The conflict leading to the Greensboro Sit-ins was very complex. It started after the Civil War when African-Americans were freed and left to integrate into the community. Although the Africans were freed, the white majority did not want to lose any sort of power. They then passed "separate but equal" laws that led to anything but equal treatment. Segregation spread everywhere from bathrooms and water fountains to beaches and lunch counters.
As segregation spread, so did the number of people who fought for integration. These people came up with different ideas to show the majority party that they deserved real equal treatment. They boycotted services that were not serving the different races the same. Throughout the nation, marches and protests were led to the point where they could not be ignored.
The Sit-ins were the student's idea to draw attention to their ideas of equality. They thought that they would be able to say what they wanted to say, but it wasn't that easy. The white patrons of F.W. Woolworth's did not take lightly to their lunch counter being taken by the African students. Some people even took to hitting and throwing things at the four. But they just kept coming back, and it led to a compromise throughout the South.
Throughout the South, the Whites integrated the Africans into the community. However, it took a very long time for equality to spread.