The Wades

Andrew Wade died in 2005. As of 2015, Charlotte Wade is alive and living among her descendants in Nevada. A number of Wade descendants still live in Louisville, not far from the house that was dynamited. 

The Wade family contributed this photo montage for the library exhibit.  It traces their life as a family in the years since the case, showing Andrew (center) later in life, as well as their two adult daughters and various grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.

The Bradens

People who hear the Bradens’ story often ask why Carl Braden’s name isn’t as recognized as Anne’s. That may be because Carl died in 1975, years before the city of Louisville and state of Kentucky were willing to recognize the couple’s heroism. Anne went on to fight for civil rights until the end of her life in 2006. She founded the Carl Braden Memorial Center in 1990 . Home to SCEF since 1969, The building houses a number of local social justice civil rights organizations, including the Kentucky Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression.

In the years before she died, Anne was also a mentor to several generations of activists, including some students at the University of Louisville and Northern Kentucky University, where she taught. The University of Louisville Anne Braden Institute for Social Justice Research carries on Anne’s legacy

The City of Louisville

According to a report released in August 2015 by 24/7 Wall Street, the city of Louisville is the 4th most-segregated city in the U.S., with 51.1% of the city living in segregated areas. Similarly, a 2013 study by the Anne Braden Institute and the Metropolitan Housing Coalition found that 40% of Louisville residents live in extreme racial segregation.

Louisville Metro government The city released produced a Fair Housing Action Plan in 2014 designed3 to end housing segregation within 20 years.

What’s the value of integrated neighborhoods today? Why don’t we have them everywhere? How can they be achieved?

What does an integrated neighborhood look like vs. a diverse one? What has been integration’s effect on non-racial diversity in black neighborhoods?

community members gathered outside of Louisville Police Department headquarters to protest for more transparency in police actions after the death of Michael Brown, an unarmed black man, in Ferguson. Mo. The protest took place the day after Officer Darren Wilson, who fatally shot Brown, was not indicted.

The Nation

While there are people who still believe the 1954 Commonwealth Attorney’s theory of a communist plot, “The Red Scare” is a thing of the past. That’s not to say, however, that today’s atmosphere isn’t analogous to that of 1954. Our government’s anti-terror policies have run afoul of civil liberties. The shootings of unarmed African Americans have caused the nation to ask in what ways blacks are still being treated as second-class citizens. Like the Shively Newsweek, small, independent presses, now in the form of blogs and videos, “go viral” and have a large national impact. Also, similar to how integrationists were accused of being communists then, people continue to find other factors to justify their racism now. (It’s not that a driver was black; it’s that she was disrespectful. It’s not because they’re Mexican; it’s because they take our jobs.)