By now, we have viewed and watched quite a bit of material which highlights both peaceful and more aggressive responses to the brutality inflicted on black and brown communities. Some vocalized how they would've responded one way or the other. I challenge you to look beyond yourselves. Ask someone who lived then through the violence of Jim Crow, and get their opinion on how they responded. Then, I'd like you to contrast their response with how you would respond to the then violence as well as today's violence. Do any of them reflect either a reading or a viewing from this unit? Please share your comments.
Due: Fri., 10/6/17 by the beginning of class. (Please remember the blog rubric)
I started off asking my grandparents but I realized my dad's mom was raised in the mid-west so her experience was different and my mother's mom is from D.C and Jim Crow Laws was before my grandmother's and grandfather's time. My grandmother had me ask my cousin (my great-grandmother's cousin) and she explained to me that at that time she was almost a teenager, she lived in Fallschurch, Virginia where a lot of my family is from and she remembers always having to always go through the back of places and could not sit at the counters. She couldn't answer as to how she responded because that was "normal". She knew that was what she was supposed to do but she didn't see it as prejudice then. She said they didn't come in contact with white people because they were confined in Fallschurch. Family "the grown ups" did not explain anything to the children about what was going on and she did not know if that was to protect them or not but many things were not spoken about. She had some instances where she could have gotten assaulted or worse by white men while just walking down the street but as far as responding, she did not because it was not a lot of fighting or prejudice where she grew up in Fallschurch. In my opinion, I am from Northern Virginia as well and if I lived in Virginia and did not see much violence I would think it was a normal way of living but if I did see violence or lived in the South I would participate in the sit ins, in different movements. I feel like it was worse back then than it is today, but today I know I have to stand up for my rights and protest which I have like In Charlotte last year and I will continue to.
ReplyDeleteI asked my maternal grandfather who was raised in Danville, VA (the last capital of the confederacy) and my paternal grandmother (who currently lives in Charlottesville,VA). They both stated that they aligned themselves with Martin Luther King and his nonviolent approach. When I asked them why they said it was because of their shared views on Christianity. This made sense because they were and are both still heavy in the church. My grandfather is the pastor of his own church. Contrary to my families heavy dealings in Christianity and having historically and currently aligned themselves with nonviolent protests I do not align myself with either. I grew up a black homosexual woman in a city (Danville, VA) that prides itself on confederate values. I've witnesses Klan members (fully dressed in their "uniform" ) who proudly and quite often line up on South main street in front of the Confederate Museum. I watched them do this when the AME church in South Carolina was shot up. I watched them do this in outrage over a statue while my family Charlotteville did not want to go outside. I've made the drive to get my grandmother from her hometown because shes afraid of what "they" might do. Ive stayed up all night afraid my brother wont make it home because people do not know how to act. It is 2017 and we are still singing, walking, and taking a knee. You see how "they" took Colin Kapernick and left him without a job & then rewrote the narrative of why he was kneeling in the first place. Now everyone's kneeling because they dislike Trump not because of police brutality. We have to take direct action. We must be well versed on the law and use the law to our advantage as "they do". Whites were in Charlottesville in full military attire because they knew legally they could. While we were marching. Letting people beat up on you isn't getting anyone anywhere its at the point where they are like misbehaving children. As a child when I misbehaved I got popped and the next time I got ready to do it again I thought about it because I remembered that pop. Eventually I got tired of getting of getting popped and I got some sense about myself. I say all this to say. You get out of line, you get popped. When you get tired of getting popped you'll get yourself together. That's the approach we need to take.
ReplyDeleteI begin asking my grandmother about her experiences. I chose to ask her because she was born and raised in Georgia. She said her father was a farmer and her mom, before she passed was a school teacher/tutor. My grandmother was born in 1935. She was in Georgia up until 1953. She talked about how the drive from Georgia to New York was overbearing due to the fact that it was no hotels or rest stops accessible for blacks. It was literally horrible for her she explained. As a child her mom taught her from home because the walk to school was too far for a child to walk alone. Then also on the days my grandma did make it to class it wouldn’t be enough supplies to use. In New York my grandma had a friend who did eight years in prison for being a black panther member. My grandma said she was a follower of Martin Luther King Jr. My uncles who were teenagers in the 60’s and 70s were follower of Malcolm X. My grandma mentioned how she believed Malcom X made sense but she didn’t want the kind of violent influence in her house. I feel like I am the opposite of my grandma. I believe that this day in age we need a different approach. It needs peace but it needs to be assertive as well.
