When I was growing up in Pine Bluff, Arkansas during the 1970s, I literally had no clue of the legacy I was living through. In my world, an integrated society was the norm but there were remnants of Jim Crow that were still in existence that I had no idea was even there.
For instance, in 1981, I attended Southeast Middle School. At the time, it was for 7th graders only and all of the kids who attended a variety of different elementary schools in Pine Bluff attended this school before being split to two 8th/9th grade schools (Belair and Dial). As a kid, I was excited about attending middle school and meeting all of these new and different kids.
I was aware that Southeast Middle School used to be an ALL BLACK High School. However, it wasn’t until roughly 28 years later that I appreciated the significance of the school.
According to my mother (Who attended Southeast in the 60s), Pine Bluff had a population surge of African American students. At the time, in Pine Bluff, there were only two high schools (Pine Bluff High School for whites and Merrill High School for blacks). Pine Bluff was the only city in Arkansas with a majority minority population and there were growing concerns that Merrill High School would not be able to accommodate the growing number of Black students. As such, Pine Bluff quickly constructed another high school (Southeast) in order to accommodate the growing Black Student population.
So, here we have a town with a large Black population where there, literally, are more black students than white students. As my mom indicated, ‘instead of integrating the two schools, another high school was rushed to be constructed to ensure segregation remained.’
By the time I attended Southeast in 1981, Merrill High School was closed, Southeast had been converted to a middle school, and Pine Bluff High School was integrated. During my educational journey, I would go on to be educated by many who either attended or worked at Southeast during Jim Crow.
It’s important that we remind current and future generations that they are living through their families legacy. My mother and I both attended Southeast but our Southeast experiences were under very different circumstances. And THAT is the legacy that must be remembered and communicated.
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