The Quorum was a
coffee house in
New Orleans, known as a model for
multicultural exchange in the politically and
racially
A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...
charged atmosphere of the 1960s. It became a frequent target of
segregationist harassment
Harassment covers a wide range of behaviors of offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behavior that demeans, humiliates or embarrasses a person, and it is characteristically identified by its unlikelihood in terms of social and moral ...
in New Orleans after it opened to persons from all racial backgrounds in 1963.
In 1964, police raided The Quorum and arrested 73 people with charges such as "playing guitars out of tune." Many musicians, poets and artists spent time at The Quorum including
Jerry Jeff Walker.
Documentary
A
documentary film about racial integration and the role of this small coffee house was released in 2003. The documentary, ''The Quorum,'' was written and produced by Drs. Harriet J. Ottenheimer (Kansas State University) and Maurice M. Martinez (University of North Carolina-Wilmington). Both are alumni of the Quorum coffeehouse. The film was awarded Best Documentary at the Cine Noir, Best Documentary at the Cape Fear Independent Film Network, and was a finalist at the Atlanta Independent Black Film Festival.
References
External links
The Quorum - movie website
Coffeehouses and cafés in the United States
Buildings and structures in New Orleans
History of New Orleans
History of racial segregation in the United States
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