Civil rights activist Elmore Nickelberry dies at 92
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Elmore Nickelberry, a civil rights icon who marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the fight for higher pay and better working conditions for sanitation workers, has died at the age of 92, according to his family.
According to Nickelberry’s son, Terrence Nickleberry, his father’s cancer returned, and he went into the hospital around Thanksgiving with fluid on his lungs. Soon after, he was placed in hospice.
Nickelberry served the City of Memphis as a sanitation worker for over 60 years. He began working for the city at the age of 21, fresh off the battlefields of the Korean War. He was making $1.25 for working a nine-hour day back then.
In March of 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. first came to Memphis for a non-violent protest in support of sanitation workers who were on strike due to poor working conditions and unlivable wages.
“It was hard when I started working… at first we had to tote tubs on our heads, and go to people’s backyards, and stuff run all down my head, down my back, and I couldn’t go home. I had to pull off my clothes before I go in the house because all the maggots be in my clothes,” said Nickelberry in a previous interview.
Nickelberry marched amongst the crowd with King leading the way.
King was killed on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel shortly afterward.
Fear of mass rioting after his death prompted Mayor Henry Loeb to finally acknowledge the American Federation of State, County Municipal Employees, or AFSCME, which represented the sanitation workers.
“Martin Luther King came to Memphis to help us, that’s how we got it. That’s the only way we got it. If he hadn’t come we might have been still fighting now,” said Nickelberry in a 2017 interview.
In turn, striking sanitation workers finally received a much-needed pay raise.
“I tell them, keep on marching, keep on doing the right thing. As long as they’re doing the right thing, everything will be good. But keep the dream alive,” said Nickelberry in a 2018 interview.
Memphis pastor and former president of the Memphis NAACP DR. Keith Norman had the pleasure of knowing Nickelberry personally. He says Nickelberry’s persistence and dedication as the longest-tenured employee of the city changed Memphis as we know it.
“While it didn’t solve the problem, many years later, they were still working under some very poor conditions, he was persistent enough to stay on the battlefield, he stayed on the wall, he didn’t come down,” Norman said. “And he always stood his ground, so I think that’s important. That will be his legacy.”
Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland released the following statement regarding his death:
“I’m sorry to hear about the passing of Elmore Nickelberry, a remarkable man whom I had gotten to know over the last 8 years. He served the public for over 60 years. His contributions to the sanitation strike and the pursuit of fair working conditions will be forever a part of Memphis history and a significant part of the America Civil Rights Movement.
As we reflect on his life, let us express our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and all those who stood alongside him in the pursuit of justice. May his legacy inspire future generations to continue the important work of advocating for the rights and dignity of workers everywhere.”
In : #EssexCounty
Tags: memphis civil rights activist elmore nickelberry dr. martin luther king jr.
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