Dunne, John B.

John B. Dunne (1943-1982) was a civil rights activist in Chapel Hill, N.C., and Birmingham, Ala., 1961-1964; student at the Choate School, 1958-1961, the University of North Carolina, 1961-1963, Harvard University, and Yale Law School; and a lawyer in Boston, Mass., 1972-1975, and Norwich, Vt., 1975-1982.

From the description of John B. Dunne papers, 1958-1965 ; 1983-1984. WorldCat record id: 26041059

John Bailey Dunne was born in Boston, Mass., on 18 March 1943 to John and Emmaline Dunne. He grew up in Brecksville, Ohio. From 1958 to 1961, Dunne attended the Choate School in Connecticut, where he won awards as a fullback on the football team and was an accomplished violinist. At Choate, Dunne was awarded the Joseph P. Kennedy Memorial Scholarship and won the prestigious John Motley Morehead Scholarship to the University of North Carolina. Based on his work at Choate and placement tests, Dunne entered the University of North Carolina as a sophomore. In his second year, Dunne became involved with the civil rights movement, helping to establish a University chapter of the Student Peace Union.

In the spring of 1963, Dunne traveled with the UNC Tar Heel Press on a trip to Birmingham, Ala., where he stayed on to join the Birmingham Movement. While in Birmingham, Dunne was arrested and jailed for helping black parents find their children, who were being released from jail. After his release, Dunne returned to Chapel Hill, but by December 1963, he gave up all pretense of finishing school. Dunne relinquished his Morehead scholarship because of its segregationist philosophy and devoted his time to the Freedom Movement in Chapel Hill. Dunne joined the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and led protests against local segregated restaurants. Dunne's involvement with the civil rights movement culminated in a Holy Week fast on the lawn of the old Post Office. Convicted of trespassing, Dunne began serving a two-year sentence, which later was overturned. During the summer of 1964, Dunne was released on parole to Connecticut and, in the fall of that year, returned to school to finish his senior year at Harvard University, where he received a scholarship.

In 1972, Dunne graduated from Yale Law School, practiced law briefly in Boston, then moved his practice to Norwich, Vt., in 1975. Dunne married Faith Weinstein, a professor of Education at Dartmouth College, and had two children, Matthew and Josh. While in Norwich, Dunne was an active supporter of children's theater and Upper Valley Youth Services. Dunne died of cancer on 26 December 1982.

From the guide to the John B. Dunne Papers (#4391), 1943-1984, (Southern Historical Collection)