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still shot from the documentary, The Strange Demise of Jim Crow
Arthur Gaines in a recent interview
Arthur Gaines and his wife, Jean Gaines in a recent interview
Gaines was a high school principal in Houston who supported the desegregation efforts of the TSU students in the early 1960s. When Houston restaurants were quietly desegregated in June, 1963, Gaines was asked to take his wife to one of Houston's fanciest restaurants, George Dentler's Pier 21, as a test case. Their dinner, which the Gaines enjoyed, was uneventful and marked another turning point in Houston history. Arthur Gaines later became a professor at Texas Southern University.we would be grateful to hear your personal stories, suggestions and comments