Feature

Exploring Multiple Views of History Investigating the Civil Rights Movement through an Oral History Project

Seungyoun Lee & Janet Foster

Introduction The study we report here serves as a Oral History model for undergraduate students in ele- According to the National Council for mentary education to learn how a historical The data for this study were collected Social Studies (NCSS) (2008), social stud- topic can be investigated by their students. during preservice elementary teachers’ ies programs should provide meaningful As an effort to create multiple views of the implementation of an oral history project opportunities for students to view human past and as a context for teaching history that focused on the Civil Rights move- experience from past, present, and future to children, this study examined preservice ment. Oral history projects utilize current perspectives. NCSS calls for schools to elementary teachers’ interpretations of historical methodologies that encourage provide children with a sense of history interview information that was obtained teachers to learn how to develop instruc- in order to develop an appreciation of the from individuals who had personal experi- tion that will help children refine their diverse heritage of the United States. ences during the Civil Rights movement. knowledge, skills, and perspectives as For teachers, this involves actively The students then developed illustrated historical researchers. seeking knowledge from the past and us- narrative accounts of the Civil Rights This study involved seven college ing it to help children retain their own movement utilizing both research and the seniors who were preservice teachers traditions while understanding the way interview information, and finally opened enrolled in an elementary social studies those traditions change, today even more a discourse about cultural diversity based methods course. They selected the topic rapidly than ever (Levstik & Barton, 2001). upon the historical perspectives that were of the Civil Rights movement for an oral Studying changes over time helps children identified. history project, and expressed willingness become grounded in knowledge about the Drawing on data from the preservice to participate in the study and undertake past while developing a historical perspec- elementary teachers’ oral histories based interviews which would provide firsthand tive that will enable them to more fully on the theme “history is not a found reality experiences and information related to the understand today’s present moment and but a socially and culturally constructed Civil Rights movement. Six of the partici- make informed decisions about the future. reality” (Wills, 2005, p.113), this study pants were African Americans and one was An appreciation of historical perspec- focused on the following Georgia Perfor- a Caucasian. tives also allows responsible citizens to mance Standard: The seven pre-service teachers each draw on what they know about the past interviewed their grandparents, all of in shaping the future (Greenberg, 1992). GPS: SS5H8 The student will describe whom were individuals in their seventies Developing historical understandings pre- the importance of key people, events, and who had lived during the time of the Civil pares children to recognize that individuals developments between 1950-1975. Rights movement. The procedure for the hold different views and interpretations of b. Explain the key events and people of the study involved the students first research- events in the past (Chapin, 2006; Hickey, Civil Rights movement; include Brown v. ing the Civil Rights movement, focusing 1999). This allows students to consider and Board of Education (1954), Montgomery on the concepts articulated in the Georgia offer explanations of why individual views Bus Boycott, the March on Washington, performance standard, and then generat- differ, and to develop the ability to defend Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, and ing open-ended interview questions and civil rights activities of Rosa Parks and their own interpretations utilizing evi- Martin Luther King, Jr. conducting interviews with family mem- dence from multiple sources (VanSledright, bers who had personal lived experience 2002; Winston, 1997). Through a formal c. Describe the impact on American society with the topic. study of history, students will continue of the assassinations of President John After completing the interviews, the to expand their perspectives and will be F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. students analyzed the results by compar- able then to apply the research methods (GADOE, 2010) ing the information they had previously associated with historical inquiry. The study was undertaken primarily acquired during the research phase of the to evaluate how preservice elementary project with the information they obtained Seungyoun Lee and Janet Foster teachers can come to understand and un- during the interview. After this analysis, are associate professors, dertake the use of oral history in building the students converted the information both with the Department of Early Childhood a more relevant history curriculum. The from the interviews into a narrative writ- and Special Education model used in this study can be adjusted to ten from a first person perspective, as if of the College of Education support the learning of children in grades their interviewee was telling the story. at Valdosta State University, three through five and beyond. In order to personalize the acquired Valdosta, Georgia.

MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION 14 Feature historical account and make it more rel- mation they collected from these multiple cause they stole their money and picked on evant, each narrative required a creative sources. In this way, the struggles of the them. I moved them to an all-White school. format such as a simulated journal entry Civil Rights movement came alive for I felt sorry for the Black teachers because or letter. Afterwards, the students created them. they probably felt resented. a visual presentation in such formats as a The information gathered was orga- In 1896, the United States Supreme tri-fold presentation board, a scrapbook, a nized by five overarching topics—school Court in a case entitled Plessy v. Ferguson journal format, or a storyboard, or a story segregation, the Montgomery bus boycott ushered in more than half a century of legal cube, using an art strategy such as draw- and Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., segregation based on the infamous “sepa- ing, painting, diorama, or collage. These segregation of public facilities, and the rate but equal” doctrine. Prior to Plessy, visual presentations were used when Voting Rights Act. An overview of each Supreme Court Justice Harlan wrote in his each individual shared their research and topic follows, providing historical context dissent in the Civil Rights cases of 1883, interview with the class. and utilizing excerpts drawn from the The collected data were analyzed interviews. Blacks were granted state citizenship; so, what rights, privileges, and immunities qualitatively by reading multiple times did they receive? If nothing else, they re- the documents of the preservice elemen- School Segregation ceived exemption from race discrimination tary teachers’ interviews, their analyses The African-American participants against them with respect to any civil right about the research and interviews, and recalled their struggles involving segrega- that White citizens enjoy in the same state. the resulting narratives to identify themes tion in public schooling. There had been (Civil Right Cases, p. 47) and patterns. The data were analyzed by separate public schools for Caucasians and In Plessy , Justice Harlan wrote in his selective coding and sorted into themes African Americans and the African-Ameri- dissent, and categories relevant to the Civil Rights can students were denied attendance at … in view of the constitution, in the eye movement. We discussed and shared the “White only” schools. findings of the data analysis and the inter- of the law, there is in this country no su- pretation with our seven participants as I remember walking about 15 miles to perior, dominant, ruling class of citizens. a way to confirm and expand the depth of school every morning because we weren’t There is no caste here. Our constitution is color-blind, and neither knows nor our understanding and meaning-making allowed to attend White schools close by. I missed a lot of days from school because tolerates classes among citizens. (Plessy, within the larger research context. some days it would be too hard for me p. 559 ) to walk. I remember hiding in the shed Understanding behind our house in the morning until In 1954, the United States Supreme the Civil Rights Movement mama went to work. She always left the Court vindicated Justice Harlan’s dissents back door open because my uncle would and overturned Plessy v. Ferguson in the To understand the Civil Rights move- come and pick up things, and once she left case of Brown v. Board of Education of ment, it is necessary to understand the I would sneak back inside and rest. We Topeka, Shawnee County, Kansas. Brown long struggle of African-American citizens couldn’t ride the bus because at that time involved a consolidation of cases from in the U.S. to gain equal rights and access there wasn’t a bus that came through my states that either required or permitted neighborhood, and even then you weren’t to education, courts, government, employ- the denial of African-American children’s guaranteed a seat on the bus. Once I got ment, and all of the other institutions to there [school], I was pretty tired. I recall admittance into all-White schools. The which mainstream people in our society having tons of blisters and calluses on my Federal District Courts had denied relief, already enjoyed access. What follows is feet from walking such a great ways. citing Plessy v. Ferguson and the “separate an overview of that historical time period, but equal” doctrine. The plaintiffs, the reconstructed by sharing the perspectives Comparing the qualitative differences African-American children, argued that gained from student research and from the of public schools for “Whites” and “Blacks,” “separate but equal” was not equal and first-person accounts and interviews. the African-American interviewees pointed could never be made equal, thereby violat- One interviewee described her experi- to the high value of positive self-esteem ing the equal protection of the law required ences, and education of their teachers despite a by the fourteenth amendment (.Brown, p lack of resources. 