Seattle
Segregation vs. Southern Segregation
In most southern states, segregation
of schools, buses, restaurants, and public facilities was
required by law. That was not the case in Washington State.
Indeed, it was technically illegal to discriminate on the basis
of race, although the law was almost never enforced.
Less total than the southern version,
Seattle’s segregation practices nevertheless extended well
beyond housing. They also affected not just Blacks but also Asian
Americans.
Coon Chicken Inn stood as beacon of
bigotry on Lake City
Way at 20th Ave NE until the 1950s. Patrons entered the restaurant through the mouth.
