American Experience; Jubilee Singers: Sacrifice and Glory; Interview with John Hope Franklin, Historian

so was the reason is the cells and physicists are at war and this kind of giving he was the picture of what so i think that a lot of americans just don't understand how much of our economy and the whole service was picked to lead the south suffered enormously from the devastation sector the character as the war and what we sometimes forget is that some of the devastation came rather clearly there was a drought in the south and eighteen sixty two which calls the pro confederate government in sight tennessee to collapse and nashville was in the hands of the union army here in the war but of

course the devastation extended all the way down to sit through family to new orleans and the south was cut off from each other that is one of the south's most government offices and then there was a third road to the sea and to the atlantic ocean which of course that the northern part of the south and the southern part of the cell so you've got you know you get the shot divisions that were brought up about military operations and that was of course they're devastating german but says that was only one part of a figurehead the divisions into a logical and political divisions which of course meant that some people in the south were debating it such a move in this direction politically others were saying initially when that direction politically and it's interesting to observe that the very thing that calls him too to do that a lot of

cars division within yourself that's great disorder and generally what do you so what are the kinds of things that you're facing ones or what your prospects were just living a war in the spirit of sixty five not only was the south's joint bank for the military man and the bankrupt economically as well and it had to put the pieces together and build as best to target us allies nationalist it's a nice to have a little more experience because it had been defeated and was on the road drew some kind of reconstruction it and sixty five when the wrestlers i was just beginning the reconstruction it's natural and an octave

lower their work troops union troops in nashville there were barracks so that the house of the new troops that would really be used in school rooms and that sort of thing there were so many of them tennessee is coming into the city because i was the magnet or it was that it had been a miller's sources of it was still a major civic apple over of the state and so forth and people tended to drift in today's trial and from other parts of the state and indeed from other parts of the south so do you've got to up people but you don't have resources and you have been picking up the pieces to try to build the resources of the union army was portland and provided some sustenance and some guidance really afford the recovery of nashville and the recovery

of the state of tennessee is your proposal in nashville one one was the old personally upbeat our character isn't just the sense of what the end and what sort of things spinach or four slaves firestorm of freedom is the emancipation proclamation which was issued by president lincoln on the first of january at sixty three did not free slaves and tennessee was because they were already under union control they freed slaves and there is still a confederate control another would be no question the spring at sixty five after the occupation of nashville by union troops would be no question about the freedom of slaves at all last they were

clearly and for free as well as a sculptor says would put it but freed met responsibility it met some independence it meant that they had to be resourceful that meant that they had to find out a way of making their own way and this had not been beheaded their custom and their tradition but they would now oversee two ways to make a living to see the walking up about the streets in the issue in the spring meetings at for use to looking for work sometimes are looking for loved ones sometimes are looking for up to do sometimes a little ridge occasion they want all these things and yet there are so few of them that immediately available those schools also works well things that the

ex slaves wished foremost was an education they saw this as a means of making it out of the out of the morass of ignorance and the opportunity and the movement up to me so that they would do everything they could to to seek job to toot toot to discover out to find ways of getting an education the ruins fishing to the barracks that had been used by the union troops were now uses school rooms in many instances and that the desire for fort for an education was something that was soul great soul bearing within the friedman that to but they wanted this prompts more that israel's certain next to eke out a living and i'm surviving they want a change because they saw education as a means

of moving up the economic and political ladder end and becoming a viable citizens they are they have actually come a slippery elusiveness suppress politically with it into the nineteen oh one of the reasons why they wanted an education was that it had been withheld from older indiana don't use their lows against the teaching slaves to read and write there were laws which applied to diet to teach slaves to read it right there willows which hsu for a

bed to free blacks to associate with a free man with the with the sleeves for it was fear that they would only cause slaves to want to be free because the slaves to one education that sort of thing so the things that were withheld from a slave through the things which slaves now in their newfound freedom would want an education course was was a very important item in there on our minister once roy what i will also that prevented a person from teaching slaves to read and write and these laws were strengthened after the veteran of insurrection for it was felt that now was the nat turner construction a dangerous one which making thirty

one in virginia but it was thought that that was it was through the vehicle of education that that slaves would learn to read and to rape and would learn how to read bill or two conspire to rebel and the colors were severe and imprisonment for free blacks whipping score of slaves who dare to travel alone to reunite and general restrictions on their activities on their relationships with whites who freed who flew free to teach them and blacks who might've been freed and would like to teach them also so these restrictions were severe punishments were severe and that everything was going to keep them apart and to keep them in ignorance and quite aware of its only knew that if something as important and

was being withheld from them that something was that they should try to get an education was one of these prizes that they saw and that's so on a contingent was a sense of just what moves in his four wives widely recognized that large numbers of whites were illiterate in the period before the civil war one must remember that public education was less rubble where the south that to digital options for cuts when they are not in every community and that local it was a prize sought by many but

not to have an education to two to work one's way to educational goal rock tune so too that's a must remember that not only where blacks largely illiterate although one must remember that small fraction of the slaves could read it right that last the most of the whites wanted to really write as well so there will be active in the civil war not only drive on the part of blacks skew in education but there will be many whites who would wanted to would be one in education as well there was unfortunate to lose weight one education and saw the education that

direction be active in preventing blacks were getting an education that if there was something to be salt in do something highly prized of them it was a view blacks should not have sesay says there's resistance in the wire with next says that the same old situation where something is good and it's deployed soon and therefore it's not good for blacks that turn after all blacks must be kept at a disadvantage they must be kept subordinate an and if education will give an advantage if they're going to give them up to believe it should be withheld from their was upon until fairly large numbers of so those very large numbers of tennesseans

