Nancy R. by Drew S., Harding Academy

Nancy R. moved to Memphis just 6 months after her wedding. Nancy was 24 at the time. At the time, Memphis was top ten of the cleanest cities in the world. Her and her husband, Ian R., moved from Wheeling West Virginia to Memphis. Ian worked for a steel company, and Nancy was a homemaker. They lived in a midsize duplex, and were enjoying life. Then, Dr. King was assassinated and it all changed. Nancy said she remembered terror and racism. Ian was out of town on a business trip and had their white mustang and was coming back from the trip. Nancy said that lots of officers were pulling him over and asking about the car. Nancy said "we had no idea what was happening. Everyone stayed inside and rioting was downtown so no one dared go down there. The night the Dr. King died, Nancy was in her house because of curfew, 9:00 or 10:00p.m, and said there was turmoil and the kids were defiant. Nancy didn't know much about King until after his death. She said she knew that he was a religious and peacemaker. Nancy said "still today, people haven't respected Dr. King for his character and that he would be disappointed at the turmoil going on and the reaction to his murder. Life changed after his death. She said the whole world changed. She thinks that the White culture has changed more that the African American population.