Life for Sarah M. in Tennessee was like everyone else back in the 1960’s. She moved to Memphis as a little girl and was strongly against racism. Back in that time when segregation was extreme, black people who came over to a white person house had to walk through the back door. Her family felt that everyone was equal, and they never made any African Americans walk through the back door. Immediately after Martin Luther King was shot the National Guard rushed to Memphis to keep the crowds from getting out of control. “A moment after the incident, the streets were filled with people standing on their porch, head hung low, and there were lots of crying people.” Sarah’s family and friends were in shock and remembered the people crying. She was listening to the radio and thought she was having a bad dream. After the incident, everything changed.
In 1968 life was very different from today. A typical day for Sarah was going to school, teaching students, and going home. She remembers being one of the first teachers to teach at a black and white school. Sarah remembered that on that day it snowed, and that day was very special. She said that the black and white people had their own bathrooms, and the white bathrooms were in better condition. Also the white people had cold, filtered, water, and African Americans had warm water which was unfair. Black people could not go most hotels, and the best jobs they could find were cleaning rich people’s houses and ironing clothes for very little money. Sarah thought everyone deserved equality, and she had black friends. During this time, she believed everyone deserved a chance.
The horrific day Martin Luther King was shot was like a nightmare. Filled with school devastation and sadness, Sarah bawled like a child. It was a normal crisp day, and Sarah was writing a term paper and listening to her old-fashioned radio when the terrible news occurred. The radio had an emergency broadcast, and the streets were filled with people, and it looked like the street had been destroyed from riots and torches. Throughout the night, nobody could sleep, and then tried to trick themselves into thinking it was a horrible nightmare. Sarah tried to continue working on her paper, but she lost all of her concentration. The event changed the course of history and our future.
During the terrible night of Martin Luther Kings death nobody talked, and the people were quiet. The city was loud with tons of raucous noises.. The chaos outside was louder than a baby at the library. Black and white people lined up with their torches doing peaceful protest. Citizens started to lose patience though. The National Guard was spraying people with water, sending the dogs out, and beating and killing people to death. The city looked like Godzilla stomped on it. Destroyed buildings, large fires, and smoke from riots filled the air. Sarah stayed in her room hoping to forget the horrible news of Martin Luther King and his death.
Martin Luther King was a great man who was for a good cause. Sarah believed he was a great guy, and she loved his peaceful protests. Before his death, she thought a lot of him and hoped he would bring change to the world. After he died nothing, changed about how she thought of him. The only regret that she had was she felt like she should have done more for the cause of Martin Luther King. He had a heart of gold and was brave for standing up for what was right, and he did not tolerate any racism. He knew the risk he was taking with his speeches, but did it anyways for the greater good and for diversity and openness for other races. She felt that nobody was a better man than him.
Things finally started to change. Blacks still could not go to a white school, but after a while, they gained rights. Sarah was one of the first people to teach at a black school. Years after, racism started to settle down. People and their attitude were the same, but slowly got better. The black people showed their determination and did not give up. This reason is why the determination of Martin Luther King was an important part in history. There was a lot of conflict going on between the two races. The white people hated the black people because of their appearance.This group called the Black Panthers formed. They encouraged the blacks to have Black Mondays where they did not go to school on Mondays. The leaders encouraged them to tell their friends.The parents of black students were happy to have white teachers. Finally the change occurred and black people gained rights.