In this recording, Seattle-native Cindy Buske is interviewed by her son Josh Soldewel about her memories of the desegregation process in Seattle schools. Cindy remembers Black children being bused from the Rainier Valley section of the city to her school in majority-white Arbor Heights, and the surprise she felt at the negative reactions of some peers and adults. She also shares her experiences being bused to a high school outside her neighborhood.
In this recording, husband and wife Thomas and Gloria Pillow discuss their early years and experiences during school desegregation. Gloria, who is a professor of literature, describes her segregated education in Nashville and the fine line between “tough love” and encouragement that was enforced by her parents and teachers. Gloria connects this strict upbringing to the racist environment in which she lived, and the discipline needed in order to survive there.
In this recording, husband and wife Alf and Katherine Sharp share their memories from the time of school integration in the South. Katherine recalls her school in Virginia closing for a year to stop Black children from attending, and her surprise at the flagrant racism she witnessed after years on integrated military bases as a child of a serviceman. Alf, who went to all-white schools until college, describes the broadening of his views on race that occurred while at Vanderbilt.
In this recording, Kleopatra Gaiter interviews her friend and colleague Grace Gadson about her childhood during school desegregation in a farming community in northern Florida. Grace describes learning about racism as a child on her trips into town. She was warned by an aunt not to speak to white people unless spoken to, and recalls using segregated accommodations. These infuriating experiences inspired her to resist the racial order she was born into.
In this recording, John Little III is interviewed by his young son John Little IV. The elder John grew up in a diverse school and community in Nashville, Tennessee. He warmly remembers these times and shares the positive impacts his teachers had on his love for reading. John also recalls being put in a class of students with “behavioral problems”, most of whom were low income. He describes education as a journey for him to get beyond a reckless young mindset.
In this recording, Jessica Turk interviews her mother Lisa Turk about her childhood and education at a neighborhood school in the Green Hills neighborhood of Nashville. After the 7th grade, Lisa and her family went to Congo as missionaries for two years. She returned to Nashville from Africa the year the city’s public schools integrated. Lisa recalls the white flight from the schools at the time, and her parents’ willingness for her to participate in desegregation.
In this recording, Jacquelyn Howard interviews her friend and Bible study partner LueRachelle Brim-Atkins on her childhood in a deeply segregated town in Texas. LueRachelle remembers the “flare ups” that reminded her of her segregated reality. LueRachelle talks about her career in training, development, and consulting, and her efforts to promote racial equality and integration at the University of Washington in the 1970s; part of a lifelong fight against racism.
In this recording, David Hundley talks to his wife Abigail Hundley about his experiences as part of one of the first integrated classes in Seattle schools. Growing up in an all-white neighborhood, David recalls avoiding certain businesses and areas of town that were hostile to people of color. He also remembers the vitriol he faced from children in his neighborhood, and the enduring anxieties he feels from humiliations inflicted on him by his teacher.
In this recording, Marie Gianola speaks with her sister-in-law Esther Herst about her childhood in Green Lake, Seattle during the time of school desegregation in the city. Marie recalls students being bused to her school, and the tension parents and students on all sides felt during the first year. Marie also explores ways in which the tumult of the busing program could have been avoided, saying busing failed despite its best intentions.
In this recording, Gregory Johnson is interviewed by his wife Marica Johnson. He describes his involvement in Seattle’s busing program, remembering the Seattle of his childhood as a “big hick town”, a fact which shaped how desegregation was perceived and managed there. Gregory recounts the racial violence that drove his family to move to the Northwest, and the continued discrimination he faced among peers and adults during the integration process.
In this recording, Gail Mondoux talks to her friend Tracy Shaughnessy about her childhood in Tacoma, WA, where she was voluntarily bused to a downtown elementary school. Tracy recalls the loneliness and fear she felt as a child traveling into the Hilltop area of the city, and describes the city’s flawed approach to achieving educational equity. She also recounts the neglect and anger she faced from administrators, teachers, and students during her transition.
In this recording, friends Delbert Richardson and Dr. Donald Felder discuss their involvement in the process of school desegregation in Seattle. Dr. Felder talks about his passion for sports in high school, and the dislocation he felt moving from a local school to a majority-white school where the “issue of race” first came to his attention. Delbert also says that he was not aware of the reality of racism until he was confronted with it through the backlash to integration.
