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Ruby Duncan, president of the Clark County Welfare Rights Organization who led nationally publicized marches on the Las Vegas Strip in 1971.

Photograph of Ruby Duncan, president of the Clark County Welfare Rights Organization who led nationally publicized marches on the Las Vegas Strip in 1971.

Part of an interview with Ruby Duncan conducted by Claytee White, March 2, 2013. Duncan talks about the Welfare Rights "sit-in" at the Palms Room at the Stardust Hotel with Mary Wesley and a group of children. Ruby and Mary were arrested and promptly released.

Series of photographs taken at the San Francisco offices of the Department of Housing and Urban Development when Ruby Duncan and others from Operation Life visited, c. 1983.

Interview with Ida Bowser conducted by Claytee D. White on August 30, 2007. Born in Tallulah, Louisiana, Bowser came to Las Vegas as a child. Her first job after high school was as a teacher's aide. Later, she worked as a maid at the Sahara and Flamingo hotels. Disenchanted with maid's work, Bowser applied to the welfare office for on-the-job training and began working for the UNLV library, where she remained for thirty-seven years. Bowser recalls Ruby Duncan and the civil rights movement, notable individuals and places, and a discrimination lawsuit.

Interview with Judge Lee Gates conducted by Claytee D. White on December 5, 1996. Born in Louisiana, Gates moved to Las Vegas around 1960. Following high school, he attended UNLV, where he was a member of the Black Student Association and studied under professor Roosevelt Fitzgerald, who raised his awareness of black history. Gates participated in the civil rights movement and worked as a lawyer before becoming a judge. He discusses Jackson Street, Dr. Charles West, attorney Charles Kellar, and his own involvement with Ruby Duncan's group.

Exterior view of the former Cove Hotel, which became the headquarters for Operation Life.