Over 50 years after she was promised a seat on a Rose Parade float, only to have that honor taken away when city officials found out she was African-American, Joan Williams will be seated at the head of the Rose Parade on New Year's Day as it cruises down Colorado Boulevard. Williams was 27 when named Miss Crown City as a city hall worker and invited to ride in the 1958 parade. After it was learned the light-complected woman was black, the offer disappeared and co-workers shunned her. "It was one of the first times, as an adult, I began to grow up and realize what racism is," Williams said. "Somehow I wasn't the person they wanted on that float anymore just because of my heritage."
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