Oral History- G.Flego

GF: Good evening, and I am Gianna Flego, here with Celeste Flego on May 19th 7:16 pm. Hi Celeste, how are you?

CF: I’m fine Gianna.

GF: Okay! Would you mind answering a few questions about the Civil Rights Movement for me?

CF: No not all.

GF: Okay lets begin. Do you remember the Civil Rights Movement?

CF: Yes I do.

GF: And could you tell us a little bit about it?

CF: Ah… the Civil Rights Movement was not just about the rights of minorities. It included gay and lesbian rights, the women's rights… I remember that. I was growing up, in grade school when it started then I was entering high school. So I really didn’t experience that much of it.

GF: Okay… Did this event affect your family?

CF: Well, later on when it was starting to be televised, we watched the news a lot and I just couldn’t get over, you know, what was going on. It was something that was suppose to be peaceful, peaceful marches turned into very violent things and thats the way it affected us as a family.

GF: And did it affect, you specifically?

CF: No not really because when I was in high school, my high school, Hallahan, was segregated. We had orientals, we had Hispanics, African Americans. It was a very segregated school. Then, when I entered the work field, wherever I worked… the dental field or medical field, it was prejudice. They hired you based on your skills.

GF: And I know that you said, you were young most of the time this was happening but did you understand what was going on?

CF: Did I what babe?

GF: I know that you said you were young going through this time period, but did you understand what was happening?

CF: When I was younger? Or when I got older?

GF: Both.

CF: When I was younger no because our neighborhood was mainly white and our grade school was mainly white. Like I said to you, thats when I thought nothing of it. I wasn’t that kind of a person.

GF: And did your school change? Education…

CF: No. Not at all. If anything, more minorities were going into my school. You can see from my freshman year to my senior year that there were more, you know, minorities entering the school. One of my best friends from where I worked at the medical field she was at my wedding, on of my best friends. And unfortunately, as we get older, Gianna you’ll see, from your teens, twenties, you lose friends. Not because of the color of their skin but sometimes that happens.

GF: Did you observe different scenes of discrimination at any time?

CF: You mean during like, my high school years? In my neighborhood?

GF: Anytime!

CF: No, not at all. It was a white neighborhood that I grew up in. So like I said to you, the only things that I seen were in the news, paper.

GF: What did you see during the news?

CF: Well it was unfortunate what they did. What started out that was suppose to be peaceful marches with John F. Kennedy in the 60’s was horrible. 3 of the most important men were assassinated, were trying to get equal rights for the minorities, were all assassinated. They preached peaceful demonstrations and as I got older it didn't turn out to be that way, unfortunately.

GF: The last question I have for you is, did you experience the full effects of the Civil Rights Movement?

CF: As far as marching for them?

GF: Anything!

CF: No not really, Gianna. I mean, I seen, like I said, the only time that I seen acts of discrimination was on TV. In fact, even the girls that I worked with or what to school with, never brought it up. Ah… we never really talked about it, maybe only once in a while you would hear somebody talk about it. But that was all. We didn’t see any of that. I, never seen any of that… Just TV, or papers.

GF: Okay, well thank you for your time and I appreciate you letting me interview you!

CF: You're welcome, anytime.