In 1966, Lois Fernandez, her sister Sylvia Green, her cousin Gerri Fernandez, and her friend Ruth Arthur opened a boutique, the Uhuru Hut, at 500 South 23rd Street. They felt that a store focused on Afrocentric clothes, jewelry and fine art would complement consciousness raising and increased black cultural awareness. At the same time, she and Ruth Arthur began to think about possibilities for some sort of neighborhood gathering in the area.