487). In 1954 the Supreme Court agreed. There were days I was scared to go any- where. I can say that many of my friends Once at school my teacher always made In the Brown decision the Court held went through a lot of struggles. They us feel welcomed. We didn’t have much in that even if all tangible factors—build- were thrown in jail. They were sprayed our classroom compared to the things they ings, teacher’s salary and qualifications, with water hoses, chased by furious dogs, had in white only schools, but I learned a curriculum, and any others—were equal, and beaten. lot. My teacher worked hard, and I can “separate but equal” was fundamentally still remember to this day she would say, not equal (Brown. , p 492). The separation The interviewees remembered the violence “It’s not what people think about you, but associated with a divided society during it’s what you think about yourself.” I still based on race “generates a feeling of inferi- the period of segregation. live by those words today. ority” affecting motivation, and mental and The students’ research examined the educational development (Brown. , p 494). However, the Caucasian participant The Court held that, within public educa- course of several events, court cases, and related a perspective from a White citizen key individuals of the Civil Rights move- tion, the “separate but equal” doctrine about how integrated public schooling expe- violated the equal protection guaranteed ment, and the stories obtained from the riences impacted her children negatively. interviewees demonstrated the relevance by the Fourteenth Amendment. of those events to the people living them. I had to move my children to a different By investigating the topic of school The preservice elementary teachers were school. My children were feeling very segregation and hearing the related sto- enlightened as they analyzed the infor- threatened by the African Americans be- ries of the interviewees, the preservice

FALL 2011 15 Feature elementary teachers came to understand Luther King, Jr. started the movement. to remember and interpret the past. Such the negative impact that segregation had It was a good start to changing racism. struggles over the representation and in- on both Black and White citizens. They It was frightening. People were getting terpretation of the past reveal the politics understood more clearly the struggle of hurt and I didn’t feel safe. I was worried of memory and history. (p. 111) African Americans for equal access to edu- about my Black family in the movement. Dr. King was nonviolent but the younger Remembering the racial discrimina- cation as a public service that all citizens generation was very violent. tion and segregation during the Civil should have been able to take for granted. Rights movement, the participants dis- In addition to school segregation, many One African-American interviewee re- cussed Martin Luther King, Jr.’s advocacy other factors of African Americans’ lives lated that it was “the Montgomery bus boy- of nonviolence. were impacted by segregation. cott that gave African-American people the belief that they could do something about Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only Montgomery Bus Boycott and Rosa Parks the way that they were being treated.” light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. (King, Jr., 1963) You already know this stuff, but it’s differ- It is difficult for most contemporary ent when you actually experience it. Americans, especially children, to imagine King confronted social injustice with a society in which fellow citizens were not a nonviolent approach: The African-American participants allowed to enjoy equal access to a public Martin Luther King, Jr. said if anything brought perspective to the segregation and service at that time. African Americans discriminatory system that had existed in ever happened to him, don’t act violent. paid the same fare as Caucasian bus rid- Martin Luther King, Jr. told his followers, public transportation at that time. ers, but could only sit in the rear and were “I look down the barrel of a gun every day.” I remember hearing my Mama and Daddy required to surrender their seats to White He preached his own funeral. He said, talking about a day they experienced riders if requested. The consequences were “Like anybody I would like to live a long on the bus system. People suffered a lot dire for individuals who did not comply. life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not on those bus systems, and sometimes By researching these events and concerned about that now. I just want to Whites really didn’t want to ride the bus, hearing the related personal accounts of do God’s will and he’s allowed me to go up to the mountain. I’ve looked over and but they would get on just to make the people who were personally affected, the I’ve seen the Promised Land. I may not Black people stand up. I remember riding preservice elementary teachers began to once with my mother to do some