I interview Kathy E. who was 15 in 1968. She lived in Midtown Memphis in Chickasaw Gardens, which was an upper scale part of town, separate, and quite. She said Memphis was very different than it is today it was like a small big town everyone knew each other. She went to a public school that was all white and went from first grade to twelfth grade. She felt very safe and was a happy go lucky teenager.
Read MoreMrs. Barbara, by Dria E., Harding Academy
I interviewed my aunt who was 19 at the time of Martin Luther King's assination. She was a sophomore at Coahoma College. She said that before that tragic day, that AfricanAmerican parents were very protective of their children. There were a few stores that would have certain days for AfricanAmericans to shop, and many stores that just didn't allow that. She says "A lot has changed since those days." As the segregation and uncivil acts continued, she remained calm and didn't fight back.
Read MoreGreg L., by Audra L., Harding Academy
For my dad, Greg L., East Memphis was a good and quiet place to live in the 1960s. He told me that in his neighborhood everyone's family situation was very similar to his. "All fathers worked all day, where as most mothers were stay at home moms." He recalls. He also said that public schools were a place that felt safe and he never felt threatened or scared when he was at school.
A typical day for my dad was he'd walk to and from school everyday. When he returned home from school he was greeted by his mom, and after he finished his homework he'd go play with his friends in his neighborhood.
Read MoreMrs. Garabaldi, by Baytes-Gabriel J., Harding Academy
I interviewed Mrs. Garabaldi. She was eighteen years old when MLK died. She lived in Midtown and attended ICCS school, which was an all girl school. She said that Memphis population was not nearly as big as it is now. Also she said that African Americans lived below poverty level. She said there was a lot of racial tension in Memphis. She said that the night King died she was helping her mom set the table for dinner. She said it was very saddening and that she never wanted anything to happen to him. She said her parent were very shocked too.
Read MoreMrs. Collier, by Kimari, Harding Academy
On April 4, 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. My aunt Mrs. Collier was 13 years old. She remembers the day as it were yesterday. It was a normal day in Marvell, Arkansas. She was sitting on the couch watching one of her favorite television shows. All of a sudden breaking news and she wonders why, for she had just seen the evening news. She knew something was odd.
Read MoreMr. Beard, by Julian B., Harding Academy
My name is Mr. Beard in nineteen sixty-eight I was seventeen years old about to turn eighteen. I lived in Memphis, Tn there was lots of tension here in Memphis due to the garbage man strike. I would go to school at melrose which is an all black school, I thinks today's schools are different from back then because they are way more diverse. I remember that day I was in downtown getting ready for a march, nothing that day was different other than going through a peaceful march.
Read MoreMr. Chris, by Lizzie W., Harding Academy
Chris was an All-American, sixteen year old boy. He grew up in a middle class neighborhood with a stay-at-home mother. He played baseball on the weekends and had plenty of friends. His father worked for the newspaper and would often put Chris to work delivering papers. Chris never really thought about the segregated world that he lived in. He didn’t have black children at his school or church, until one day. One Sunday morning a nice black family joined his family’s church. He remembered the church going silent as they walked forward, in fact multiple families left the church because of them joining. That event was the beginning of his awareness toward black families.
Read MoreMr. Stanley, by Mikyla S., Harding Academy
Hi, my name is Mr. Stanley and I'm going to tell you about my life in the 1960's. I lived in south Memphis. I liked living in my neighborhood because there was no segregation and everyone in the neighborhood knew each other. Life was great in the late 1960's because you would have everything you wanted. Waking up in the morning with a roof and shoes on our feet was all we really needed. A regular normal day for me back then was waking up in the mornings and getting ready for school. Because we lived in South Memphis, we had to ride the city bus to our school in North Memphis.
Read MoreMrs. Grundy, by Preston C., Harding Academy
I like to remember Memphis during my youth as a very simple time. On a typical day I would get up at the crack of dawn to get dressed, eat breakfast, and walk to school. After school I would come home, eat my snack, do my homework, play with my friends outside, and if I was lucky enough I would get to watch a few episodes of my favorite television shows.
Read MoreMs. Bonnie, by Alaina A., Harding Academy
April 3, 1968
"Mama!" I called as I raced into my house. I tossed my book bag on the ground
near the door and wandered to the kitchen where my mother was making dinner for me and my seven siblings.
"Yes, baby? I'm in the kitchen," she hollered back.
"I won! I'm officially Miss Lester High," I told her. She smiled real wide at me. "Congratulations, Bonnie. I'm so proud of you," she said. She set her big stirring
spoon down and enveloped my small frame in her long arms. "
Read MoreMs. Johnson, by Jayde K., Harding Academy
Evelyn Johnson lived in Memphis, TN up until she was 18 years old. Back then, black people weren't allowed to vote. They were restricted from going to certain places and had designated seating areas at restaurants and on the buses. There was also a higher tension between races. What stood out the most for her when she was growing up, was the racial division. Jobs were not offered to blacks like they were whites. Political matters weren't as open as they were to whites either. But those were just the negatives. The positives were that there was a more peaceful existence, less crime.
Read MoreMrs. Jones by Trenya W., Harding Academy
In 1968 , Mrs. Jones was a freshman at Spring Hill. She lived in the Raleigh area of North Memphis. She describes this area as not being the best place to stay, but affordable. In the 1960s it was different because it was the beginning of integration, which was a very uncomfortable situation for most. A typical day for Mrs. Jones was going to school , coming home and doing chores.
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