Oral History Benchmark-Eliza Meketon

Abstract

In this interview, I talked to my father, Richard J. Meketon. Born in the early stages of the Civil Rights movement, he was able to discuss what it was like not only for him, a white Jewish male living in the relatively diverse Mount Airy section of Philadelphia. As well as being able to watch the community around him evolve into a multitude of culture and racial activism. However most importantly, the opportunity to have a front view into the world around him becoming an ever lasting footprint in racial equality. In our interview, Mr. Meketon remarked several instances in childhood and adolescence in which on a daily basis he was unknowingly watching racial activism and development and race equality. One instance in particular that really demonstrated the developing condition for struggling ethnicities was when he talked about when he was in elementary school. As young as he was, Mr. Meketon was still able to recognize the fact that society, education, politics, and many more institutions such as those were becoming more and more integrated. He talked about his experiences and observations with discrimination and other racial stereotypes. As well as growing up around Civil Rights culture such as white and black gangs and a understanding of who was at the top of the food chain and who just barely making it  on the bottom of the economic, political, and social scale. Mr. Meketon also talked about what it was like watching historical moments in history such as riots that included children of color getting savagely beaten and sprayed with a hose. He showed his empathy and childlike astonishment at the fact that, that could happen to children even younger than himself. One of the major key points of the interview was when Mr. Meketon referred back to his liberal household and his siblings who acted and promoted the Civil Rights movement through many of the movements ups such as Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the downs such as the devastating race riots. Richard Meketon still holds the things he saw and remembers to treat others with respect and dignity just as his parents did.

Research topic part 1 Birmingham Riots

In the interview, Mr. Meketon was very cantor about his experiences and opinions during many Civil Rights movements .  One of which was not only a significant part of the the movement, but was able to finally gain some attention to equality and justice for all such as the infamous Birmingham riots in which thousands of  were arrested and  were oppressed by police brutality.  During this time non violent demonstrators all over Birmingham, particularly children , were protesting the lack of equality. Martin Luther King was the head of this protest against desegregation and was able to inspired hundreds of thousand of African American men, women, and children. thousands of protesters were thrown in jail and were sprayed with forceful high pressured hoses that led many critically injured. A little more than a month after the beginning of the movement, the campaign got International and presidential attention. The campaign was a success and segregation was a thing of the pass in Birmingham, at least in a legal sense. However not that long after the campaign ended a bombing occurred at a famous African American church and took lives of four young and innocent African American children.  This description compares to my fathers experience because as a young child he found it horrifying that the “heros” that he looked up to because of their genuine and admirable fiscode were hurting and beating innocent people who were just trying to fight for their rights as human beings. I think that Mr. Meketon really felt as though there was injustice being done in Birmingham and that there was something that just wasn’t right and something had to be done.

Sources:

http://www.pbs.org/black-culture/explore/civil-rights-movement-birmingham-campaign/#.U3_SZBVX-uY

http://crdl.usg.edu/events/birmingham_demonstrations/

http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/m_r/randall/birmingham.htm

Research topic part 2 Martin Luther King

Another fascinating topic that came up in the interview was Civil Rights activist Such as Martin Luther King. Martin Luther King was a prominent and powerful Civil Rights activist who lead the path against segregation and achieving racial equality.  Martin Luther King was the head of many Civil Rights Movements such as The “Childrens Crusade”, “The Montgomery Bus Boycott”, and “MArch on Washington” As well as being well known for his non violent approach to protesting and activism.  MArtin Luther King is most well known for his famous speech “I have a dream” in which he spoke of equality, desegregation, and hope. As a famous activist, Nobel Peace Prize winner, as well as SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference). Sadly Martin Luther King was assassinated, however his legacy will forever be imprinted in the minds and hearts of millions.  As young child father saw the man on tv as someone of hope, vision, and cause. Like my father, the world embraced and saw Martin Luther King as a visionary and knew he was going to change the world. Even though not everyone saw his point of view, everyone was able see that he had left the country and the world in better shape than before. He will forever be remembered.

http://www.thekingcenter.org/about-dr-king

http://www.history.com/topics/black-history/martin-luther-king-jr

http://www.kinginstitute.info/

Transcription

EM=Eliza Meketon

RM=Richard Meketon

EM:State your name and date of birth please

RM: Richard J. Meketon, 1959

Em: Ok so I am going to ask you a few standard questions and then we are going to go into some deeper topics.

