American History and Politics During My Lifetime
Desegregation Continued
Other than what was mentioned in the previous post, I had very little exposure to black people
until high school when integration was forced upon us. It was my sophomore year
and I don’t remember much about it. I do, however, have vivid memories of a
riot that occurred midway through the year. Some of the black students gathered
in the rest room during lunch time, tore off toilet sets, set a fire and wrote
on the walls. We were evacuated from the building until authorities could secure
that area and gather the black students in the library. They called in black
community leaders, preachers and our beloved black Coach, Mr. Jake Brazile. He
was a gentle giant and loved by many. His wife had been one of my favorite
science teachers in the 6th grade. We resumed our school day, and I
remember glancing through the library windows during passing period and seeing
them all gathered there. This calmed the situation, but now I wondered if
integration would work…but we did not have a choice. I felt disgusted that our new
building had been vandalized, and now I was fearful which was precipitated from
my viewpoint as a small white female with long blonde hair. I didn’t expect
that they would be interested in me, but they would often try to reach out and
touch/stroke my blond hair. Therefore, I avoided them, which many white kids
did, and this may be why the black kids never felt included. There were many
ramifications and difficulties of meshing two cultures. I experienced it firsthand.
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