Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke made his second visit to Greensboro to get a tour of the International Civil Rights Museum and speak with North Carolina A&T students.

O'Rourke heard presentations on the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Greensboro Four sit-in.

"I want the people of North Carolina to know that they are important to me, they're important to the future of this country," he said. "Their heroism in the past describes a better future for this country."

On February 1, 1960, four North Carolina A&T students held a sit-in at the Woolworth's lunch counter and demanded to be served. The event sparked a wave of non-violent sit-ins across the South.

O'Rourke said learning about the Greensboro Four and the civil rights movement was important to his campaign.

"It's important for me to understand that history but also important for me to think about how that might apply to the challenges we face today," he said. "Whether those are economic, or health care, climate, or the fact that we still have endemic racism in this country."

The North Carolina presidential primary is in early March 2020.

Copyright WUNC 2019

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