ReplyDeleteI asked my grandmother who is 74 years old about what she endured living in Mississippi during the civil rights movement. Of course she faced racism because Mississippi was very racist. She told me she remembered when the 3 volunteers from Greenville, MS went missing. My Great Grandfather (her father) wouldn’t allow her to go and protest or work in the voter registration drive because it was dangerous. I understand why she chose not to go because she couldn’t go against her fathers orders. If I were living back then I really don’t know how I would respond to the violence. I feel like my anger would’ve gotten the best of me and something bad would’ve happened.
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ReplyDeleteThe conversation I had with grandmother regarding her memories of the days of “Jim Crow,” was depressing and enlightening. Depressing because I hated to hear what she and my family members had to endure growing-up in the rural community of Jasper, Texas. Some folks may have heard of Jasper, Texas. It was the small town where his so-called Caucasian friends dragged an African-American mentally disabled man behind a pick-up truck. This event happened in 1998 and shocked the world. People were in denial, they did not believe that this type of thing could still happen. The men responsible was executed sometime around 2011.
My grandmother however, was not in denial. She said that growing-up in a rural predominantly white rural community, where blacks and whites were poorly educated, was difficult. The incident in 1998 was common place in Jasper, Texas in 1950’s. African-Americans were often harassed and if you were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time, your family may never see you again. My grandmother said that it was important to never walk around town alone and to always know where you were welcomed.
One particular event that scared her the most was when her uncle and a white acquaintance got into an argument over fishing equipment. My grandmother’s uncle would take her and her siblings out fishing on a regular basis. They enjoyed it because what they caught was usually served for dinner. On this particular occasion her uncle’s “friend,” decided to join them. As they were packing-up to leave “friend” accused her uncle of taking one of his fishing rods. This turned into a big a ruckus with cursing and fist flying. She recalls returning home that evening and no fish was cleaned or fried that night. Her mother and her uncles sat in the dark, around the windows of the house with guns in their hands. She was terrified. She was old enough to understand that the disagreement while fishing could turn deadly for her family. This vigil went on for several days. She was not sure how the situation was rectified but she remembers they stopped fishing in their favorite place.
To be in an atmosphere where you have no legal stability to help you in a dispute over a fishing rod, I believe I would have taken matters into my own hands, as well. The knowledge that I had my nieces and nephews with me would probably keep me from going but, so far. I would try my best to rectify the situation so that it would not come to an actual physical fight. To protect the young ones, I may have given-up the fishing rod. However, I would also think, what message would I be conveying to them by given in to a liar and cheat. It is a tough situation. I think my great-great uncle reacted on instinct. I think I would react on instinct. Sometimes, instinct is not rational.
In this situation, I consider a passage from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s, A Letter From A Birmingham Jail: “when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of "nobodiness"--then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into the abyss of despair.” At what point does a person give in to the injustices and unfairness that are a constant I their lives. The fishing rod incident was my great-great-uncle’s limit of endurance. He could no longer tiptoe around the falsehood of his “buddy,” in the company of youngest family members. While we try to find non-violent means of protest, like taking a knee during a sporting event, often people are pushed past their limits. What results once this endurance is at its breaking point is something ugly and awful.
when i talked to my grandmother she explained a lot of things that i didn't know about her life. first of all her mother worked as a maid and it was during the time when the KKK would go around killing random colored people, she didn't give me an exact date but times was surely hard for her. she explained to me the amount of respect that was needed to be shown to white people, she also talked about trying to avoid the police cause they were known to cause problem with random African Americans. she said they would say things to try and get a response so they can humiliate and beat down people of color. the way she said she handled it was knowing the respect she had for her self and for her family really helped her in the long run. basically she went through life trying her best to avoid trouble, and she stayed a way from specific people. as for me i don't really know how i would handle it, for one i have major anger issues and even though it takes a lot to get me mad, once i get to that level it hard for me to calm down, i think i would definitely need a purpose. i couldn't just sit back and watch my family and friends get beat down or worse. i believe in this time people don't want to put their live on the line because they feel they have a lot to lose, but back then there was no distractions, no technology, and we didn't have leaders guiding us. The leaders that we did have were killed so in that time i would have to stand for something or i would die for nothing
ReplyDeleteIt's sad to say that your grandmother had to endure, what so many around the country had to go through. But it was very interesting to read your grandmother account on how she handled life during this time. You said she stated that she explained the amount of respect that had to be shown to white people, and avoiding the police. We see this narrative still relevant today. With everything that has taken place with police brutality and the killings of unarmed black people. One of the opposing arguements about police brutality is that we should just "comply" or be "respectful". However, as we have seen time and time again complying or surrending in this country doesn't guarantee your safety or right to due process.
