Black History: Time of Great Depression

Collage by Sybil Taylor

On the battlefields of the Civil War and World Wars I and II, some lived, some died, some had a story to tell. How their friends and family got killed in the war, some can live and cry for a sorrowful battle: sadness of not being accepted as as black person.

Some whites also had a hard time, during this time of heartache and pain, along with rejection and emotional stress and pressure of being hated on for no reason. Look down on a nobody or a nothing. Feeling bad, scarred and broken hearted, during the times of slavery was really painful for a lot of people, who were in it.

Working in the hot sun in the cotton field, from sun up to sun down, having no air, no glass of cold water, working sick or well. No relief or break, working hard.

Slaves had a miserable time in the field. Dealing with lynching, a lot of hatred and segregation. If you were light skinned you could easily get a job working for whites. Blacks had a hard time because of skin color; if you were dark skin, medium brown, that was out of the question.

If you did not look white male or female, you were not accepted: pretty light skin, pretty skin, small keen nose, good hair. It was so upsetting for those who were not this color. Depression would set in easily. How does anybody know how they felt?

Low income jobs, underpaid wages. Only jobs out there were for very dark skinned people were as cooks, maids, butlers, as well as being in films: actors, actresses, singers, dancers, had problems.

Blacks and whites not getting along with each other, not having equal rights, could not share schools, bathrooms, public places, department stores, restaurants, bars, everywhere, blacks only/whites only, water fountains, everything was segregated. Being called nigger, colored, black. Answering yes sir!! Yes ma’am!! Words of hurt, suffering, loss, and pains of hurtful words, very deep pain, crying of hurt and rejection.

No one can ever heal when all is said and done; one day we shall overcome, one day. Thanks to great people like Martin Luther King, John F. Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln, powerful voices of our cause. Heros that helped America to be what it is today. Freedom rings, freedom comes, freedom of being free of bondage and chains, being broken, as people once were.

Today America is free, free to do whatever you want. We have a lot of people dating all races, gays and lesbians’ rights of marriage, being who you wanna be—getting jobs, eating at restaurants, going to bars, schools, stores, everywhere. America is FREE, we have our first Afro-American President Obama, the first black president in the history of the United States of America. We needed change. We got change, change of life and the way we live.

Free from Bondage.

Free from all the hate and pain we are strong we are free and we are healed. No more pain and no more sorrow. Free at last.


Region |Washington DC

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