Oral+History

** Interview subject - Roland Carey and Gordon Jarnagin **
 * Topic - Personal Views on Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights **
 * Information:
 * Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15 of 1929
 * His real name was Michael Luther King Jr, but he changed his name to Martin
 * He came from a family of pastors and knew he would one day do the same
 * he attended segregated public schools in Georgia
 * He graduated high school at 15
 * received a B.A. degree in 1948 from Morehouse college and a B.D. in 1951 and received his degree in 1955
 * King attended University of Boston and there met his future wife Coretta Scott
 * They had two sons and two daughters
 * 1954, he became the pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama
 * King was part of the executive committee for the NAACP which would be the leading organization of it's kind in the nation
 * He was the leader of the great Bus Boycott which lasted 382 days. On December 21, 1956 the Supreme Court listened to King and his followers and declared segregation on buses unconstitutional
 * King had been arrested many times for his actions and his house had been bombed
 * He faced harsh violence but at the same time he was considered one of the highest African American leaders
 * He was elected president of the SCLC in 1957
 * The SCLC was a new organization for the civil rights movement
 * King used skills and techniques within the organization from Gandhi and Christianity'
 * From 1957-1968 King traveled all around the country (about 6 million miles) and spoke over 2500 times to many different congregations of people
 * He wrote five books and numerous articles while on his journey
 * King led many protests, one of his most memorable was his march in Birmingham, Alabama along with his March on Washington, these were said to be on of his biggest marches in his life
 * While in Birmingham King was put in jail and wrote to the government expressing how angered he was his letter is called "Letter from Birmingham Jail" it was considered a manifesto of the Negro revolution.
 * He delivered his "I Have a Dream" in front of thousands of people
 * He was awarded with 5 honorary degrees, and was named Man of the Year in 1963 by Time magazine
 * He was a symbolic leader for both the nation and African Americans
 * He won the Nobel Peace prize at the age of 35 and gave the money he received to the Civil Rights Movement
 * April 4, 1968 during the decade of the Vietnam War, while on a hotel balcony in Memphis, Tennessee he was shot
 * Events that were happening at this time were
 * Freedom Rides
 * Bus Boycotts
 * Sit-in demonstrations
 * Birmingham Children's Crusade
 * Most of these event were started by children and college students, both black and white


 * Before Interview Summary:
 * Martin Luther King grew up in a good home with good parents in Atlanta, Georgia. His future was already set up for him, he was to go to school and become a pastor like the generations before him. He did just this, he attended a segregated public schools and went to Morehouse College at the age of fifteen. He graduated Morehouse with a B.A. degree in Sociology. King studied at places like Crozer Theological Seminary, the University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University and Boston University. At Boston University he met Corretta Scott who married in 1953. Corretta and Martin had four children, Yolanda, Martin Luther III, Dexter, and Bernice. He continued on after an amazing education as the pastor of Dexter Avenue Baptist in Montgomery, Alabama. King was involved in the SCLC an organization that helped with many aspects of the Civil Rights Movement. King was the face of Civil Rights, he was one of the greatest leaders. He fought to end the racial hatred, discrimination and segregation. He was loved by many helped encourage those to fight for there freedom. He gave his most famous speech on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial, he gave his "I Have a Dream" speech to over 200, 000 people. He fought everywhere he could, from Tennessee to Georgia, from Washington D.C. to a Birmingham jail, he never stopped fighting for the freedom of African American's and his legacy continues to live on. Going into this interview we know quite a lot about The Civil Rights Movement and Martin Luther King Jr, but what we really wanted to find out was what was it like to live in these times. What were the different point of views from both the black and white races.


 * Questions:
 * What was life for you like during this time?
 * What were your own opinions on MLK during this time in your life?
 * What were some of the big events that were happening on in this time period?
 * Were you involved in any of MLK's or your own marches or demonstrations? If so what was that experience like?
 * Did you face any racial hatred? If so how did you deal with it?
 * How were you taught to react to MLK in school, at your home and in your community?
 * Were you and the people around you supportive of what MLK was doing? Why or why not?
 * How was life before and after the Civil Rights movement? What were some of the similarities and differences between these two time periods?
 * Is there anything you did not agree with that MLK did? If so what were some of those things?
 * How do you view MLK now?
 * If MLK were to look at our world today do you think he would be happy with the accomplishment we have made as a nation on getting rid of racial segregation?
 * Do you think he made a difference in racial segregation? If so what kind of changes did he make?
 * What do you think MLK's legacy was?
 * What were some of the values you took away from MLK's legacy?
 * Do you remember how your family was affected and reacted to the changes MLK was making?


 * Interview:

media type="custom" key="9637682"


 * After Summary:
 * After a long and detailed discussion with Mr. Roland Carey we learned a lot about the life of an African American during the Civil Rights movement. We were able to get a first hand account on the shocking experiences that they had faced during these times. Mr. Carey shared with us his own personal stories and fascinated us with the answers to our pondering questions. In his answers he was very detailed in his answers which, helped us understand what he personally had felt during these times. He shared with us his opinions on many different topics especially Martin Luther King, and we learned that Mr. Carey was very fond of Dr. King. Mr. Carey spoke very highly of Dr. King and expressed how much gratitude and respect he had for him. He put much emotion in his answers and was willing not to spare any details in his stories. We learned so much from Mr. Carey and his stories made us wonder more about life and the different experiences during these times which led us to make another phone call in order to ask more questions about this topic. We called Mr. Gordon Jarnagin a kind man of 88 years, who although is hard of hearing was still very willing to answer any questions we had about the Civil Rights Movement or Martin Luther King Jr. He share with us a few of his stories and some of his life experiences. What surprised us most is that even though he grew up in racist home he though of Martin Luther King a great leader and spoke very highly of him. He was also very positive about the progress we have made as a nation in getting rid of racial segregation. Talking to both of these men and learning what it was like in these times was a great experience. We enjoyed their stories and had a lot of fun learning with and about them!

>>
 * Work Cited:
 * "The King Center." //Untitled Document//. Web. 29 May 2011. 
 * "Martin Luther King - Biography". Nobelprize.org. 29 May 2011 http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1964/king-bio.html
 * Nordquist, Richard. ""I Have a Dream," by Martin Luther King, Jr. - Classic Essays and Speeches." //Grammar and Composition - Homepage of About Grammar and Composition//. Web. 30 May 2011. .
 * "[Rev. Martin Luther King, head-and-shoulders portrait, facing right, speaking at a rally in Crawfordville, Georgia]." United Press International telephoto,1965 Oct 11. Prints and Photographs Divison of the Library of Congress