RHT Program: Reston's Inclusive Roots

Reston was a groundbreaking community when it began in the early 1960s.

One of founder Robert E. Simon's goals was a place where everyone belonged. With that in mind, he believed that diversity was a key to building Reston.

Reston's inclusiveness - in a time when segregation laws were still in effect in Virginia - is the subject of a program presented by the Reston Historic Trust on Feb. 28.

"Building the Reston Community - Openness, Diversity, and Inclusiveness (civil rights in the 1960's)" is part of a RHT series on the early history of Reston.

The program, at 7 p.m. at Reston Community Center Lake Anne, will explore how the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s set the stage for Simon’s concept of openness that challenged the segregation laws and the racial traditions of Virginia. 

Presenters include a panel of Reston residents from the 1960s and early 1970s, including Tom Ahart, Carol Ann Bradley, Laura Thomas, Doris Briggs, J. Arthur Jones, and Vern Wingert.

The program is free. For more information, call the Reston Museum at 703-709-7700, email restonmuseum@gmail.com, or visit www.restonmuseum.org.

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