grocery get there with you. But we as a people shopping. By the time we got to the store understand how deeply racism, discrimi- will make it to the Promised Land. Now every Black person on the bus was stand- nation, and segregation had permeated I’m not afraid of any man, my eyes have ing close together at the very back of the American society. seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.” bus while the Whites sat comfortably in (King, Jr., 1963) their seats. I knew this wasn’t right, but Martin Luther King, Jr. On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther I was taught to do as I was told and not question things. The interviewees clearly remembered King, Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” Martin Luther King, Jr., who, in their view, speech at the Lincoln Memorial in Wash- While the Caucasian participant con- had stood up for what he believed in—civil ington, D. C., calling for racial harmony sidered Rosa Parks “a historical figure,” she rights and equal opportunities for all people. and equal opportunities for jobs. One in- had never heard what Parks actually did One African-American participant said, terviewee illustrated the deep respect and during the Civil Rights era. In contrast, hope that African Americans held towards Parks was significantly appreciated as the Martin Luther King, Jr. was trying to make this place a better world for us to Dr. King, “Mother of the Civil Rights Movement” by live and create more opportunities for I remember leaving the house six months the African-American participants. Black people. It was a well-deserved honor pregnant just to hear him speak. If only During those days we really didn’t have a to reserve a national holiday for him. you could have experience[d] the hearts of choice. It was either give up your seat or get In contrast, the Caucasian participant the people that gathered for freedom. We dragged off the bus and to the county jail. I explained, all had to be there. remember Rosa Parks as if it were yester- I’m amazed that they have a Martin day. I was probably around twenty three Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech gave Luther King Boulevard in almost every years old. I didn’t know what to expect hope that their struggles would soon be city I visit. People still try really hard to after this happened. I knew people were over. However, at 6:01 p.m. on April 4, honor him. He did a lot for the Blacks and planning sit-ins and boycotts, but I didn’t 1968, their hope turned to sadness and gave them hope for freedom. He was from expect this. She was a very brave woman, Atlanta, which is where I later lived. A lot devastation. and I respect her greatly to this day. of Blacks talked about him and knew who Dr. King was shot. He was at the Lorraine On December 1, 1955, the African he was. I really don’t remember hearing Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. It was a fa- Americans of Montgomery, Alabama, de- that much about him until I moved to tal shot. He got shot in the neck. Snapped cided to boycott the city buses in an effort Atlanta. his neck. I didn’t know what to do. That whole day I was sad with a sense of loss in to desegregate the bus system. The Afri- This reminds us of Wills’ (2005) argu- my heart. I did not want this to happen but can-American participants described their ment regarding multiple perspectives of the man who was the leader in this move- various feelings about the bus boycott. history. ment had just been taken from us. It did make me angry and I wanted to fight The creation of public memorials, the es- But the African-American participants back. I was happy because we had started tablishment of holidays to commemorate continued to look for hope. speaking up for our rights. We stopped specific figures and events in history, and falling for the things the White people other commemorative activities often in- I knew that the Civil Rights movement had against us. I’m so happy because we cited heated battles over who or what we would slow down until everyone had stepped to the plate. I am glad that Martin ought to remember and the correct ways recovered from the shock of what had hap-

MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION 16 Feature

pened. I knew that someone was going to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a reason- reading. In many instances, the administra- pick up from where he left off. I was just able and appropriate means of eliminat- tors of the test were given the responsibility praying that it would not take too long ing such “evil” (Heart of Atlanta, p. 258). of determining who was required to take to happen. The United States Supreme Court stated the test and who successfully passed the In 1963, President Kennedy called that the Heart of Atlanta Motel “has no test, leading to discriminatory application upon Congress to end discriminatory right to select its guests as it sees fit, free of the tests. To prevent such state-imposed practices within public accommodations. from government regulation” (Heart of restrictions from