Mayor Forms Committee of 50
Mayor Lester Bates established the "Committee of 50."
In response to continued protests and legal challenges to segregation, Columbia Mayor Lester Bates formed the interracial “Committee of 50.” The “Committee of 50” in Columbia votes to urge the city council to adopt a non-discriminatory hiring policy. The biracial committee was formed to help negotiate integration in the city. In 1964, it was renamed the Columbia Community Relations Council.