On April 26, 1965, the Boston School Committee voted 3 to 2 without a hearing to reject grievances the NAACP had brought to them. In response, on April 28 Pastor Vernon Carter, who was pastor at All Saints Lutheran Church in the South End, began a 108-day vigil outside the Boston School Committee headquarters that galvanized popular support against the School Committee. Sometimes he would be alone and sometimes people would join him and march. He held his ecumenical services on the sidewalk throughout the summer. Finally, on August 18 he ended his vigil and was hospitalized for exhaustion and exposure. His one-man protest had a considerable impact on the mood and opinions of everyone throughout Boston.

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