Pain and Promise: Remembering the Fight for School Integration

Living Memories

Digital Short
Sheila Malone-Conway & Sharon Malone

In 1961, identical twin sisters Sheila Malone-Conway and Sharon Malone were part of a group of students in Memphis, Tennessee, who integrated previously all-white schools. Known as the “Memphis 13,” these African American students were all enrolled as first graders. From Nashville, Tennessee, Sheila Malone-Conway and Sharon Malone talked about their experience.
Digital Short
Judith Stoia & Patricia Kelly

Judy Stoia first met Patricia Kelly when Pat knocked on her door and asked if she was interested in selling her home. It was 1976, and many whites were fleeing Boston's Jamaica Plain neighborhood because of school desegregation. Now, nearly 50 years later, they remember that tumultuous time…

Digital Short
Suzanne Lee & Howard Wong

In the summer of 1974, Suzanne Lee was a first-year teacher living in Boston’s Chinatown and Howard Wong was an 11-year-old middle schooler. They remembered when the notice for desegregation first came, and how it eventually led to a Chinese student boycott of Boston schools.
Digital Short
Louis Jordan & Andrew Jordan

Louis Jordan grew up on a farm in Americus, Georgia during the late 1950's. He spoke with his son, Andrew about the racial tensions and unrest that marked his childhood and how desegregating his high school helped shape the man he would become.
Digital Short
Dr. Gina Tillis & Sheri Neely

Dr. Gina Tillis grew up in a multiracial, bilingual household in California. In high school, she moved to Texas where, generations earlier, her family helped start an all-Black school. Gina came to StoryCorps with Sheri Neely — her friend and fellow board member of the Memphis 13 Foundation, a nonprofit that advocates for educational equity to honor the thirteen African American students who were the first to integrate the public schools in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1961. Together, they reflect on Gina’s educational experience and the legacy of desegregation.

Mementos

Digital Short
Katie Wetsell & Chris Horan

Chris Horan tells his daughter Katie Wetsell about his recollections of school desegregation as a white student in McGehee, Arkansas in the 1960s. The two reflect on what they have learned through his experiences and stories, and how that informs how they move through the world today.=
Digital Short
Angela Ross & Jeanette Taylor

When the Chicago Board of Education voted to close 50 elementary schools, the majority of students affected were Black, who were being bused to new schools in sometimes rival gang territories. Community organizer Jeanette Taylor and teacher Angela Ross talked about the impact of the school closures on their community.

Digital Short
Diane Hayes Powers & Destiny McLurkin

Diane Hayes Powers tells her daughter Destiny McLurkin about growing up in segregated Seattle and how her experiences during school desegregation inspired her to advocate for young people in her community.
Digital Short
Jacquelyn Howard & LueRachelle Brim-Atkins

LueRachelle Brim-Atkins grew up in Naples, Texas, where strict segregation was a part of everyday life. Years later she moved to Seattle, Washington. There, she spoke with her friend, Jacquelyn Howard, about her early life, and how her family’s legacy led her to becoming an educator.
Digital Short
Elisabeth"Biz" Lindsay-Ryan & Suni Kartha

Elisabeth "Biz" Lindsay-Ryan and Suni Kartha were strangers in Evanston, Illinois who believed that there were serious inequities in the way that the parent-teacher associations (PTA) were able to raise and spend money for schools in their district. They remember how they eventually galvanized the rest of their community to rethink that approach.

RECOLLECTIONS:

Boston: Recorded at GBH

Audio
Leslie Griffin and Judith Baker

In this recording, consultant Leslie “Skip” Griffin interviews community activist and former Boston Public School teacher Judith Baker on the segregation and endemic corruption in staffing she encountered during her tenure. Skip also contributes his experiences as an appointee of Judge W. Arthur Garrity in implementing the integration plan in Boston schools.
Audio
Tess Decosta and Leigh-Ann Carr

In this recording, Leigh-Ann Carr interviews her friend, former Boston Public School student and South Boston resident Tess Decosta, about the lead-up to and implementation of the busing plan and the anger in the white communities of Boston at that time. Tess discusses her experience of the unrest in South Boston and the pervasive fear that defined the responses of her peers and neighbors to the crisis.
Audio
John Canty and Jared Tetreau

In this recording, Jared Tetreau interviews John Canty, a former teacher and administrator in the Boston Public Schools, working during the time of the busing crisis. John discusses his efforts prior to the busing plan to encourage the school system to integrate, and the resistance he faced in the process. John argues that the unwillingness of the School Committee to cooperate with integration was the driving force behind the intervention of the courts.
Audio
Dr. J. Keith Motley and Joseph Feaster, Jr.