DeleteI decided to ask my maternal grandmother about her experience during the Jim Crow era because she was raised in Georgia and she then moved to D.C when she was a teenager. So she was able to explain to me how different the North was from the South. She told me that being black in the South during the Jim Crow era was a scary time. She feared her life whenever she was walking alone no matter the time of day. She talked about how many of the black people in Georgia idolized Martin Luther King because of his great efforts to get equal rights for African Americans. She participated in the bus boycotts as well as the sit-ins. My grandmother told me that her parents didn’t like her participating in any of the civil rights efforts because it was so dangerous. By being black my grandmother already had a target on her back, but by participating in the boycotts she had another one. I also asked my grandmother how she felt about Malcom X method to gain equal rights. She told me that she thought Malcolm X was a brilliant and intelligent man, but she also felt he was “hotheaded”. She went on to say that she believes violence is never the answer. If I was alive during this time I too would have followed the peaceful ways of Dr. King. We shouldnt act angry, and start riots because that is what the white man thinks we would do. Being calm and civilized is the best way to get your point across in my opinion. Today we see how many people react to police brutality by starting violent riots but that is not going to fix the problem. The only thing that is doing is killing more of our people. If you click this link the image at the beginning of the article shows a image of the riot in Charlottesville. (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-charlottesville-protesters-are-being-named-shamed-and-fired-2017-08-14) These white supremacists are showing the world how nasty and evil they are. For centuries they made African Americans seem “savage” and animal like. But this picture shows that they are the ones who act in that manner. So we need to let those fools be seen in this negative light, while we intellectually speak up for our rights.
ReplyDeleteI asked my grandma, living in Lynchburg, Virginia, about her experiences during the Jim Crow period. If anyone has seen the movie the help, that was my grandmother's job while she was a high school student. She told me one of the most memorable things about working like that is how she had to cook dinner for the family she worked for, but was never allowed to eat in the house. No matter the weather, she would have to sit outside the house on the sidewalk. Although my grandma went through this, she said she never really had any out of the normal experience with white people. There was one time her house caught on fire and then when she ran out the house she saw two white people running in white sweat suits and had their hoods on causing her to think they were kkk members. Since my grandma didn't have such bad experiences and even had some white friends, she believed more in the nonviolence approach in the civil rights movement; she saw and understood that black and white people could get along and progress together. My views contrast from that of my grandmother's. Something that Malcolm X said that really resonated with me is that there has never been a bloodless revolution until the civil rights movement. Although there was blood from white people killing black, there wasn't much bloodshed of tem. Malcolm's point in this being that to have a revolution, for there to be some kind of change to be made, the oppressed have to fight back. Unlike my grandma, my views are more radical and I definitely see myself in line with Malcolm. I think what could cause me to be more radical in my beliefs is not actually having lived through that time period so I didn't have to live in constant fear of the KKK and worrying about my family, and I'm younger too so both of those things might be part of why I think the way I do. But also, I am just very pro black, it's a part of me that I don't ever remember not having. I support black people and believe that we re deserving of everything and tired of the treatment we've received in this country for 400+ years. Even though my approach to Civil Rights Movement may be different from my grandma's we both love and support black people, want to see us progress in society and things get better for us, we are both for the advancement of our people.
ReplyDeleteMy only living relatives that were alive during the Jim Crow era were not black. My mother's mother being a Dominican immigrant during the time and my father's father being white but they both shared with me their particular experiences. My grandmother said though it's often forgotten any ethnic group that wasn't white were considered equal to blacks and subjected towards the same harassment in the streets. My grandmother worked an office job and her along with other minorities had to work much later hours. She would be followed home by white men, sometimes the same man or a group of men and they would cat call, even one time spit on her in front of a police officer and would face no repercussion. She said this was a normal thing for people back then, they didn't outright beat but they would demean you in every way possible, they would make you feel less than. My grandfather, a white man, growing up on the tail end of the Jim Crows but in the rural south said despite the wide spread changing of laws African America were still beaten, harassed, arrested and treated as subhuman. He told me his own father, my great grandfather, said that niggers weren't good for anything but bare minimal labor because their brains never grew. My great grandfather and now my family owns a hundred or so acres of land in the Bath, North Carolina where he would pay his staff, a mostly black group, a completely unlivable wage with long hours in dangerous heats.
ReplyDeleteI like to think that I would be an outspoken activist because I know if a black panther party rolled onto NCAT campus today, I would join them literally immediately, but being alive back then both off my grandparents agreed that it was terrifying time for black people and when you did those things you didn't only put yourself in jeopardy but your family. I know that if I was the same person I am today and placed in those times I would join the activism in any vein that I could find.
