Classroom Activity: Exploring Black History in Athens
In February 2023, outreach staff from the UGA Special Collections Building visited Cleveland Road Elementary and shared a program in celebration of Black History Month focused on oral history interviews.
The following is an overview of the content shared in that presentation, written with a K-2 audience in mind.
What is Oral History?
Oral history is the study of people or events using audiotapes, videotapes, and interviews. This history is especially important because books, movies, and websites don’t always tell us everything there is to know about history. Often, some voices can be excluded or left out from history. So, we use oral histories to learn about the lives and experiences of people from their point of view so we can tell a fuller, richer history. And today, we’ll be learning from some oral histories about our very own city, Athens, Georgia! The history of Athens is rich with Black voices and experiences, and I want to share with you a small piece of that today.
The Civil Rights Movement
In the 1950s and 1960s, the United States was segregated. Segregation is when white people and black people were separated in society. That meant white people and black people lived in different neighborhoods, sat separately on public transportation, and went to different churches and schools. Segregation meant that everyone wasn’t equal and black people all across the country did not experience the same rights as white people. It was no different in Athens. But in response to this inequality, the Civil Rights Movement was born. The Civil Rights Movement fought against segregation and discrimination against Black people. There are lots of people you may have heard of who played a big part in the Civil Rights Movement, such as Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks. But the important thing to remember is that the Civil Rights Movement was made up of everyday people, just like you and me. Every day people would protest the unfairness of segregation.
Protest at The Varsity
The Varsity was the most popular restaurant in Athens during the 1950s and 1960s but, like the rest of the country, The Varsity was segregated, and Black people were not allowed to eat there. One of the ways that the Athens community protested this segregation was with sit ins. Young Black men and women would walk from Ebenezer Baptist Church on Broad Street to the Varsity. They would sit in the middle of the street on Milledge Avenue, putting themselves in harm's way, so cars could not pass by and go to the restaurant. Often, the protesters were arrested and put in jail.
Bennie McKinley
Bennie McKinley learned about non-violent protests from her pastor at church and became part of the Civil Rights Movement in Athens. We are lucky to have an oral history interview with her more than 50 years after these protests. In it, Bennie talks about the importance of a historic place in downtown Athens, called Hot Corner, that was the center of the Black community in Athens. Hot Corner was vital to the movement because when they were done protesting, they would walk downtown to Hot Corner together to rest and re-organize.
In the video below, start at 32:42 to hear Bennie's story about the support she and other protesters received from Hot Corner.
Archibald Killian
At the same time that Bennie McKinley was protesting, a man named Archibald Killian was one of only two Black Athens police officers. And because segregation was the law of the land, all Athens police officers, including Archibald Killian, were expected to arrest protesters who tried to enter the Varsity or who were obstructing it outside. But one day, in 1964, that all changed. In his oral history, Killian talks about that day when the police no longer would arrest protesters and segregation in Athens restaurants ended.
In the video below, fast forward to 32:42 to hear Archibald Killian tell his story.
I think there are a couple of really important things we can remember from Archibald Killian's interview. First, we learned that Killian stood up to the Chief of Police and told him that he would not be arresting any protesters. I think that shows a lot of bravery, choosing to do what we know is right even when it’s scary. He was willing to risk his job and livelihood to do what was right.
Second, we learned that in response to that bravery, the Chief of Police instructed his officers to leave the protesters alone. We learned that the owners of the Varsity removed any signs that separated Black patrons and White patrons. Because of the bravery of people like Bennie McKinley and Archibald Killian, Black Athenians and White Athenians ate together in the same restaurant. Segregation was no longer the law of the land.
The Importance of Storytelling
Each one of us has our own unique and important experiences. And while we often think of history as something that happened a long long time ago, you should know that you are living through history right now! If you learned one thing today, I hope you learned that your story matters.
I want you to take that idea back to your classroom and think about your own story. Think about your family, your friends, your experiences at school, and reflect on what story you might tell about yourself if you were having your history recorded. Maybe think about a time that you were brave or made a tough decision. Think of a happy memory that you might want to share with the people around you! And we hope you’ll reflect on how important those stories are.