Coretta Scott King at Yale, 1969

L to R: President Kingman Brewster Jr; Coretta Scott King; A. Elizabeth Chase, chair, Fellows of Helen Hadley Hall; and Henry Parker, chair, New Haven Black Coalition, February 25, 1969

Coretta Scott King was invited to Yale in late February 1969 as the first Frances Blanshard Fellow. The Blanshard Fellowship was named after Frances Bradshaw Blanchard, wife of Sterling Professor of Philosophy Brand Blanshard. Frances Blanshard was an art history scholar who served as Dean of Women at Swarthmore College before joining her husband at Yale in 1945. The Blanshard Fellowship was administered by the Fellowship of Helen Hadley Hall, the first Yale fellowship to honor women on the campus. Helen Hadley Hall, opened in 1959, was the first residence hall on the Yale campus built for women graduate and professional students. Mrs. King spoke to a standing room only crowd in Woolsey Hall about “The Role of the Academic Community in Today’s Turbulent World.”

Press release from Feburary 23, 1969 regarding Coretta Scott King’s speech at Woolsey Hall

Transcript of the WNHC-TV editorial telecast, March 7-9, 1969

Channel 8 in New Haven aired an editorial telecast in March 1969 following Mrs. King's visit to Yale. The telecast included the following excerpt from her speech at Woolsey Hall:

"Maybe the students, more than their elders, recognize that the world in which we live has shrunk to such a dimension that, whether we like it or not, we live in One World. And to paraphrase John Donne, no man, no nation, no race, is an island entire of itself."

Mrs. King wrote to A. Elizabeth Chase, chair of the Fellows of Helen Hadley Hall, to express her gratitude for being named the first Frances Blanshard Fellow and for the opportunity to speak to the "Yale University family."

Letter from Coretta Scott King to A. Elizabeth Chase, April 7, 1969

The New Haven Register published an article summarizing Mrs. King's remarks the day following her speech. She noted that “there is turbulence on campuses, because there is turbulence in the world,” and lauded the efforts of students “who dare to struggle to right wrongs.” She also focused on increasing the leadership roles of women in the United States, declaring that “the day of second-class citizenry for women is past.”

New Haven Register article, February 25, 1969