So I asked my grandmother on my mothers side who is 68 years old on what she encountered living in Chestnut Louisiana during the civil rights movement. My gramma definitely with through racism and while talking to her I could tell I made her go down memory lane. She told me about how amazing it was to live through Martin Luther King Jr. Speech and other civil rights events. My gramma went through a lot of drama when it came to our family and she would move from Louisiana to Houston all the time. My gramma also told me she would protest for her rights and looked up to MLK very much. She told me she'll never forget that moment because it was so monumental and life changing. She is very sad that things are going back to how they used to be when our civil leaders were trying to make a change. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smEqnnklfYs
ReplyDeleteThis blog post could not have come at a better time.I recently was given an assignment where I had to Interveiw my grandparents about their different racism encounters. I found that my grandmother was not very vocal about her feelings about that time in her life. My grandmother even said that she had forgotten about most of the Rasist things that happen to her during that time. My grandfather on the other hand participated in marches and he saw things that still get him upset if he talks about it. If I would have live during the time of Jim Crow I think that I would have been more like MLK because I am really a non volient person. I also could see myself following Malcolm and the Black Panther party because I loved the fact that they promoted black unity and the fact that they didn’t need validation from the white man. I honestly feel like you are screwed either way because as we learned from “Letter From Birmingham Jail” they even called MLK an extremist for his
ReplyDeletepeaceful protest in Birmingham.
-China Hopkins
I have had numerous conversations with my Grandmother about Jim Crow and what it was like to live in that world. The one thing that I remember her always going back to was just the treatment of black folks during this time. My grandmother grew up in rural Hillsborough. She was a teenager during the time of the civil rights movement and the integration of schools in Orange County. A couple of my Great-Aunts and Uncles were a part of the integration of Orange High School in the late 60s. My Grandma had the option of going and she declined because she knew if those white people tried to do anything to her that she would fight them back. And I think that if I was in her shoes I would probably feel and do the same thing. I’ve always been conflicted about how I would respond to racial violence. In a way, I believe that a non-violent approach could be effective if used strategically. However, at the same time, I also believe in defending yourself at all costs and don’t allow yourself to become an easy target. I just think that it is a slippery slope. You want people to understand and see your struggle but at the same time, we need to keep our self-respect.
ReplyDeleteI agree a situation like that is a slippery slope. But putting myself in your grandmothers shoes, I think I would have declined as well. The torture that black students had to face at all white schools, everyday would have drove many to violence. And not to mention many teachers and administrators didn't want black students there as well, so adding the lack of support from the figures of authority set in place makes it even worse. A situation like that is no place for a young student to thrive mentally or socially in my opinion.
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ReplyDeleteI talked with my grandfather about this topic and asked him to give me his personal experiences and opinions on the Jim Crow violence. I only expected him to give me his experiences from when he was growing up during that time frame; it shocked me when he mentioned an encounter that he had with a white man only a few weeks ago. In Windsor, North Carolina there was a protest that was going against a law that was just passed (my grandfather didn't remember exactly which law). He was only eleven years old at this time so he didn't necessarily understand the message behind it or feel the need to be involved. He was away from the protest minding his business when a car pulled up with three white men. They stopped their vehicle and asked him, "Ay, boy. Ain't you supposed to be at the courthouse with all those other niggas?" My grandfather did not respond and they just drove off. He told me that specific encounter with those white men did not bother him at the time because it was normal for them to talk like that during those days. Another experience he shared with me was when he was riding his bicycle around town and another car filled with white men pulled up next to him and threw soda on him for no apparent reason. It was then he began to question why. Why is it that just because of his skin color he is treated as less of? In the words of my grandfather, "when we close our eyes to rest we all see the same color, so why is it that you feel the need to treat me differently because I look different?" The experience that shocked me the most was his recent encounter with a white man. He was in Walmart a few weeks ago standing in line when a man in a motorized chair purposely cut him off in line. My grandfather told me he lifted up the back wheels of the chair and said, "I could beat your ass right now. Do not act like that." This situation shocked me the most because even though I know people still act like this it's a different feeling or reaction when it happens to someone close to you.
ReplyDeleteIf I was to live back then I do not think I would have as much patience as tolerance as my grandfather did. I believe I would respond then how my grandfather responded now in his recent encounter. I know I would not be able to hold my tongue or my hands. I believe in you get what you give me. You give me disrespect and you’ll get disrespect back. My grandfather’s experience reminded me of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”. When King stated, “when your first name becomes “nigger”, your middle name becomes “boy”…” His first encounter related to this because that is exactly what they referred to my granddad as. They did not care to ask his name but decided to disrespect and categorize him by referring to as every name but his own. They did and even do this now to show that they believe you are not that important enough to even get the decency to be called by your name.