disenfranchising White Following the assassination of Kennedy, Atlanta, p. 259). citizens, the states enacted grandfather Congress heeded the call and passed the By researching the history of discrimi- clauses exempting citizens whose relatives most sweeping anti-discrimination bill nation and the events of the Civil Rights had the right to vote prior to the Civil War in American history, the Civil Rights Act movement and interviewing individuals (Winkler, 1998). of 1964. Soon thereafter, legal challenges who provided accounts of related personal The notorious actions of the Alabama began attacking the constitutionality of experiences, the preservice elementary State Police against the participants of the the act. The Supreme Court considered teachers gained a clear understanding of Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965 one such challenge, Heart of Atlanta Motel the significance of this period of American resulted in the federal government tak- v. United States (1964), which related to history. By hearing interviewees’ descrip- ing action to end the disenfranchisement access to motels. This case serves as one tions of how they had been treated, the of African Americans. The first Selma to example of discriminatory treatment of history became real. This history had Montgomery march was organized by the African Americans prior to and following been experienced by people the preservice Dallas County Voters League of Alabama the Civil Rights Act of 1964. elementary teachers knew. This made it for the purpose of asking Governor George relevant to their own lives. Wallace to protect African-American voter registrants. As the march progressed over Segregation in Public Facilities Voting Rights Act the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, the My parents didn’t go vote. I remember my participants were attacked by the Alabama One interviewee recounted experi- first presidential election when I voted in state troopers, who used tear gas and ences with racial segregation in housing 1960 for President Kennedy. People lost nightsticks. The images of the bloodied and public facilities. their lives for us to be able to vote. It was marchers on television and in newspapers There was a time that I was denied the an awesome feeling. To stand in that line, and magazines across the nation led to right to eat in a diner because I was Black. it made me feel really good. Kennedy was the naming of the day as “Bloody Sunday.” our first president that we voted for. Whites and Blacks did not even live on the Several subsequent marches were led by same side of the railroad tracks. There The 15th Amendment to the United such Civil Rights leaders as King, Rever- was a White side and a Black side. I only States Constitution, an amendment that end Shuttlesworth, and Rabbi Abraham wanted a burger and fries but was denied (Winkler, 1998). because I was a few shades too dark. I followed the end of the Civil War and that remember going places and there would specified the rights of freed male slaves As a result, Congress passed and be ‘White only’ signs. The Fox Theatre to vote, was ratified in 1870, specifically President Johnson signed the National had two entrances for Blacks and Whites, providing that “The right of citizens of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to end the water fountains were segregated, and at United States to vote shall not be denied discriminatory disenfranchisement of drugstores Blacks couldn’t sit at the coun- or abridged by the United States or by any African-American citizens. The act’s ter and eat. The Blacks would do sit-ins State on account of race, color, or previous language paralleled the 15th Amendment at the diners and the police would come condition of servitude.” The amendment by prohibiting the states from creating in and get them. further provided that “The Congress shall or imposing any “voting qualification or The Heart of Atlanta Motel continued have the power to enforce this article by prerequisite to voting or standard, prac- the practice of refusing to serve African appropriate legislation.” tice, or procedure… to deny or abridge the Americans after the passage of the Civil Within several years after the rati- right of any citizen of the United States Rights Act of 1964. The legal challenge fication of the 15th Amendment, the to vote on account of race or color.” centered on Title II, Section 201(a) which Civil War reconstruction period ended The Voting Rights Act of 1965 prohib- stated “all persons shall be entitled to the and ex-Confederate states reclaimed ited the use of any literacy test in any fed- full and equal enjoyment of the goods, ser- their autonomous sovereignty. Within this eral or state election. The act also required vices, facilities, privileges, advantages, and mindset of renewed independence, those any state, county, or city with a history accommodation…” The Federal District states began imposing, either through of disenfranchising African Americans Court validated the act and issued a perma- legislation or within their newly written