BOURBON COUNTY, Ky. (LEX News) — In 1961, three teenage girls sat down at a whites-only counter in Paris, Kentucky, and were arrested. The story was buried for decades.
Weida Allen was one of the three, now known as the Paris 3.
"There is no record of us ever being arrested, only the newspaper articles. I believe there were 5. However, we were told to forget it, not to speak about it at all," Allen said.
Decades later, Allen's granddaughter, Karrie Claybrook, started asking questions and helped bring the story back to light. Now, it's writing a new chapter.
Claybrook co-founded Tapestry Collective and, along with her husband, owns the bus station where the effort took shape.
"I co-founded Tapestry Collective, my husband and I together, we own the bus station and we thought, wouldn't it be amazing to create a literal tapestry, a tapestry we believe that we're best when we really lock arms together, when we weave one another together and we dedicate ourselves to being part of something bigger than ourselves," Claybrook said.
Even to this day, some people who live up and down the street are afraid to come over to this side of the block, but they say because of this new mural, they have seen so many new faces come and check it out.
Claybrook said the mural had to be expanded 3 times to fit all the faces, with around 400 included in total.
Neighbors picked up paintbrushes, some painting themselves and others honoring family members from the past.
Kathy Werking, the lead artist on the project, said the work went beyond the wall itself.
"I'm very proud of this mural, but the magic happened over in the painting sessions," Werking said.
Community member Nimalie Yarem described what the finished work means to her.
"A celebration of our community through its differences, it's diversity, age, you know, all the walks of life," Yarem said.
Claybrook reflected on what happens when difficult stories are finally told.
"It's a reminder that sometimes stories are really hard to talk about. They're painful. But when you do, when you create that safe space for people to just talk about those stories, something magical happens," Claybrook said.
For Allen, the growing mural is proof the past doesn't have to define the future.
"If we stay united, we will show the young people that just because bad things happen doesn't mean that it's going to stay that way," Allen said.
Molly Demrow is committed to covering the stories that matter to you. If you have an idea, please reach out to Molly at molly.demrow@wlex.tv