I spoke with a family friend from South Carolina about their experience during Jim Crow. She stated "I used to say that I was born and raised in Jim Crow South Carolina. I don't say that anymore. Now I say, I was born and raised in the loving arms of the Black community of South Carolina. I changed because, despite the harshness of the South of those years (I was born in 1948), lately I have come to realize that the true miracle was the care, protection, and Black love that surrounded me, protected me, and guided me in those years. Within the limits of Jim Crow, my family, my neighbors and my teachers created a space in which I could feel safe and in which I could grow." I feel that, if I was born during Jim Crow in the area that she lived in , I would have felt the same way. Jim Crow laws originally known as "Black Codes" was were set in place after the civil war to maintain control over African Americans. In order to do this "legally," they passed new laws that appeared, on the surface, to be neutral and fair to all races. In actuality however, these laws were actually designed specifically to repress black people. Leaving AAs with no legislative power to combat unfair laws. The treatment of the people was extremely cruel and unfair. The fact that AAs were able to create their own community and lift each other up, the way that they did in the mist of such oppression was amazing. Had I been born during this time , I would have done the same thing that my family friend's community did, which was come together and create opportunities,support, and assistance within the black community. That is what I believe is needed today in the mist of all this violence and oppression. AAs must come together support our own communities in order for us to thrive and advance in this world that we live in today. We can see a example of this being true from what we learned about the black panther party, and how they supported and assisted the black community and the community supported them back. The success of black Wall Street supports my view on this issue as well.
ReplyDeleteIn this unit we have seen that throughout the history of race relations between whites and black in America, many different leaders and activists have used many tactics to fight for equality & justice. Most ideologies revolved around non violent protest, boycotts & civil disobedience or around taking control and empowering yourself and others to fight and take what’s rightfully theirs. Leaders like Huey P Newton who helped to found the black panther party believed that the nonviolent tactics utilized by other civil rights leaders were slow and stifled by the system. The black panther party was founded on tenants that sought to protect black people from the abuses of the white man in America like police brutality, the draft and lack of educational opportunities. Activism like this are based upon the idea of arming your people to defend themselves because no one else will. Other civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King believed in peaceful protests. The foundation for what Dr. King believed was built on the idea that change could come through non violent means of resisting racist laws and policies. Whether the solutions were radical or non violent they all were based on this idea of black nationalism. Black nationalism is more than just black pride but that our people can accomplish Things by supporting each other and utilizing the power of our culture to make positive change. My Grandmother was born in 1942 in Galveston Texas. Growing up in the Deep South especially Texas she often told me stories about horrible racist encounters. One that sticks out particularly is when she told me that after they desegregated the schools in the town she lived that a white bus driver after dropping her off spit on her. She told me that she remembers feeling terrible for weeks and that she didn’t wanna go to school or anywhere. After my great grandmother noticed how dismayed she was and my grandmother told her what happened she instructed her that allowing herself to feel this way was giving more power to what they did. My grandmother told her that no matter what happens they can never take away the strength of our people and if we overcame slavery we could overcome Jim Crow and segregation. I’d like to believe that if I lived during that era I’d have the strength to turn the other cheek and go along with Martin luther Kings Ideology of peaceful protest of civil disobedience. Within today’s society change takes place on a different stage. Fighting violence and injustice in today’s society when a new Jim Crow has been established is fought within classrooms, courtrooms and among political bodies. The power is in empowering ourselves.
ReplyDeleteI spoke with one of my organization's advisors, Mama Carla. She told me how she was young when Jim crow was happening and she remembered not being able to go into certain stores and buildings and even when the law changed, they had to stand still while her mother shopped to avoid any altercations with the white owners. She talked about the A&T Four protest and how her and her mother made sandwiches for the students and her father owned a watch shop down the street from woolworth so he would take the sandwiches to work and go to pass them out. She was in 5th grade when greensboro started integrating schools and she said that they made all seniors bus to all white schools instead of their zone school. Seniors were not happy about this and begin throwing riots to try and get sent home and back to their home schools. It raised attention to their concerns but ultimately did not change anything. Mama Carla said that the non violence approach would have been a better option. "Violence gets attention, but not results." I believe that I would have acted in a similar non violence approach back in those times. I'm not the type to get involved in the depths of issues but I would be willing to help when I could. I think her response does not reflect either readings because she choose to stay on the back burner and be there only when needed rather than attack the issue. With today's violence greatly increasing, I think a non violent approach is strong necessary. Both sides of the issue need to understand the other and stop being so hostile towards one another. This does nothing but create death, and heartache. This generation needs to be the one to break the cycle we have been living in for too long.
