Voices Across the Color Line oral history recordings
Scope and Contents of the Records
The bulk of these oral histories deal with the Civil Rights Movement in Atlanta. Specific events mentioned include the student movement centering on Atlanta University; The Committee on Appeal for Human Rights (COAHR); creation and publication of the Atlanta Enquirer newspaper; the organization of the Atlanta Committee of Cooperative Action (ACCA), the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and activities to desegregate city buses and restaurants. Other topics that are discussed on the tapes include desegregation of the public schools and libraries and the organization of Help Our Public Education (H.O.P.E.). In addition, the relationship between local activists and Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) are discussed. Among the specific interviews, desegregation of Atlanta schools is discussed by Pearlie Dove, Robert Edge, John Sibley, Portia Harden Potts, and Muriel Lokey. Lonnie King, Jesse Hill, Alton Hornsby, and Charles Black discuss the activities tied to the Student Movement at Atlanta University. Although the primary focus of the project was the documentation of Atlantans and their involvement in the Civil Rights Movement, events in Georgia and the Southeast were also collected. Of particular importance is the discussion of the St. Augustine Movement, a series of demonstrations that are said to have guaranteed passage and the signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Other discussions include work in desegregating educational facilities throughout the country, and discrimination and segregation in the United States Army in the 1950s and 1960s.
Dates
- 2005-2006
Creator
- Atlanta History Center (Organization)
Restrictions on Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use
Recordings are licensed under a Creative Commons, Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivsCC BY-NC license, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.
Administrative/Biographical History
This collection consists of 36 interviews conducted during a six month period in 2005 and 2006. The project, headed by Dr. Carole Merritt of the Atlanta History Center staff, collected audio and video tape the memories of individuals active in the Civil Rights Movement. This oral history program was developed as a means to expand the information regarding Civil Rights activities in Atlanta and in Georgia. The project was funded from several sources, including the Georgia Humanities Council. Staff members at the Atlanta History Center, working with Dr. Merritt, identified individuals within the Civil Rights movement that provided a unique perspective on the Civil Rights Movement. Dr. Merritt scheduled and conducted all of the interviews. The transcribing and editing of the oral histories was completed by the staff of the James G. Kenan Research Center.
Extent
0.25 linear ft.
Language
English
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is arranged alphabetically by lastname of interviewee.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Patrons who want access to the video recordings of these oral histories must use the digital copies available at http://album.atlantahistorycenter.com/cdm/landingpage/collection/VACL.
Acquisition Information
Collected by staff.
Note
Processing Information
Collection processed in 2009.
- African Americans -- History
- Albany (Ga.)
- Atlanta (Ga.)
- Atlanta University Center (Ga.)
- Birmingham (Ala.)
- Black, Charles A.
- Bolden, Willie
- Boone, Alethea Williams
- Boone, Joseph E.
- Brown, Tucker
- Chattanooga (Tenn.)
- Clayton, Xernona
- Coleman, George, 1922-2008
- Curry, Constance
- Dillard, Morris
- Douglas, Lydia
- Dove, Pearlie C.
- Edge, Robert
- Education -- Georgia -- Atlanta
- Fowlkes, William
- Gaines, Billie Davis
- Georgia. General Assembly. Committee on Schools
- Glustrom, John
- Hill, Jesse, 1927-2012
- Holmes, Herbert
- Hornsby, Alton
- Hudson, John Davis
- King, Lonnie
- Lokey, Muriel
- Luker, Ralph
- National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
- Parham, Johnny
- Pendergrast, Nan
- Poor People's Campaign
- Potts, Portia Harden
- Powell, Faye Bellamy
- Race relations
- Racism -- Georgia -- Atlanta
- Religion
- Ricks, Willie Floyd
- Segregation -- Georgia -- Atlanta
- Selma (Ala.)
- Sibley, John
- Smith, John B.
- Southern Christian Leadership Conference
- Swann, Ernest
- Vivian, C. T.
- Wade, Lyndon A. (Lyndon Anthony)
- Warner, Clinton E.
- Young Men's Christian Associations of North America
- Title
- Voices Across the Color Line oral history recordings, 2005-2006
- Description rules
- Finding Aid Prepared According To Dacs
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- English
Repository Details
Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository