For the first 18 years of my life, I lived in abject poverty. I grew up in a two parent household with four older siblings. We only traveled outside our state of Tennessee, to see our mother’s family in Mississippi. After I graduated from high school, Dad, my sister, and her husband went to Chicago …
Copyrighted 2026. Francine grew up in the segregated South and lived with her four siblings and parents in a Christian household. Things were difficult for Black families. Her father served in the Army during WWII and was injured while training to serve in France. After his discharge, he was denied G.I. benefits, and a meaningful …
In 1994, an Artic front moved in the Mid-South as moist air from the Gulf was passing through.Freezing rain poured for hours, creating layers of ice on the roadways. The weight of the ice was no match tree limbs and power lines. In Memphis, power lines sagged then collapsed. Tree limbs snapped, crackled, and then …
My period of awakening happened while living impoverished. As I learned more about the history of the flag, national anthem, and the United States Constitution during elementary school, my why start turning into what. I was tired of asking why we were in poverty. Now it was time to ask what we could do to …
Prior to moving from the shack off highway 61, the highway stretching from Tennessee to Mississippi, one of MaDear’s brothers came by in his loud rusty old pickup truck. Since they had a strong family resemblance, Uncle Clarence looked like a female version of her. He heard about a big new department store where Black …
My family and I lived in abject poverty in the segregated South. There was never money for Christmas gifts. We were happy if we were lucky enough to get an apple, an orange, and some nuts. One particular Christmas, we had to share an orange. We were thankful for the orange. As always, MaDear and …
I blog and write about my life growing up in poverty to encourage and empower others. My parents, four older siblings, and I lived in abject poverty in the segregated South. Our poverty was the direct result of systemic discrimination. Our parents lacked access to gainful employment, and we lacked access to healthcare. When the …
Today is Veterans Day. It began as Armistice Day on November 11, 1919, to commemorate the end of World War I (WWI). In 1938, it became a legal holiday dedicated to veterans of WWI. After World War II (WWII) and the Korean War, the name was changed to Veterans Day to honor all veterans. President …
My story is a journey through poverty to hope. My family and I lived in absolute poverty in the richest country in the world. I grew up in the segregated South and lived in shacks until I was fourteen years old. Racist legal state and local laws called “Jim Crow” mandated the separation of races …
At the close of the Civil War, almost all Black people were illiterate. There were few schools for white people and none for Black people. Southern states faced with the problem of integrating Black people, began to legislate to make makeshift benefits that resulted in Jim Crow and segregation laws. During Reconstruction, white people did …
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