After traveling approximately 200 miles from Memphis along Interstate 40 East, Vie, her husband and I arrived at historic predominately black Tennessee State University in Nashville, Tennessee. The school was affectionately known as TSU. I was surprised that there were no cotton fields in Nashville. The terrain changed. Instead of flat land with rich soil …
According to an article written by Michelle Lee, “The American Economy of the 60s and 70s”, during the 1960’s, the government struggled to slow inflation and stabilize the economy. When President Johnson came into office, he implemented the Great Society of the 1960’s. The Vietnam War and the War on Poverty were top priorities. The …
God made us all in His image. We are to form relationships with Him and each other. The first commandment is to love Him with all our heart, soul and mind. The second is to love our neighbors as thyself. (Matthew 22: 37-39, King James Version). If you can change the hearts of people, you …
MaDear and Dad were proud of our accomplishments. In spite of hardships, all five children graduated from high school. They were proud of us but we were even prouder of them. We were inspired by their exemplary life. They sacrificed over the years to provide for us. We will never know just how much. We …
In the fall, I turned sixteen years old. I looked forward to spending time with my friends and going on my first date. MaDear and Dad required that the boys I dated come into the house and they subjected them to a barrage of questions. A common question was “who ya people?” I wanted to …
Living in stable housing, having food to eat and medical care are basic human rights. Prior to the Medicare and Medicaid program of 1965, these basic needs were not met for black and poor people. Many white people thought it was black and poor peoples’ fault that we couldn’t rise above poverty. It’s not that …
There was a brand new high school that was built to accommodate the children in the area. It was initially built for the white students, but due to white flight, the school was now predominately black. White flight occurred when white people moved out of urban areas that were more racially diverse to suburban areas. …
I was completing my ninth grade year in school and looking forward to moving back to Memphis in the summer. Dad was still gainfully employed at the Navy Base. He rode the city bus to and from Memphis, to Millington, when we moved. MaDear was working in private homes and saving the money earned to …
There is a saying that children learn what they live. I believe this to be true. I was almost fifteen years old when we moved from “The Bottom.” Because of individual and systemic racism, we lived in abject poverty the entire time. Black people were still denied basic civil and human rights and used separate …
In the early 1960’s, Dick Gregory, comedian and political activist was credited with saying these words, “I know the South very well. I spent twenty years there one night”. Those of us who lived in the South felt the same way. One night can seem like twenty long years. Individual and systemic racism destroyed many …