Interview with Joanna Offutt Childress, August 25, 1986

Interview Summary

The daughter of a Baptist minister, Ms. Childress recalls her grandparents, slaves of the Offutt family in western Kentucky, and other family history. She attended Booker T. Washington Elementary School and graduated from Dunbar High School and Kentucky State University, where she obtained her teaching degree. She recounts events in her career including the integration of the schools, differences in teacher salaries, teacher-student relationships, and the restraints placed upon teachers during the civil rights movement. Ms. Childress examines the effect the Great Depression had upon the African American community, the influence World War Two had on the civil rights movement, and the changes in living conditions for African Americans in Lexington. She explores the changing roles of the church in the African American community over the years and the integration of Pleasant Green Baptist Church. She discusses the reaction of the African American community to racially mixed marriages, the segregation of downtown stores, and the effect of integration upon African American businesses.

Interview Keyword

African Americans African Americans in Lexington Lexington, Kentucky Race relations

Interview LC Subject

African American families African Americans--Civil rights--Kentucky African Americans--Education--Kentucky--Lexington African Americans--Kentucky--Lexington--Economic conditions African Americans--Race identity. African Americans--Religion African Americans. Childress, Joanna Offutt Childress, Joanna Offutt--Interviews

Interview Rights

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.