Skip to content
The Historic New Orleans Collection
Visit
Calendar

The Community That Shaped Civil Rights in New Orleans

A group of adults and children stand outside Dooky Chases Restaurant. They smile at the camera in front of the restaurants sign, with a brick wall and street in the background. The scene captures a moment of gathering and joy.
Dooky Chase Family Portrait, 1983, photograph by Christopher Porché West. HNOC © Porché West, acquisition made possible by John J. Uhl, 2017.0034.7

Explore how New Orleans communities sustained the Civil Rights Movement in this talk presented in HNOC’s The Trail They Blazed exhibition.

Explore how the strength of New Orleans communities sustained the Civil Rights Movement in this Shortcut presented in HNOC’s The Trail They Blazedexhibition. From businesses to living rooms, learn how local civil rights leaders turned ordinary spaces into engines of extraordinary change.

A group of civil rights activists, including men in suits and ties and women in dresses, march together on a street, surrounded by supporters. A sign for a restaurant is visible in the background. The scene is from a historical protest.
The Consumers League pickets a S. Claiborne shopping center on September 17, 1960, press photo by the Times Picayune. HNOC, donated by NOLA Media Group, Original Materials, 2015.0437.27; © The Times-Picayune
A view of two visitors exploring "The Trail They Blazed" exhibition at HNOC.
A view of The Trail They Blazed on view at HNOC until June 7, 2026. Photo by Amber Johnson, HNOC

Hear This Talk

Offered daily at 2 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday*
Free and open to the public (no registration required)
Duration: Approximately 20 minutes
Location: The Trail They Blazed exhibition, 520 Royal Street

*This talk is offered on a rotating basis with other Shortcut Talks and may not always be available on a given day.
For groups of 10 or more, please contact tours@hnoc.org.

Learn More

Visit

Shortcut Talks

Enjoy free, daily talks that explore Gulf South history and culture through the lens of our exhibitions.

View View
A group of people listens to a man speaking in a room. The man is gesturing with his hands, standing next to a large touchscreen table. The room has a warm ambiance with a brick wall in the background.
Visit

Tours & Daily Programs

Get more out of your museum visit with a guided tour, Shortcut Talk, or daily program.

View View
A guide gestures towards a historical photograph on the wall while speaking to a man and a woman in a gallery setting. The wall has an exhibit description titled A Most Dreadful Visitation: Frederick Douglass and The 1887 Riot.

Related Exhibitions

View More
Black and white photo of people in line for voting registration outside a building. Two men are seated near a Voting Applications sign, and several individuals are standing in line, some wearing hats and summer clothing.

The Trail They Blazed

June 6, 2025 to June 7, 2026
View View

Related Stories

View More
First Draft

The Activist Group That Used Peaceful Protests to Advance Civil Rights in New Orleans

The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) used nonviolent tactics to press for racial equality guaranteed under federal law.

View View
First Draft

Into the Heart of the Beast

As the 1961 Freedom Rides transfixed the nation, New Orleans civil rights activists played a crucial role.

View View

Related Collection Highlights

View More
A page from the American Black Directory shows an advertisement for a black-owned clothing store.

American Black Directory

A post-segregation sibling to the Green Book, this directory compiled information on Black-owned businesses across the country.

Learn More
A sepia-toned vintage photograph of a man with curly dark hair and a mustache. He is dressed in a 19th-century suit with a double-breasted coat and bow tie. The image has an old, slightly worn appearance.

Dr. Louis Charles Roudanez Papers

A rare collection of manuscript essays and family correspondence offers a thrilling look at one of the most influential people in the early struggle for African American civil rights in Louisiana.

Learn More

Related Virtual Exhibitions

View More
Four women stand behind a table set with a tablecloth, glassware, and a candle holder. Three of them wear light-colored dresses with floral corsages, and one wears a dark dress with a white collar. They are smiling and posed for a photograph.
Women's Rights

Voices of Progress: Twenty Women Who Changed New Orleans

Portraits of women who fought for equality, justice, and charity

View View
A group of people walking on a street, several wearing Vote 3 Dutch Morial shirts. Some are smiling and waving. Trees and houses are in the background. The mood appears lively and supportive.
Women's Rights

“Yet She Is Advancing”: New Orleans Women and the Right to Vote, 1878–1970

The story of women’s suffrage, leading up to and beyond the passage of the 19th Amendment

View View

Related Books

View More
The image shows a book titled Economy Hall: The Hidden History of a Free Black Brotherhood by Fatima Shaik. The cover features a vintage, worn notebook with a marbled design and a paper label.

Related News

View More
Exhibition curator Eric Seiferth speaks with WGNO about The Trail They Blazed at HNOC.
HNOC in the News

WGNO: “The Trail They Blazed” at the Historic New Orleans Collection

June 25, 2025
Journalist Christopher Leach explores HNOC’s exhibition honoring the achievements and sacrifices of local leaders during the Civil Rights Movement in New Orleans.
Read More
Visitors explore "The Trail They Blazed" exhibition at HNOC.
HNOC in the News

Beyond Bourbon Street Podcast Explores “The Trail They Blazed”

September 10, 2025
Exhibition curator Eric Seiferth joined host Mark Bologna to discuss HNOC’s newest exhibition about the Civil Rights Movement in New Orleans.
Read More
Students visit HNOC's exhibition "The Trail They Blazed."
Announcement

HNOC Announces Winners of 2026 Student Writing Contest

April 15, 2026
This year’s contest challenged students to address important civil rights issues facing America today and in the future, inspired by the HNOC exhibition “The Trail They Blazed.”
Read More
Stay Connected

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

1959 210 o6 2024 06 05 202329 tavg