Ok so question number 1, what was like growing up in your neighborhood when you were younger?

RM: It was very nice, it was tree line street there were a lot of kids in the neighborhood.

EM:Was there a lot of diversity in your neighborhood and in your school?

Rm: Yes absolutely, I lived in the mount airy section of Philadelphia which was one of the most diverse parts of the country and it always been an integrated neighborhood and continued to be so.

EM: Now in your school did you ever notice segregation or discrimination going on?

RM: In elementary school, over the course of eight years, I did notice the nature of the school change.

EM: Can you talk about a certain situation in which you noticed something that hadn't been there before?

RM: Well when I was in second grade, the school was mostly white almost 70% white and 30% African American, by the time I was in 8th grade it was 30% white and 70% African American.

EM:As a little kid, did you notice a difference between you and other kids of diversity, or did you not care?

RM: Well in my family and my parents, almost taught me to ignore differences in color, but ah, we always had black people in and out of our house, ah to me, there was no black, Asian, white, there was no difference.You were a friend, or you weren’t a friend.

Em: Do ever recall an instance when someone you knew, or even yourself was not allowed to do something because of their race?

RM: Well as I got older in school, and we were playing more athletics, the school was changing from a predominately white school to a predominantly black school and as someone who was not the most athletically inclined, that I was being chosen for less and less sports, now whether, I was chosen for less and less sports because I wasn't athletically inclined ,or wasn't I chosen because I want African American , its hard to say. There were a lot of white boys who were athletically inclined, and not picked.

EM: Would you say that there were more stereotypes being progressed, or less stereotypes.

Rm: I really didn't believe any of the stereotypes I heard.

Em: so when you were younger, did you hear anything regarding Civil Rights?

RM: Well yes, in the city of Philadelphia, we knew of the Black panthers, we knew about gangs, and in the mount airy section where I lived, there were a couple of gangs. There were white gangs and black gangs,so you were aware of these things. You were aware of what jobs people had and that white people had more authority jobs and servant oriented jobs were more minority jobs.

Em: Now when you were growing up, did anyone ever tell what was right or wrong when it came to race?

RM: My parents.

Em: can you open up about that

Rm: There were some words you just weren't aloud to say, and we were an incredibly liberal household, some words you just weren't aloud to say such as the “N Word” you would get in trouble if you said it.

Em: So when you were growing up, were you ever able to hear and like listen to any of the Civil Rights Leaders?

RM: In Philadelphia…. yeah, that there were rallies in Philadelphia

many rallies. I do remember seeing the Reverend Martin Luther King on TV. I also remember seeing the horrible riots on in other cities, the police riots in the south where they shot water cannons in crowds of African Americans and stuck dogs on kids no older than me.

Em. Now when you saw that as a young child, did you think of it as another child getting attacked, or did you see as something else? going

Rm: I saw myself in that situation and the question I always asked was what did those people did wrong? NO one could tell me what those people did wrong to have fire hoses and dogs. I was disturbed in that I always admired firemen, firemen were heros to me, and I saw firemen shooting high powered hoses into crowds of children and adults that were doing nothing to hurt anybody.

Em: So, since this was worldwide, and it affected a lot of people, at school and home, was it ever major discussion, or was it just tucked away?

RM:As I said before, I came from an incredibly liberal household and all matters of discussion were at the dinner table. I had an older brother and a sister who were active in the civil Rights movement and anti war movement. My parents were very active in the neighborhood so conversations were abundant. I was a small child at the time, but I over heard and comprehended  what was happening in Philadelphia and in the country in general.

Em:When you were growing up, did you recognize that the time you ere in would be a famous part of history, or did you just see it as what it was?

RM: As I was growing up, later as I was growing up, when I was five or six, no, but when I was nine or ten absoultley.

Em: So you were able to recognize what you were apart of.

RM: When I was four years old, John F. Kennedy was murdered, when I was nine Bobby Kennedy was murdered, Martin Luther King was murdered. These were impressions that never left me, so yes I understood. I liked sports and I knew about Muhammad Ali, who basically refused to be drafted. I was aware of most of the items, but O was aware of the events.

Em: Thank you, this has been a very successful interview.

Rm: Thank you Mrs Meketon

Em: Thank you Mr. Meketon

RM: Thank you Ms: Meketon