Bob-Lo Island (Bois Blanc, Ontario) was Detroit's Coney Island, running from 1898 to 1993.  Fondly remembered for its amusement-park amenities, it was also known for its segregated ferry boats.  In June 1945, Sarah Elizabeth Ray, a 24-year-old Black secretary, was denied a seat on the SS Columbia.  Represented by NAACP lawyer Thurgood Marshall, Ray took her fight for inclusion to the US Supreme Court in 1948 and won.  Her victory paved the way for the landmark 1954 decision, Brown v. Board of Education, which ruled that "separate but equal" was unconstitutional.  Aaron Schillinger and Desiree Cooper are on hand to talk about Ray's story and its Jewish connections, their documentary, Boblo Boats: A Detroit Ferry Tale, and their grassroots movement, Sarah Elizabeth Ray Project.

Sponsored by:

Dorothy & Arnold Collens

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