Biography
Carole A. Graves was the president of the Newark Teachers Union (American Federation of Teachers Local 481) during the two landmark Newark teachers' strikes of 1970 and 1971 — among the most bitter and racially charged labor battles in American education. Elected president in 1968, Graves led a three-week strike in 1970 and an eleven-week strike in 1971; both defied court injunctions, and the walkouts unfolded amid a fraught conflict between the union and a Black-led community-control movement in the city.
Graves was jailed for contempt of court for her role in the strikes — serving roughly three months in the Essex County Jail over the 1970 strike and six months over the 1971 strike, during which more than 200 Newark teachers were also jailed. The 1971 settlement nonetheless won significant gains in teachers' rights and working conditions.