to seek approval from the United States nent injunction later in 1964 prohibiting the state constitutions, racially motivated Justice Department prior to changing any Heart of Atlanta Motel from discriminat- provisions restricting the right to vote of future election procedure or practice. ing among its patrons. The United States African-American citizens. Many additional court cases have fol- Supreme Court affirmed the lower court’s State-imposed restrictions on the right lowed, some successful and others unsuc- decision, upholding the constitutionality of to vote included such infamous provisions cessful in seeking to address continued the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as it applied to as the poll tax, literacy and comprehension practices of discrimination and segrega- the practices of that motel. tests, and grandfather clauses. The poll tax tion. However, as our study participants The Court determined that Congress was a fee charged to exercise the right to reviewed the research and personal stories had a rational basis by finding that racial vote. The literacy and comprehension tests of interviewees, they came to realize the discrimination by motels affected com- involved reading certain passages and an- extent to which these huge societal issues merce and that Title II, Section 201(a) of swering questions based on the particular have been at least partially settled while

FALL 2011 17 Feature also recognizing that there still remain Rights movement they could have given argue that the importance of oral histories many related struggles to be addressed by up. Their and their family’s lives were in is in providing “content-rich professional the current generation. so much danger. They did not give up and development experiences that support that is a message that I will always give teachers’ need for dialogue, partnership, to my children. My kids read the ‘I Have a and reflection in the creation of coherent Civil Rights Movement and Today Dream’ speech. This speech reminds us of the dream that Martin Luther King, Jr. had and critical theories and practices that It took a while for things to change. I think engage students in the authentic tasks of the generation today has come a long way and how far we have come and how much collecting, reading, interpreting, talking since those days. further we have to go. I tell them to always have a dream and goals and never let any- about, and writing history” (p. 207). In this way, and many others, the in- one tell them that they cannot be reached. Through this oral history project, terviewees described the changes in their I tell them not to try to be like Martin or these future teachers researched the Civil lives after the Civil Rights Act was passed anyone else, but to be themselves. Rights movement, became more knowl- in 1964. edgeable about the topic, drafted interview Getting Deeper Knowledge questions to obtain more well-versed and People weren’t as afraid to walk by them- and Insight about History selves. Black people were allowed into informed information based on their learn- ing about the topic, conducted interviews, new places, and my favorite part was the Through this exploration of the Civil and then processed the information that movie theater. At first, we could only sit Rights movement, the participants became at the very top, but after then we could sit they received from the interviews by com- active agents of meaning-making of their at the front and see the picture clearly. It paring it to the information found during experiences and feelings about the past. As was great. I just thanked God for being their research. The preservice elementary individuals with unique life experiences, so awesome. teachers thus researched and analyzed the participants recounted their personal the Civil Rights movement from multiple They mentioned that some of the lead- understandings, beliefs, and views about perspectives through the several stages of ers of the Civil Rights Movement would the Civil Rights movement within their the oral history project. feel pleased about today’s transitions that own sociocultural context. This study have “integrated as much as it has.” One developed an emergent narrative of the Beyond personalizing American history or interviewee said, “For the most part, Dr. Civil Rights movement generated by the making it more real, the stories provide a King’s dream has come true, even though preservice elementary teachers, their in- sense of depth and complexity often neglect- there is still more work to do.” terviewees, and the researchers. ed in a survey history course because they tie together personal experiences and national Struggles over what of the past we My lifestyle then was something I needed events. Oral interviews help students learn to make me stronger for my children. I still should remember and the “ correct” way to an important and powerful lesson: People reside in Mississippi, and yes, at times remember them have become more evident like us make history. (Dillion, 2000, p. 605) I may still experience a hint