post #5

I have read Richard Lieberman's interview with Daisy Kinard at LaGuardia community college on August 9, 1978. Daisy Kinard came from a working family in the south; his father loaded trucks in a lumber mill, and his mother worked at home. He moved to the north 4 months after graduating from high school. The interviewer wanted to find out why Daisy Kinard moved from the south to New York city. The answer was access to education and job opportunities. But, the interviewee’s experiences told us that inequality and discrimination was the main reason Daisy Kinard left his hometown. In the south, he worked at a tobacco factory with tobacco worms at summer; or at potato field, he had to fight with rattlesnakes. Moreover, low-pay and overtime were a common things for him. Fortunately, he graduated from high school; he had to get up as early as 4 o’clock in the morning and walked about two miles to get to school because there were two school buses, one for white students, one for black students, but the bus of black students usually broke down on the way. He worked very hard, especially, after the war started. In the north, although New York city was dirty, many things were not what he had expected before he came, he still wanted to stay here because he can talk to all kinds of people. There were better integration in the city, such as, subway, school. He felt more respect from the people here regardless of their races. He can find more equal opportunities for his job and education.