ReplyDeleteI interviewed my grandfather. He was born and raised in Missouri and lived through the Jim Crow era during the early stages of his young adult life. During that time, it was very difficult being a black male and most black males only had two options growing up there; either enlist in the army or move away for a better life. Once he became of age, he relocated to Miami, Florida, in hopes of finding a better paying job. In Missouri he spent his time picking cotton, working on farms, and working in the saw mill for little to nothing. He was paid three dollars a day for chopping cotton and only received one dollar and fifty cents for every 100 pounds of cotton he brought in. At that time in Missouri, there were three major white families that owned all the property and stores in the town my grandfather grew up in. The families made sure to segregate black people from the white population and had control over certain policies and procedures dealing with the everyday lives of the black citizens in the town. Brutality wasn’t harsh in my grandfather’s town but they still had unspoken rules he had to abide by. For example, if people of color wanted to see a movie, they could only go see it in the day time. They were not allowed to try on clothes and shoes when shopping in the stores and could only bring one black child into the store at a time. If there was a white woman walking on the sidewalk, black men would have to move to the other side of the street. When speaking with my grandfather he emphasized the importance of leaving his hometown to find a better quality of life for him and his family. He stated that “black people are survivors,” to emphasize how African Americans do all they can to provide for their loved ones.
ReplyDeleteIf I lived in my grandfather’s hometown during the Jim Crow era, I would want to leave town as well. Black people shouldn’t be given different rules to make whites feel comfortable. We’re all humans and deserve to have equal human rights. In Malcolm X’s speech “The Ballot or the Bullet,” he stated how more black people should learn to own businesses and provide jobs for our people. He said we should keep the money in the community so we can have each other’s back. In my grandfather’s town, the three major families who owned all the land, were married into each other. They were smart with their tactics because all the money they gained within their town went back to them. If black people used this same method today we’ll be better off.
Below is a short clip on what life was like during the Jim Crow era for black males:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGYr4HFhIEk
I talked to my uncle who told me that one of his friends was found in a lake most likely lynched. They never proved that it was a lynching but all evidence indicates that he was killed. Growing up in a time where you or anyone of your friends could end up like Emmett Till has to be nerve-wrecking. It compares to living today however because every week it seems there is a new video surfacing of some type of police brutality or some form of racism that goes unchecked by any form of judiciary power. Would I rather live in Emmett Till's time or Trayvon Martin's? There just two different sides of the same coin.
ReplyDeleteFor this topic I asked both my maternal grandmother (Raleigh, NC) and my paternal grandmother (Danville, IL) if there were any specific incidents into where they were put in a situation of weather or not they'd get to go home peacefully in one piece. Both my grandmas were born in 1964 so with them being the same age I'd figure they would back off with eachother. Starting off my maternal grandmother remembers specifically when driving with her father, her and my uncles had to lay down on the floor of the car because since they were of the "fair" skin and their dad was darker. She was told that it was due to people would think he kidnapped white children. It wasn't until around her high school years that her although her skin was lighskin, she always wore an afro out because she was proud of her blackness and even got backlash from certain workplaces because it made the white customers uncomfortable. Now my paternal grandmother had a totally different experience one being that side of the family has always lived up north so you wouldn't think they'd have the same incidents. But in talking with my grandma, she told me a story about how her father was beaten and tortured all because one of her brothers was fatally shot by a white man and her father knew the truth and went after the white man. So although both my grandmas were apart of the Jim Crow Era, it's safe to say that my maternal grandma follows the teachings of Martin Luther King Jr. whereas my paternal grandma believes fully on Malcolm X.
ReplyDeleteNajee Cunningham
DeleteA family friend shared a story about her childhood in Detroit. We were talking about the movie “Detroit.” She was a teenager at the time and remembers police attacking and agitating black people all the time. She is a very light woman; she could pass for a white woman if it wasn’t for her locs. During this time, she did not have locs, so people weren’t sure if she was white or mixed (her parents are both black). Even though, she wasn’t in the south and wasn’t “dark enough” to endure all of the violence, she was still a witness. Her parents forced her and her siblings to stay in the house during the Detroit riots. Blacks were fighting whites and whites were fighting/killing blacks. Her parents didn’t want black people or police to think their kids were white, so it was better to keep them in the house. I’m sure she really appreciates her parents keeping her and her siblings in the house. I would have acted non-violently like Martin Luther King Jr. during this time. It is the best way to go. My mother always taught me to ignore when I was younger. I would still want to non-violently protest.
ReplyDeleteI spoke with my grandmother about how she reacted during the Jim Crow era seeing as how she was born and raised in the deep south of Georgia. She told me that she went to segregated schools and both races had different buses and when they got off they would be standing on opposite sides of the road and throw rocks at each other and insult each other. To her this was regular life- it's just what happened. When she got older the only thing she knew is that she wanted to get out of the south. It was her only goal- she told me how she did not realize racism existed outside of the south and when she did move away she aligned herself with Martin Luther Kings views because she believed being peaceful did not equal lying down and taking anything but rather shedding a light that black people were not the violent ones. After speaking with her I realized this is true and it makes me think I probably would align myself with Martin Luther King as well. Hearing her talk opened my eyes because while I knew she went through these things I did not realize that was her life and upbringing. It's interesting getting a different opinion on things, but I feel we are very much alike.
