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Ralph Willis, Councillor Dean discuss honor for Dr. King 2011-02-13 - City Hall, 116 Campbellsville ST, Columbia, KY - Photo by Ed Waggener. Columbia citizen Ralph Willis with Senior Columbia City Councillor Craig Dean right: Ralph Willis and Councillor Dean had a followup talk after Willis stood before the Columbia City Council to ask that the name of Martin Luther King be honored with street name change. Willis is the son of Earl Willis, the leader of the Civil Rights movement in Adair County, the man who spearheaded the drive to make Adair County one of the first Kentucky Counties to comply with Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark May 17, 1954 Supreme Court Decision which ruled school segregation unconstitutional. The elder Willis was a truck driver for Skaggs Transfer at the time. He would be met on his return from trips to Louisville, KY, by other activists for guidance. Earl Willis' stubborn unyielding resolution led to a court victory and an early compliance with Federal law. Willis Street in Columbia is named for Earl Willis. At the Monday, February 7, 2011 City Council meeting, Mayor Mark D. Harris assured Mr. Willis that his request for a "Martin Luther King Street" designation for KY 61/Burkesville ST from Burkesville and Hudson to the light at Burkesville ST and the Columbia Bypass (Adair Veterans Memorial Bypass after February 14, 2011) and for KY 61 South to the Louie B. Nunn to be renamed "Martin Luther King Boulevard," would be considered, pending Kentucky Department of Highways consent. Clicking ReadMore accesses the full City Council Report for Monday, February 7, 2011 Read More... | Permalink | Comments?

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