Women's Civic League

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

Constructed in 1975, this building replaced the previous San Diego headquarters of the Women’s Civic League which was built during the Great Depression and served the needs of San Diego's Black community. The Women’s Civic League was established in 1934 by a group of Black women led by former teacher and Kentucky native Rebecca Craft. Active in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Craft arrived in San Diego in 1910 and became determined to establish an organization for the Black women of San Diego. The League secured this site as a meeting house and community center at a time when Clay Avenue was regarded as the heart of San Diego’s Black community.

Images

This building was constructed in 1975 and replaced the original headquarters of the Women's Civic League

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

The Women's Civic League’s purpose was to promote uplift within the African American community of San Diego, increase Black political participation, support Black educational opportunities, and to combat prejudice within the city. Adopting the slogan “study, work, act,” members pledged their support for “the study of science of government in an effort to overcome some of the cloudy viewpoints as they affect our people in civic affairs; to work out some of our internal problems through a constructive program, and to act concertedly and intelligently upon facts.”

The Women’s Civic League has a long list of accomplishments. During the Great Depression of the 1930s, the organization provided relief in the form of food and clothing for Black San Diegans hit hard by the economic crisis. The League fought for infrastructure improvements in in the Black community of Logan Heights in Southeast San Diego. It supported public health initiatives and offered scholarships to Black students. In the 1940s, League members crusaded against the San Diego City Schools’ refusal to hire Black teachers. Their campaign was successful and Lorraine Van Lowe became San Diego’s first Black teacher when she was hired at Memorial Junior High School in 1941.

The original Women’s Civic League building stood at this site at 2972 Clay Avenue but was torn down and replaced by the current building in 1975. A marker on the front of the building commemorates Rebecca Craft and her contribution to the founding of the organization. As of 2020, the Women’s Civic League continues to operate to support various causes throughout the San Diego community.

Sources

Madyun, Gail. "Rebecca Craft and The Women's Civic League," The Journal of San Diego History. Winter 1988. Accessed September 8th 2020. https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/1988/january/midst/.

San Diego Union. August 18, 1946.. section B, page 16.

Wilson, Charla. “Why the Y?: The Origins of San Diego’s YWCA’ Clay Avenue Branch for African Americans,” The Journal of San Diego History. Summer-Fall 2016, Numbers 3&4. https://sandiegohistory.org/journal/2016/july/why-the-y-origin-of-sd-ywca-clay-avenue-branch-for-african-americans/

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Google Maps