On September 15, 2014 i interviewed a very special person in my life on her personal experiences during 1968 and her point of view on the assassination of the great Martin Luther King. This special person is my grandmother, Kimberly S. I asked my grandmother on where she lived, what it was like, and what really stood out in Memphis during the 1960's. She explained to me that she liked living in Memphis in her early twenties. She also said it was a very busy city. She said the division and the city not integrated is what really stood out to her. My grandmother said that Memphis was a city that was at the center of many civil rights issues. She said she remembered the sanitation workers going on strike in 1968.
Grandmother also shared with me what her life was like in 1968. For instance, she said a typical day for her being a stay at home mom for three small children. She graduated from high school, but did not go to college. She said times were hard, but people help take care of each other. It was a very tight knit community. Grandmother encouraged me to me to college because now things are so much different and there are so many opportunities. There is no segregation, folks are able to live where they choose to live and work where they chose to work. My grandmother said she was happy with the racial barriers broken in neighborhoods, workplaces, and schools. She said the racial tensions and division was such a big part of the culture.
As I questioned my grandmother about the day martin Luther King was assassinated, she seemed to become sad. She sad when she heard he had been shot, she was deeply saddened. She was in shock. She said that so many people were crying sad and she saw others angry. She said in her neighborhood it was quiet and an outpouring of sadness. My grandmother said throughout the day and night it was just so many people that were heartbroken, as if time had stopped. Everyone should have equal rights.
My grandmother said Martin Luther King stood for peace. She said before his death, she felt like he was fighting for equal rights. She said she felt that he was loving and his goal was to change the world through peace and not violence. He wasn't scared to stand up for himself.
People all over the world were said with the death of Martin Luther King. Martin Luther King was a great speaker for the people's rights and he fought for them to be treated fairly whether it was wages, jobs, and just fair treatment. My grandmother felt that he was a good honest man with great inspirational speeches. He is a unique person one of a kind person and I will never be forgotten.