ReplyDeleteKiera Joseph
Deletewhen I conversed with my grandma she clarified a considerable measure of things that I didn't think about her life. above all else her mom filled in as a house keeper and it was amid the time when the KKK would circumvent killing irregular minorities individuals, she didn't give me a correct date however times was hard for her. she disclosed to me the measure of regard that should have been appeared to white individuals, she likewise discussed attempting to maintain a strategic distance from the police cause they were known to cause issue with arbitrary African Americans. she said they would state things to attempt and get a reaction so they can embarrass and beat down non-white individuals. the way she said she took care of it was knowing the regard she had for her self and for her family truly helped her over the long haul. essentially she experienced life attempting her best to evade inconvenience, and she remained a path from particular individuals. concerning me I don't generally know how I would deal with it, for one I have real outrage issues and despite the fact that it takes a considerable measure to get me distraught, once I get to that level it hard for me to quiet down, I figure I would require a reason. I couldn't simply kick back and watch my family and companions get beat down or more awful. I have confidence in this time individuals would prefer not to put their live on hold since they believe they have a considerable measure to lose, however in those days there was no diversions, no innovation, and we didn't have pioneers controlling us. The pioneers that we had were killed so in that time I would need to remain for something or I would bite the dust to no end
ReplyDeleteMy grandmother nevertheless, was not determinedly uninformed. She said that encountering youth in a rural pervasively white nation gathering, where blacks and whites were ineffectually taught, was troublesome. Texas in 1950's. African-Americans were as often as possible bothered and in case you were gotten in an unfortunate recognize, your family may never watch you again. My grandmother said that it was basic to never walk around town alone and to reliably know where you were welcomed.
ReplyDeleteOne particular event that alarmed her the most was the time when her uncle and a white partner got into a conflict over calculating apparatus. My grandmother's uncle would take her and her family out calculating constantly. They valued it since what they got was ordinarily served for dinner. On this particular occasion her uncle's "partner," obliged them. As they were squeezing up to leave "friend" pointed the finger at her uncle for taking one of his calculating bars. This changed into a noteworthy a ruckus with censuring and grasp hand flying. She returned home that night and no fish was cleaned or singed that night. Her mother and her uncles sat unmindful, around the windows of the house with weapons in their grip. She was frightened. She was develop enough to understand that the distinction while calculating could turn savage for her family. This vigil proceeded for a couple of days. She didn't know how the condition was corrected but instead she reviews that they quit calculating in their most adored place.
In this condition, I consider a passage from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s, A Letter From A Birmingham Jail: "when you are harried by day and frequented by night by how you are a Negro, living ceaselessly at tiptoe position, never completely understanding what's in store next, and are tormented with internal sentiments of fear and outer sentiments of disdain; when you are everlastingly engaging a declining feeling of "nobodiness"- - then you will grasp why we believe that its difficult to hold up. There comes a period when the measure of duration continues running over, and men are never again prepared to be dove into the void of pity." when does a man offer in to the injustices and disgracefulness that are a consistent I their lives. The calculating post event was my fantastic remarkable uncle's cutoff of determination. He would never again tiptoe around the misdirection of his "buddy," in the association of most energetic relatives. While we attempt to find tranquil techniques for disagree, for example, taking a knee in the midst of a wearing event, much of the time people are pushed past their cutoff focuses. What comes to fruition once this continuation is at its cutoff is something loathsome and awful.
My grand parents would protest in their time. My grandfather was a part of the first a million man march that they had in Washington D.C. My grandmother would do sit ins while she was attending North Carolina A&T. Both of them told me how vividly lucid racism was back in his time. They told me that for today's black kids to get over this hump of police brutality there needs to be a median between peaceful protests and aggressive just like how Malcolm and Martin did. The difference between now and then is that our rights are guranteed now as compared to their time. They did not have integrated schools or society in general was not integrated. These ideas do reflect our unit because the peaceful protests are still relevant and so are the aggressive ones. My opinion is that the peaceful will embark on so many more realms compared to aggressive because your peacefully demonstrating an opinion as compared to harming someone or destroying something. These methods are still alive because people are still messinhg up their own communities after the situations that happen from the police. A change will come, but it is up to us of this generation to make the difference.
ReplyDeleteI do not have any family that lived or live in the South but I have a grand-aunt who kept a very close eye to the news during the violence of Jim Crow. My aunt Valerie stated that every day news came out that someone was dead because of violence. She always wanted to travel to the South to experience what other African Americans were going through and boycott along side blacks. She also stated that her and her friends were very sheltered and naive to what black people had to go through in the South. She felt that blacks from the North never had a understanding of what it is to face discrimination and inequality.
