Actually, I'm younger than you are, I believe.
So black families who were travelling in the south slept in cars on the side of the road or went without food for long periods of time because in the south there were few black businessfolks
Well, I'm not sure where you grew up but I was raised in South Arkansas and my dad ran a restaurant at the time and I can tell you this perception of yours couldn't be more wrong.
I can remember in the early 60s a group of soldiers, one a black man, came in and sat down to eat. A waitress who had worked for my dad for maybe 10-15 years, flatly refused to serve the black man. He fired her on the spot. My dad employed probably 50 blacks at the time, and each and every one was treated with respect and I can tell you that they respected him, too.
Sure, there was racism like that the waitress exhibited. And lots of places had dual entrances, segregated seating, etc. But to suggest that blacks had trouble finding places to eat or sleep is just silly. If nothing else, practically every town (ours included) was loaded with "black only" establishments including restaurants, motels, grocery stores, and everything else.
Even today there are a few businesses that continue to be substantially segregated (e.g., funeral homes). It isn't out of racism, however. |