and soul that went to visit was moving in the direction of public education after the civil war but it was not moving in the direction of education public education for blacks as well and that would let me live ole opportunities for blacks should be sought and that's where you get to the american missionary association and various other religious education organizations coming in to assist them as there was from schools for blacks that tear would do to be in the place of the public schools that were not being provided politics until this was going to who weren't these organizations the war mission log there were a

number of organizations that some of which have been organized before the war some of which came into existence during the war and they were of the common belief that education opportunities to be one of the things they should provide for a lot of ex slaves be american missionary association of an organized by canadian fortunes of the freelance aid society is the minute which were flourishing and the lakers sixers at your has during the war and just at the close of the war the memo a christian commissions one bedroom of a and various other organizations religious and educational that to formally formally programs and plans to work to educate to build the friedman so that though they are weakened we can visualize them sort of milling

around in considerable numbers seeking opportunities setting up schools using barracks for soldiers and and bringing in young men and young women from the north to teach me the freedom and the and so there'll be a feverish activity in this area between eighty six to five and eighty seven so what what is why were doing this is this is a christian mission says those social missions as the service and to the abolitionists in thailand from the time that the american measures officials are estimating four years there was of the rig that was the view that was there was saying they should do would not only extend christian praxis options for

slaves at that they should be in a position to return to raise the slaves out of evidence about all the darkness of their religious so commitments to the whole way of living to a new of his decision to a new level and this would of course mean that they would have the opportunity to work with a slight wifi friedman and provide a juice options for them and so you do have sailed through setting up churches sometimes sunday schools which would be victory would be in the training ground for oil for friedman that nashville

has also been achieved the angels watching or that this or that that it will this as well have at sixty five the american mission are association and whoever's with various other christian groups and i began to work began the focus is tension almost an issue of schools for friedman in a show and the iron lady a sixty six know that they have a spanish schools but they then began to focus on the establishment of little higher level for the training love of friedman and and gentle fist who had been active in the euro was active

in this action of this school and of course it became was named filing for a cliff and be frisked and that's that was on the ground that made it became fisk university and the you get traction to it was very considerable in the first two years students came not only from nashville but from areas around tennessee and then they began to come a lot of emotions from other places so that with this new as it was first real attracted friedman and considerable numbers and as it began to to grow it began to think in terms of hiring a higher education and that that was provided as the american missionary association and its colleagues

brought in teachers who could provide education at a high level and who could provide them special kinds of training terms of vocational aptitude up two seconds but the book to book the opportunities to train teachers to teach and these these opportunities involved not only as i say vocational activists but the book what we now call classical education which became part of a tradition of friends from all different so what question is well it is receiving education in the arts

and music and the classic line with classical languages literature and were given what we now refer to as a liberal education and more amorphous movement and direction some people regard as the regarded then as they do now as impractical about the commitment to say to a different kind of education who was was early and it persisted right through the end of the way through to the end of the century and that became a tradition what are the students was work to reports of this idea of this institution trying teachers oh boy they need to create their own sources

the students in those early is ruining the rudiments i'm learning how to teach the rudiments of educational of english and mathematics a love of newt u chu and some location person boogie selections and all economic sense of what and says they began to appreciate the importance of teaching to teach those that so that from alex should learn that to know that it's important for them to be able to communicate what they note of us so the teacher the teacher training becomes an important ingredient in the air and then there's this picture and then that the root level remain important right down and into the history of

institution so its mission to a close a recent book comes a mission of love of of teaching teachers teaching people can learn and teaching people how to teach others and there will be a buildup of us saw it and in due course you have a cadre of teachers who have only be prepared to perpetuate the ms susan selke but who go out the other places and carry on this though fares in all of this right that that that's the that's one of the great black schools are also running into resistance well as discussions the klan white supremacy organizations were active in this area were

less political wives who wait to play there was sue though lacking of opposition to the establishment and maintenance of schools for the friedman people who don't subscribe to do one blacks were in syria they would shout like an irresponsible and could not believe it energy and resources should be expanded on the training of people could not of song the training anyway and the air it's the organizations the christian coalition friedman's bureau the commissioners official resisted and their efforts to train blacks and as blacks themselves joined in the training of them

the theory of black inferiority began do a breakdown and it needed to be enforced asa supported and so you get the organization of groups that move will undertake to do that now what they're going as low to prove that second grade education the city seeking seeking to prevent any kind of out of an improvement or rise of of friedman to position of equality and so forth after all this talk about they're becoming voters and full citizens especially at sixty six at sixty seven and you got to a stop to this and so the whites began to vote in us to prove it the city of existence of them to ask at tennessee for example the rest somewhat first to go strong opposition to

this in atlanta to go so will come into existence but though not all would be the plan as such cuts it becomes the klan become the kind of symbol of opposition which will find its expression my brother's in your rover can use and various other groups that will be flying under the ban on the job and i love the clambered were to have their own programs or of opposition and this opposition will take the format nearly out of terrorizing that is kind of frightened blacks into retaining a place of subordination but but it will take the form of intimidation of every conceivable kind including of course writings terrorizing and then fine them mentioned so that sort of that level of that too to destroy

the whole program of education endowed rehabilitation generally on the part of a row of blacks and that will force cause so many southerners to pull back quite so just pull back and to refuse to assist in the end the development of improvement of a lot of blacks and as this happens the schools themselves will will suffer they will lack resources they lack local support and they will have to seek support elsewhere fb