of racism, during the culture wars and history wars but will it ever go away? Probably not. I of recent years. Efforts to reform the K-12 Ultimately, the preservice elementary have never imagined a Black running for social studies curriculum in a way that teachers acknowledged that the oral his- presidency. Absolutely not. It was a shock reflects social and cultural diversity and to tory project gave them in-depth knowledge for me but a blessing at the same time. It and insight of the past. sent a message to all young youth that you create national standards for history educa- really can do anything you set your mind tion have provoked heated debates among The oral history project gave me a new un- to do. It gives us all hope for change. I feel the general public and academics over what derstanding of the Civil Rights movement. hopeful that America will see the positive we ought to remember and what counts as Conducting this interview really allowed me message behind this election. legitimate history (Wills, 2005, p. 109). to understand what it was like during the Civil Rights era. I hear about it all the time, Regarding the 2008 presidential elec- During the process of interviewing and obtaining personal stories from the Civil and I’ve done research on the topic, but it’s tion, the Caucasian participant discussed totally different when you have a relative Rights movement and comparing the col- both a perceived decline in racism as well that experienced the era first hand. After as her personal beliefs about equality. lected life experiences of the interviewees talking about segregation and integration with the research about the same topic of the schools with my grandmother, I real- I think that we have evolved over time gained from other sources, the preservice ized that things did not change overnight because Senator Obama could have never elementary teachers each became a “social for the Blacks. She still remembers a lot been elected if we hadn’t. I would like to actor contextualized in a complex web of of the Civil Rights movement like it was think that over time we have seriously structured social relations” (Sealey, 2009, yesterday. I guess significant events make changed, but some still have racial views. an imprint on your life. Personally, I have changed and I have p.216), each participant learning of the realized that everyone deserves to be multiple voices and interpretations regard- treated equally. ing history. “Social studies are about phe- Recreating Life Stories nomena to be explored, not just answers to That Talk about History The participants also shared their memorize” (Zemelman, Daniels, & Hyde, History evokes a narrative of the past, learnings from the Civil Rights movement 1998, p.143). as they relate to the U.S. today. and oral indicates a medium of expression. This oral history project prepared the (Portelli, 1998, p.23) I learned to appreciate things better and preservice elementary teachers to teach stay more involved in what is going on; history to young children by expanding Stemming from the belief that history It showed me that not only my children, their content knowledge of historical events is reinterpreted and reconstructed by the but anyone should stand up for what they and shaping history relevant to their lives informants providing their stories, the pre- believe in and not to let anyone or anything through the stories of people who lived the service elementary teachers arrived at their stop them. At any time during the Civil history. Hudson, Jr. and Santora (2003) own conclusions through a mutual process

MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION 18 Feature of meaning-making. They constructed their the Civil Rights movement brought about NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. own understanding by writing a narrative profound societal changes enjoyed by all Moss, W. (1996). Oral history: An appreciation. based on the interviews and research about citizens of the United States. In D. K. Dunaway & W. K. Baum (Eds.), the Civil Rights movement. “The record is Oral history: An interdisciplinary anthology, Segregation. I go to the lunch counter, (2nd ed., pp. 107-120). Walnut Creek, CA: a selective one that itself selects informa- and I see Black people sitting. They are AltaMira Press. tion from the selective record of the wit- taken away by police. They are not treated National Council for the Social Studies. (1988). ness/narrator’s memory of past events and equally. I go to the Fox theatre, and they Social studies for early childhood and el- subjects” (Moss, 1996, p. 111). [Black people] have to enter through a ementary school children preparing for the The six African-American participants different door. They cannot sit with us. 21st century. Retrieved from http://www. collaborated on the following narrative: They are not treated equally. I go to take socialstudies.org/positions/elementary and drink from the water fountain. They National Council for the Social Studies. (2008). Dear Dr. King, can’t drink from the same one [as I]. They NCSS curriculum standards for social studies We stood the test of time and now it is are not treated equally. I send my children update . Retrieved from http://www.socialstud- time for us to prevail. I must say that I was to school. They [Black children] are not ies.org/standards/taskforce/fall2008draft truly dissatisfied with the racism that went treated equally. I worry for their safety. Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537, (1896). on. I wanted to do everything in my power They are not treated equally. Portelli, A. (1998). Oral history as genre. In M. to stop racism and gain freedom and equal- The Civil Rights Movement. Now, I see Chamberlain & P. Thomson (Eds.), Narrative ity. In order to do this, I had to be grounded change. I go to a restaurant, and they [Black and genre (pp. 23-45). New York: Routledge. in my faith and stay strong. God would people] walk in beside me. We both sit down Sealey, A. (2009). Probabilities and surprises: not let it happen for long. When people to a good meal. We are equal. I go to see A realist approach to identifying linguistic struggled, I knew a change was going to a show at the Fox and they stand in line and social patterns with reference to an come and it would be magnificent. The in front of me. They sit beside me. We are oral history corpus. Applied Linguistics, 31 struggle was to prepare us for something equal. I go to take a sip of water. They wait (2), 215-235. great that would be happening to us. in the same line behind me. We are equal. VanSledright, B. (2002). In search of America’s It might not happen next year or in past: Learning to read history in elementary twenty years, but I knew for sure there References school. New York: Teachers College Press. would be change and we would be treated Wills, J. S. (2005). ‘Some people even died’: as an equal to my fellow White neighbor. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Shawnee Martin Luther King, Jr., the civil rights America selected an African-American County, Kansas, 347 U.S. 483, (1954). movement and the politics of remembrance president. I figured you would appreciate Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Shawnee in elementary classrooms. International this remarkable time in history. You were county, Kansas, 98 F.Supp.797, (1951). Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, determined to make the people of our Chapin, J. R. (2006). Elementary social studies: 18(1), 109-131. nation aware of how poisonous racism A practical guide. Boston: Pearson. Winker, A. M. (1998). The struggle for social can be. I believe now that people of all Civil rights cases, 109 U.S. 3, (1883). reform. In G. B. Nash & J. R. Jeffrey (Eds.), backgrounds are aware and attempting Dillion, P. (2000). Teaching the past through oral The American people: Creating a nation and to make your dream come true. I love my history. The Journal of American History, a society, (4th ed., pp. 1026-1067). New York: nation but we still have work to do. The 87(2), 602-605. Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers. issues now are not just with race, but Georgia Department of Education (2010). So- Winston, L. (1997). Keepsakes: Using family with religion, sexual orientation, gender, cial studies standards, K-5. Retrieved from stories in elementary classrooms. Westport, etc. I believe it would be of great justice to https://www.georgiastandards.org/Stan- CT: Heinemann. hear your speech again and people really dards/Pages/BroiwseStandards/SocialStud- Zemelman, S., Daniels, H., & Hyde. A. (1998). comprehend your intended message. iesStandardsK-5.aspx Best practice: New standards for teaching Dr. King, you were, and still are, a historic Greenberg, P. (1992). How to institute some and learning in America’s schools. Ports- leader in America. I was taught your beliefs simple democratic practices pertaining to mouth, NH: Heinemann. throughout my scholastic career and soon, respect, rights, and responsibilities in any my children will be hearing similar lessons classroom. Young Children, 47, 10-17. of your genuine character and heroic ways. Heart of Atlanta Motel v. U.S., 379 U.S. 241, (1964). I will always stand behind your dream and Heart of Atlanta Motel v. U.S., 231 F.Supp. 393, uphold these truths. I will always remem- (1964). ber that weeping may endure for a night Hickey, G. (1999). Bringing history home. Need- but joy will always come in the morning. ham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon. I consider you the guiding light of a much Hudson, L. E., Jr., & Santora, E. D. (2003). Oral needed movement and an icon for America history: An inclusive highway to the past. forever. Thanks for being brave and stand- History Teacher, 36 (2), 206-220. ing for what you believed was right. King, Jr., M. L. (1963). Strength to love. Levstik, L. S., & Barton, K. C. (2001). Doing his- Following is a narrative written by tory: Investigating with children in elemen- the Caucasian participant, suggesting how tary and middle schools (2nd ed.) Mahwah,

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