In this recording, Dr. J. Keith Motley & Joseph Feaster, Jr. remember their involvement in the implementation of Judge Arthur Garrity’s busing plan in Boston. Joseph tells of his work addressing concerns of Black parents as a member of the NAACP’s Boston branch during the crisis. Dr. Motley, who was a student at Northeastern at the time, recounts the violence and anger he witnessed as busing brought racist fury in Boston to the fore.

Audio
Judith Stoia and Patricia Kelly

In this recording, friends and neighbors from Jamaica Plain, Judith “Judy” Stoia and Patricia “Pat” Kelly, tell of their experiences of the busing crisis. Pat, a former teacher in Charlestown, talks about her class of poor white children, and the shunning she received from white teachers during the first year of busing. Judy, a reporter in Boston at the time, recounts the fury of white residents and the fundamental misunderstandings that drove them to anger.
Audio
Suzanne Lee and Howard Wong

In this recording, community activist and former Boston schoolteacher and principal Suzanne Lee joins former Chinatown student Howard Wong in recounting the organization of Chinatown mothers dedicated to protecting their children during their transfer to schools in the North End and Charlestown. They also discuss the importance of community in achieving integration.

Audio
Diane Buxton and Chris Hardenbergh

In this recording, Diane Buxton interviews Chris Hardenbergh, a Hyde Park native who attended elementary and middle school in Roxbury. Chris, who was bused from the time he was in kindergarten, tells of his mother’s determination to support school integration, and the intimidation he faced from residents who threw rocks and bottles at passing buses.
Audio
Steve Maggs and Barbara Lyon

In this recording, Steve Maggs, a former Mattapan resident who was sent to Hyde Park High School in 1974, is interviewed by his life partner Barbara Lyon about his experience during the busing crisis. Steve describes the racial tension at Hyde Park High during his time there, and the sharp divisions that remained in spite of the student body’s diversity.
Audio
Lyda Peters and Ruth Rosner

In this recording, former Boston Public School teachers and colleagues Lyda Peters and Ruth Rosner discuss their time teaching in Roxbury. Lyda recalls the relative ease of becoming a teacher at majority-Black schools - a major problem identified at the time by the NAACP - and Ruth describes her methods as a “radical”, devoted to providing quality education in defiance of the racism of other white teachers.
Audio
Sheila Wise Rowe and Bill Mooney-McCoy

In this recording, former Boston student Sheila Wise Rowe speaks to her longtime friend Bill Mooney-McCoy about her memories of the transition from segregated to integrated public schools. Sheila recounts her involvement with the parent-led integration program Operation Exodus, which predated busing, and the consequences of educational inequity in society.

Chicago: Recorded at WTTW

Audio
Tiffany Woods and Will Yadron

In this recording, special education teachers Will Yadron and Tiffany Woods speak about their experiences developing new curricula for students while demographics and funding continue to shift. Will and Tiffany address disparate test scores in underfunded schools. They also reflect on the unique challenges and pushback they faced in developing new opportunities for learning among students with specific educational needs and backgrounds.
Audio
Terry Batey and Sandra Shimon

In this recording, assistant principal Terry Batey and principal Sandra Shimon explore Terry’s evolution from a Chicago Public Schools student to an administrator. Terry shares his mission of improving student service, and Sandra recalls how Terry’s example shaped her approach to balancing the demands of staff and parents with the needs of students. Terry also examines how achieving educational equity requires growth among adults as well as students.
Audio
Daanish Rizwan and Ambar Rizwan

In this recording, teacher Ambar Rizwan talks to her brother Daanish Rizwan about their childhoods, and how representation impacted their respective career goals. They describe how their experiences in their majority-white school left them feeling isolated as people of mixed heritage. Both siblings share how their strict upbringing exacerbated feelings of isolation, and Ambar explores how these experiences inform her approach to teaching.
Audio
Cam Be and Andre “Add-2” Daniels

In this recording, creative partners and friends Cam Be and Andre “Add-2” Daniels discuss their educational journeys. Both attended private and public schools and moved around through different states and neighborhoods. Cam remembers being “bored” with school, and how movement hindered some of his ambitions. Add-2 recalls how the investment of teachers in their work directly impacted his interest in schoolwork.

