sinkingfeeling
sinkingfeeling's JournalAn event in Black History that I bet few know about happened 100 years ago.
This occurred in Phillips County, Arkansas, near the small town of Elaine, Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, 1919. White mobs killed somewhere between 100 and 237 black men, women, and children, maybe more.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=newssearch&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiYn7me7q7gAhUnsFQKHSb-C70QzPwBegQIARAC&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.eurweb.com%2F2019%2F02%2F2019-marks-100th-anniv-of-elaine-phillips-massacres-that-claimed-over-200-black-lives%2F&psig=AOvVaw3JWpYAqDKF58xLlpfcHGlo&ust=1549808911634235
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elaine_race_riot
Arkansas is holding a faith-based truth telling hearing on the event.
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=newssearch&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiYn7me7q7gAhUnsFQKHSb-C70QzPwBegQIARAC&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwreg.com%2F2019%2F02%2F08%2Farkansas-delta-town-finding-the-truth-about-1919-massacre-that-killed-200%2F&psig=AOvVaw3JWpYAqDKF58xLlpfcHGlo&ust=1549808911634235
I've been in Arkansas since 1992 and this is the first I've heard about this massacre.
Just a real life story....
In 1957, I was 9 years old and suddenly there was a major shift in my world. My 43 year old father had a serious heart attack and was told to stop working. My dad was a full time Chevolet parts manager and farmed 225 acres in his spare time.
So, we left Ohio and my rural grade school (class of 18 kids) and headed to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. There I was appalled by the strange teaching methods I found in my new school where there were 6 fourth grades! We were divided into teams and there were all kinds of point systems.
It was a much different world from the corn fields and woods of Ohio. I saw water fountains and restrooms labeled 'black' and 'white'. There were no African Americans in my school. I saw the shabby 'black' school and the neighborhoods blacks were to live in. I was even called a 'damn Yankee'.
The biggest shock came with participation in my grade school's annual 'minstrel show'. My mother tried to explain what these shows were. I had to learn a bunch of Southern songs and I had one speaking line. I can't recall what my set up for the punchline was, but I had to call out, "Mr. Interlocutor, Mr. Interlocutor!" Then I asked my question and the interlocutor responded, making a joke.
And they covered our faces with black makeup. They left white circles around our mouths and eyes.
As the years passed, I realized how awful all this was. But I don't believe I was given an opportunity to opt out. 3 years later I was back in Ohio and began to support the Civil Rights movement. Been an activist and a Democrat ever since.
People do become enlightened and they can change over time. And what is unacceptable in society also changes with time. That's how we progress.
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