Lessons From Down Under
-Nehemie Villarceau
In Lessons From Down Under Bessie House-Soremekum reflects on her childhood in rural Alabama. Growing up in Alabama in the 1960s and 1970s, she experienced Jim Crow laws and racial tension from whites. She recalls not having the best school materials to learn from as her white counterparts did. Her upbringing reminds me a lot of my childhood since I typically excelled in school. Education is stressed in my family especially since I am a first generation American. We both at a young age didn’t understand the significance of education being stressed so much but as we aged we realized the hardships our parents went through and felt obligated to stand up for a change.
House-Soremekum grandmothers’ story struck me the most in her writing. Living for 104 years and never receiving any type of respect was remarkable to me. Even elderly and retired whites still referred to her my her first name “Bessie” while she addressed them as Mr. and Mrs. That bothered me since I was raised to give respect to my elders. The situation House-Soremekum corrected a white teenager that addressed her grandmother as Bessie. She stood up and told the young woman to address her as Mrs.Fannings. I especially like the fact that House-Soremekum choose to honor her grandmother and the way other blacks were treated in the south, by using her title Mrs. and Dr.
My grandmother also grew up during this time in the south. As I read your blog I could not help but think about her. My grandmother tells us different stories about the whites only signs and her experience listening to different civil rights leaders like Malcom X or the disrespect she has endured. Even so many years after Jim Crow there are still some white people with the same mindset and exhibiting the same disrespect they did in the 60's.
ReplyDeleteThe part where the grandmother is brought in the story I got upset because for me RESPECT is everything and she was 104 and did not recieve it that is so upsetting to me. Also I feel if someone works years to receive their Doctoral Degree you better refer to them as Dr. Etc. Shaniqua Burton
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