Audio
Jeanette Taylor and Angela Ross

In this recording, city alderman Jeanette Taylor and teacher Angela Ross discuss persistent inequalities in Chicago public schools. Jeannette and Angela explore the differences in wealth and resources between schools on the North and South sides of Chicago, and the racial disparities that underlie these truths. They also examine the limited potential for children of color that comes from learning in restrictive and under-resourced environments.
Audio
Suni Kartha and Elisabeth"Biz" Lindsay-Ryan

In this recording, Elisabeth “Biz” Lindsay-Ryan and Suni Kartha discuss racial equity in Evanston, IL public schools. Suni, a former member of the school board, shares her mission to increase racial equity in schools, and the divide in fundraising between schools in the district. Biz, a diversity, equity, and inclusion consultant, recalls her experiences with Suni to gather data on racial inequity to bring to the PTA and school board, and the resistance they faced.

Audio
Robin Young and Tonia Reaves

In this recording, Tonia Reaves is interviewed by her daughter-in-law Robin Young about her childhood in a diverse school community. Tonia reveals how this integrated upbringing influenced her understanding of the world for both better and worse. Robin discusses how her schools were mostly homogenous until high school. Both remember certain instances where they felt singled out by white teachers for unequal punishment.
Audio
Janise Wriddle and Sylester J. Miles

In this recording, friends Janise Wriddle and Sylester J. Miles recount their school experiences. Sylester, who was bused to school in his native Evanston, IL, remembers a diverse school environment, the nervousness he felt entering a white school, and the first grade teacher that helped boost his confidence. Janise discusses her realization of class differences in her school district when she made friends with wealthier students during high school.
Audio
Dr. William Toulios and Dallas Anderson

In this recording, coach Dallas Anderson talks with his friend the superintendent of Summit, IL School District 217 Dr. William Toulios about the school’s focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion. Dallas discusses his childhood in the Argo section of Summit; a vibrantly diverse community that opened him up to different cultures and experiences. Dr. Toulios speaks of the importance of dedicated figures like Dallas to achieving the school’s DEI objectives.
Audio
Charles Kruner and Crispien Van Alest

In this recording, Crispien Van Alest interviews his family friend Charles Kruner about the integration of schools in his native Lawndale section of Chicago. Kruner, a former teacher, remembers the use of stereotypes against Black students and families by white teachers and residents during the time. He discusses the struggle he faced in counteracting his co-workers’ belief that Black students were incapable of or uninterested in learning.

Nashville: Recorded at NPT

Audio
LeAndrew Wiggins and Dwania Kyles

In this recording, Dwania Kyles speaks with LeAndrew Wiggins, both members of the Memphis 13, the first group of children to integrate Memphis public schools in 1961. LeAndrew describes being an “alternate”; a student chosen to join the integration process with only a few day’s notice. Dwania, whose parents moved to Memphis from Chicago to join the Civil Rights Movement, was volunteered to integrate, saying that her family believed in leading by example.
Audio
Susan Gardner and Lillian Gardner

In this recording, 98-year-old Lillian Gardner is interviewed by her daughter Susan Gardner about her long life and her experiences witnessing the breadth of the integration process and its aftermath. Lillian recalls her first experiences with segregation after moving from Indiana to Tennessee, and the frustration she felt as a white person in the Jim Crow South. She and Susan reflect on the ways in which Lillian’s life story captures enormous shifts in our nation’s history.
Audio
Erik Townsend and Jeannette Holland

In this recording, Jeannette Holland speaks with her son Erik Townsend. Jeannette, who was bused to a new high school her junior year, describes the experience of having the serene “bubble” of her childhood broken. The bused students were separated among several schools, and Jeannette remembers the disappointment and pain of not sharing the memories of her teenage years with the people she’d grown up with. At her new school, her grades suffered, and Jeannette recalls feeling completely disempowered by the busing process in Nashville.
Audio
Leithia Watson Carter and Barbara Watson

In this recording, sisters Leithia Watson Carter and Barbara Watson discuss the impact of the decision to desegregate Nashville public schools. Taking an opposite approach to many comparable cities, Nashville ordered all students, regardless of race, to go to the schools nearest their home. Leithia and Barbara recall the sudden hostility they faced from white neighbors. Barbara walked to school with her parents on her first day, facing angry crowds. Both sisters remember men staying overnight in their home with guns to protect them from threats.

Audio
Sheila Conway and Sharon Malone

In this recording, twin sisters Sheila Conway and Sharon Malone tell their stories as part of the first group of children to integrate Memphis schools: “the Memphis 13”. Sheila remembers being shunned by white students, the horrendous cruelty of her teacher, and having racial slurs thrown at her. Sharon recalls the inequality of the schools, and the collective forgetting that the city of Memphis seems to have regarding the ordeal.
Audio
Louis Jordan and Andrew Jordan

In this recording, Andrew Jordan interviews his father Howard “Louis” Jordan about his time as a white child in southern Georgia during Jim Crow. Louis remembers the transition to integrated schools in the 8th grade, and the ostracization of the one Black student in his rural high school class. He also tells about the unrest that marked his childhood, and how racial tensions were disrupted through the integration of sports and other activities.

