968.
They started because the Boston
Redevelopment Authority wanted to tear
down housing in South End Boston to make
a parking lot.
Post Protests
Mel King formed the C.A.U.S.E organization
which fought to stop the development and
have the BRA make affordable housing for
low income citizens.
The Effects on the Community
The community was changed greatly
because of one act that Mel King Helped
start.
Effects on community (con.)
Many neighboring areas started to build
affordable housing complexes in reaction to
what happened with Mel King.
The South End Technology
Center
The South End Technology started after the
protest it was started after the protest and
gives technology training to people in the
South End area
Important Events
April 25th 1968
C.A.U.S.E. stages a sit-in at the Boston Redevelopment authority’s office to protest the tearing-down of affordable
housing in
Boston.
April 26th, 1968
The picket line at the corner of Dartmouth Street and Columbus Ave in the South End begins. This started the four day
long protest that was known as the Tent City Protests. Later in the day, 23 people (including Mel King) were arrested
after a brief
scuffle.
April 27th, 1968
The parking lot at the corner of Dartmouth and Columbus Ave is turned into “Tent City” and hundreds of protesters
camp out in the parking lot.
April 30th, 1968
The police ordered the protesters to vacant the parking lot and, deciding that they had made their point, the
protesters left.
1979
The Tent City Corporation was formed to be a "community controlled development organization dedicated to the
preservation of decent, affordable housing and a multi-racial, multi-ethnic community of low and moderate income
people in the South End."
April 30th
1988
The aptly named “Tent City apartments” were dedicated
on the site of the Tent City protests.
Pictures
Interview of Mel King
This is an interview WBGH did with Mel King
that happened 11/07/1983
http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/tocnmla000396-interview-with-mel-king-tape-1of-1
Sources
 http://cache.thephoenix.com/secure/upl
oadedImages/The_Phoenix/News/Flashb
acks/Flashback_Mel_King.jpg
 http://kora.matrix.msu.edu/files/50/305/32
-131-318-98-african_activist_archivea0b6r8-a_14380.jpg
 http://bostonlookingbackward.files.wordp
ress.com/2010/08/tent-city.jpg?w=540