Growing Up in the Segregated South
Growing up in a white family in the ’50s can sometimes lead to confusion about race, especially when racial discrimination was at its peak. How does color matter if everyone is the same- everyone is human. Black people aren’t supposed to be treated as downcasts in our society. And because of these discriminations in the ‘50s, children who are now adults end up in confusion as to why black people didn’t matter before when in the end, we were all human. “Our relationship faded, but not really. Even though I did not see her. My memory of her is still deep in my heart. She helped me to always feel loved even if I had disappeared for hours riding my bike and caused her to worry. She always forgave me. This is one of my experiences.” - Mary Sue Rabe Growing up in the segregated south in the ‘50s has led little Mary into confusion as to why Black people weren’t treated equally as White people. How does it make sense to a child that the loving Black caregiver was not treated rightly by society and even her family? In this episode, Mary Sue shares her own experience of confusion on how the people who loved her most were not treated equally. She also gives tribute to one of the caregivers who loved her the most, a loving Black woman named Bee. What you will learn from this episode: Learn how racial discrimination back in the ‘50s had an effect on a child’s point of view on the different races and how it can cause possible confusion Discover the innocence of a child towards the unequal treatment of White people to Black people in the 1950’s Find out how Black people were treated in the ‘50s, specifically in the segregated south area in Texas Link to a Free Resource: Stand There and Look Pretty Darlin’ by Mary Sue Rabe Topics Covered: 00:58 - Mary shares how she discovered her father was a “plantation owner”, a job in which she was ashamed 01:21 - How Mary realized that their farm is a plantation wherein Black people work in 03:00 - How a loving black woman changed Mary’s life: the story of Bee 04:20 - Mary explained what Bee does around the house and when taking care of the children 08:28 - Mary tells about their cabin in Camp Creek 09:19 - Mary shares her experience in fishing with Bee and some of the sweet moments she had with Bee 12:10 - How fear came about at Bee when she couldn’t find little Mary Sue 13:39 - Mary shares the sad news about Bee’s death back when she was a junior in college 14:47 - Different races, same sweet memories: how Bee changed Mary Sue’s life and the memories kept within her heart Key Takeaways: “As a child, I witnessed that the people who cared for me and that I was very fond of, were not treated as equals. The situation has caused me much confusion about race.” - Mary Sue Rabe “Her earrings were broom straws placed in the holes in her ears to keep them open. When our family went on a trip in 1960 we bought her some souvenir red ball stud earrings, which took the place of the straw. I don't know why it took us so long to get her some earrings.” - Mary Sue Rabe “Considering I played with dolls so much, Bee decided to make a quilt for my baby dolls. Since the quilt was small, so were the strips of cloth that were used to make it. I still wonder how she did the sewing such small stitches with her bent, naughty, arthritic fingers. I still have this doll quilt.” - Mary Sue Rabe “As my father employed a permanent housekeeper to live with us, Bee was no longer needed on weekends or so my dad thought, but I still needed her. I needed the stability of Bee on Saturday nights. My dad and I did not communicate about what I needed. And he was unaware of how important and how deeply connected I was to Bee. Not being with her on Saturdays was another loss for me.” - Mary Sue Rabe Connect with Mary Sue Rabe: https://marysuerabe.com https://womenhealingtheworld.com Book: Stand There and Look Pretty Darlin'