Audio
Karim Abdullah and Phillip Hill

In this recording, Phillip Hill interviews his friend and co-worker Karim Abdullah about his childhood in Memphis. Karim recalls his “case study” class, a high-IQ group of Black students that were kept together from 7th grade to 12th grade to measure Black intelligence by the state of Tennessee. Karim reflects on how his exemption from integration represented a complex kind of racism, whereby he and his classmates were insulated and insulted at the same time.
Audio
John Little IV and John Little III

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.
Audio
Grace Gadson and Kleopatra Gaiter

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.
Audio
Alf Sharp and Katherine Sharp

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.

Audio
Katie Wetsell and Chris Horan

In this recording, Katie Wetsell interviews her father Chris Horan, who remembers his time as a student during school desegregation in southeast Arkansas. As a child in the Jim Crow South, Chris witnessed white resistance to integration, and recalls the federal enforcement of Brown v. Board of Education when he was in high school. Chris recounts the change of culture and shift in perspective that came from meeting Black students.
Audio
Sheri Neely and Dr. Gina Tillis

In this recording, Sheri Neely interviews her friend Dr. Gina Tillis. Dr. Tillis recalls growing up in diverse California schools, and the whiteness that prevailed in both the curriculum and staff. Gina shares the pressure she felt to reshape herself and her background in order to conform to the expectations of an educated person. She describes the consequences of this conformity to her own understanding of her culture and heritage.

Audio
Gloria Pillow and Thomas Pillow

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.
Audio
Jessica Turk and Lisa Turk

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.
Audio
Chapin Montague and Chika Offurum

In this recording, Chapin Montague interviews Chika Offurum about her early years. Chika, who comes from a family of educators, remembers the importance placed on education in her family when she was a child. She began attending public school in the 4th grade in Westchester, NY, and recalls the harsh structure imposed on her there. She also shares how the uniformity of her classmates made her feel more isolated during the transition.

Seattle: Recorded at KCTS

Audio
Cindy Buske and Josh Soldewel

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.
Audio
Esther Herst and Marie Gianola

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.
Audio
Gregory Johnson and Marcia Johnson

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.
Audio
Mike Hoge and Suzanne Hittman

In this recording, former Seattle School Board member Suzanne Hittman speaks to the Board’s former lawyer Mike Hoge about desegregation. Suzanne describes her goal on the Board as the improvement of education for all residents regardless of race, citing her memory of Japanese Internment as a key motivator. Suzanne recounts her role in the desegregation plan in Seattle and the dramatic backlash the School Board faced from all sides of the community.

Audio
Jacquelyn Howard and LueRachelle Brim-Atkins

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.
Audio
Gail Mondoux and Tracy Shaughnessy

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.

Audio
Jerrell “RellBeFree” Davis and Shawn Richard-Davis

In this recording, Shawn Richard-Davis is interviewed by her son Jerrell “RellBeFree” Davis. Shawn recalls her childhood in the Central District of Seattle in the 1960s, a diverse urban neighborhood where she was raised by her mother and aunt. Shawn describes being voluntarily bused to a majority-white school in a distant part of the city, where a group of young teachers inspired her to pursue her education with self-confidence and love.
Audio
Stefanie Felix and Mitchell Green

In this recording, Stefanie Felix speaks to her son Mitchell Green about her experiences at a “very integrated” high school in San Francisco. Stefanie remembers her parents’ encouragement of her education and their support of racial equality. She also describes growing up near Haight-Ashbury in the 1960s, and how the ethos of the counterculture pervaded the student body at her high school.
Audio
John Rossi and Patrick Nolan

In this recording, Patrick Nolan interviews his friend John Rossi about his “idyllic” childhood in the Queen Anne section of Seattle. John remembers the process of desegregation in the 1970s at Worth McClure Junior High School, and the rampant fights between Black and white students. He recounts the failure of administrators to facilitate a smoother transition during busing and describes how his experiences then shape his views now.
Audio
Diane Buxton and Ed Bol

In this recording, Ed Bol is interviewed by Diane Buxton about his early life in Seattle’s Queen Anne neighborhood. Ed explains how enrollment dropped off sharply in Queen Anne schools following the implementation of the busing plan during his freshman year of high school. By his senior year, his neighborhood schools were closed by the city. Ed offers his opinions about why school desegregation was, in his view, a failed experiment.

