Russell Takes the Stand

Celtics star and newly minted Head Coach Bill Russell spoke at the “Freedom Graduation” for Patrick T. Campbell Junior High School in Roxbury, Massachusetts. The initial graduation was interrupted by the presence of an anti-integration Boston School Committee member at the largely Black school. In response, the separate “Freedom Graduation” was held at a nearby church where Russell said, “I do not say we have to love each other, but we must try to understand and respect each other.” In 1968, the school was renamed to Martin Luther King Jr. K-8 School.