ReplyDeleteOur responses are quite different when it comes to the violence, I do feel as though since coming to North Carolina A&T my eyes have open on how blacks are really treated and seen through a white person. Being from New York I never really saw any discrimination against blacks until the black lives matter movement began. After Eric Garner was killed in NYC I saw a change in the violence in New York. I think the violence that has been faced and today is heart breaking, just to see videos and hear about a black individual dying in the hands of a white cop infuriates me. I can not believe that there is so much hate in a person that they would harm someone because of the color of their skin. I am proud that I attend a HBCU because it has open my eyes that history never stop; black people are harmed everyday because of our skin.
In this unit, we discuss the history of race relations between whites and black in America. But I cannot help but return to the beginning to a common notion that Africans sold their own. Today, the method would be referred to as "crabs in a barrel." In my opinion, people of color are the only race that feels the need to tear people down to make themselves look better or succeed. My initial shock of slavery was the extent of which Africans were involved and continued to be a willing participant. My further frustration began with the mistreatment of blacks in America. Many different leaders and activists used many tactics to fight for equality & justice. Most practices revolved around nonviolent approach protest, boycotts & civil disobedience or around taking control of what rightfully belongs to you. Some empowered black people to fight and take what they want by force. After speaking to my maternal grandmother, living during that time in Reidsville, NC she saw a lot more than she experienced. She explained about attending a segregated school and having to take separate buses and the mistreatment they received by the white students. She also talked about the memory of having to walk miles with her mother around the city to get home because they couldn’t walk through the city because they beat and tortured blacks in the towns square. But one thing she expressed to me that stuck with me is that back then they were unapologetically who they were. She then expressed that with my generation everyone wants to be something different but we don’t really know who we are. This resonated with me and made me think of a quote:
ReplyDelete“One of the tragedies of Black life in America is that too many Black people never acquire insight into their own existence. They just do not know who they are. And, this confusion about identity and source is at the core of our ignorance. The Afrikans have a saying: ‘If you don’t know who you are, any history will do.’ Welcome to America. Afrikan-Americans have little knowledge of themselves. We are products of a slave history, a Eurocentric worldview, that by definition cannot be developmental or inspirational. This history, for the most part, has been written, disseminated and taught by the sons and daughters of the people who raped Afrika of its people and wealth and literally sprinkled Afrikans around the world.” ~Haki R. Madhubuti
Haki Madhubuti’s quote is represents exactly how I felt as a teen and young adult about being African- American. Being African- American in this country often feels like going through an identity crisis. As African- Americans we were never given insight into who we are. We are only taught the history we are “allowed” to learn in school, which begins with slavery and how we were viewed by the European people who enslaved us. We are not African enough to be with Africans and we aren’t American enough to be accepted into our society. So, who will we choose to be? The confusion about our identity stems from the ignorance of OUR history. It’s hard to feel pride in being African- American. Especially when in 2017, we still have black people dying at the hands of whites. Ignorant is lacking knowledge or awareness in an area. If we are unaware of the rich history and culture we belong, how will we be proud of who we are. We as a people constantly must search for our history. Our history is edited and our truth is manufactured. I’d like to believe that if I lived during that era I’d have the strength to fight like our ancestors. Within today’s society change takes place on a different level. Fighting violence and injustice to me is being equipped with the knowledge of OUR history and being knowledgeable of how to apply it in a “post racial society,” where African American men are being put in the justice system in unforgiving numbers and black people are still dying at the hands of whites every day.
This is Nasya Blackwell
DeleteI started off by asking my dad, seeing as how he saw Martin Luther King speak in person at nine. However, after getting his response, I later realized he was too young to truly be in the Jim Crow era, he was born in 1959. His response was similar to my grandfather’s. My grandfather was born in 1939, and raised the small rural town of Garner, North Carolina, where racist is still prevalent today. He described the weight of being a black man, and how the fear of white people and their capabilities struck the black community during this time period. It only made sense that his response would be the peaceful route, he knew that nonviolent protesting would make more of a difference than violently fighting against it. He said if everyone would’ve responded with violence instead of peaceful protesting, it would’ve caused the unproblematic whites to side with the mass; this follows what my father said about the best course of action. I believe the same thing to a certain extent, even though peaceful protesting is nice and brings about change, the change is very gradual. We have been protesting for decades, yet we still get hunted by police like animals. Racism has not been eradicated, only suppressed. Blacks are still not seen as equals, and the acts of violence against us have only become more brutal. With Trump as the new president, racism is slowly creeping upon the nation once again. All of what protesting has seem to get us is an imaginary solution to the problem. We are forced to put our faith into a system just as corrupt as it was back then, the only difference is the corruption isn’t as blatant. Maybe it is time for a change now, or soon in the near future. Instead of peaceful protesting against these acts of violence towards us, we fight back to show that it will no longer be tolerated. The way things are going, it seems like it is headed to a race war, just depends on who starts it.
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