Audio
David Hundley and Abigail Hundley

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.
Audio
Delbert Richardson and Dr. Donald Felder

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.

Recorded Virtually

Audio
Diane Hayes Powers and Destiny McLurkin

In this recording, Destiny McLurkin interviews her mother Diane Hayes Powers, who grew up in Seattle during the city’s desegregation of its schools. Diane recalls the efficiency with which Seattle enforced integration after Brown v. Board of Education was decided, and the resistance by white parents to the initial busing plan. Diane also describes the community education efforts - including “freedom schools” - that were organized in response to racial educational inequality.
Audio
Della Kostelnik Juarez and Julia Juarez-Kostelnik

In this recording, Julia Juarez-Kostelnik speaks with her mother Della Kostelnik Juarez about her formative years in Seattle public schools. Della describes the importance of her principal Roberta Byrd Barr - an activist, actress, and educator - in teaching her the politics of social justice. She also recalls her parents’ efforts to inculcate a diverse worldview in her, signing her up for a volunteer busing program in Seattle during the 1960s.
Audio
Dorothy Davis and Ben Davis

In this recording, brother and sister Dorothy and Ben Davis remember their youth as the children of foreign service workers. Born in Liberia and raised partially in Tunisia and New Jersey before settling in Washington, DC, attending school in Boston, Dorothy and Ben reflect upon their late exposure to desegregation in schools, which compounded their culture shock after years abroad.
Audio
Dr. Donald Felder and Jarrod Sport

In this recording, Jarrod Sport interviews Dr. Donald Felder, a former Seattle public school administrator and an advocate for educational equity. After settling in the majority-Black Central Area of Seattle, Dr. Felder was instilled with a sense of the importance of community as a child. As a student during desegregation, Dr. Felder witnessed the disparities between community schools, and came to see equal access to resources as central to student success in his career.

Audio
James Allen Phares and Charlie Garrott

In this recording, friends of over fifty years James Allen Phares and Charlie Garrott recall their childhood in Jackson, MS. Charlie remembers the first signs of desegregation coming in the early 1960s, when Black teachers appeared in his elementary school. Both James and Charlie were bused to majority-Black schools in Jackson when the immediate integration of schools was ordered. James remembers being out of school for a month while preparations were made.
Audio
Kimberly Neil and Beverly Neil

In this recording, Kimberly Neil interviews her mother Beverly Neil about growing up in Chicago Public Schools during integration. Beverly remembers school as a fun place to go to when she was in a neighborhood elementary school. However, Beverly describes incidents where white teachers would discriminate against and stereotype Black students in humiliating fashion. She also talks about the insularity of some Black student organizations at her integrated high school.
Audio
Allan Bergano and Dorothy Cordova

In this recording, 91-year-old Dorothy Cordova is interviewed by her nephew Allan Bergano about her experiences as a Filipino-American activist in Seattle during desegregation. Allan, who volunteered to be bused as a student, remembers the lack of opportunity at his impoverished and violent neighborhood schools. Dorothy describes her challenges to Seattle’s educational inequality and the inadequacy of busing alone to solve these problems for students.
Audio
Dwania Kyles and Diane Bezucha

In this recording, Diane Bezucha interviews Dwania Kyles, a member of the Memphis 13, the first group of Black students to integrate Memphis public schools. Dwania remembers her parents returning to the South from Chicago to become more involved in the struggle for Civil Rights. In telling her story of school integration, Dwania opens up about deeply traumatic experiences facing down angry white crowds, hostile teachers, and cruel peers.

Watch Films

Film
The Busing Battleground

The Busing Battleground viscerally captures the class tensions and racial violence that ensued when Black and white students in Boston were bused for the first time between neighborhoods to comply with a federal desegregation order.
Film
The Harvest: Integrating Mississippi's Schools

Explore what happened when the small Mississippi town of Leland integrated its public schools in 1970. Told through the remembrances of students, teachers and parents, the film shows how the town – and America – were transformed.

Living Memories

Mementos

RECOLLECTIONS:

Boston: Recorded at GBH

Chicago: Recorded at WTTW

Nashville: Recorded at NPT

Seattle: Recorded at KCTS

Recorded Virtually

Watch Films

Audio produced by StoryCorps Studios in partnership with the WGBH Educational Foundation. Interviews recorded by StoryCorps, a national nonprofit whose mission is to illuminate the humanity and possibility in us all — one story at a time.