Post#5: interview with Daisy Kinard

I admit that I choose this interview with Daisy Kinard made by Richard Lieberman on August 9, 1978, because it was the easiest one. Clear, informative, a lot of details about Daisy's life and her family. I think that interviewer was trying to figure out why Daisy moved from South to North. Why did she move North, and choose New York in particular. Did she like it? If that was what she expected? But beside answers for those questions we can get additional information about social problems in America in 40's such as minimum wage, hard physical labor for men, women and teenagers, lack of education, racism and discrimination of African-Americans.
So, Daisy Kinard at the moment when interview was taking was about 54-55 years old. I assumed it: she said that she finished high school in 1941,she must be about 17 then, so she suppose to be about 55 in 1978. She gown up in North Carolina. She is an African-American women. Again, she didn't say that directly, but she is talking about walking to school almost 2 miles because: "there would be two buses for white children coming along... the black bus would always broke down". So, the segregation between black and white was pretty strict: black and white kids couldn't use the same bus. And they also, probably, had separate schools for white and black kids. In the same time Daisy pointed out that in other states the situation is better:"education was a hard thing for us in the south. Having a chance to come north just to try to get an education was an asset." From history we know that the Civil rights movement more developed and successful in the north states such as New York. Daisy gave an example of less discrimination in New York than in other places:"white people speak to you, and they treat you nice. And they riding the same train!.."
Before Daisy left her home town she worked some very hard physical jobs with a minimum wage at a tobacco factory, tobacco and potato fields full of tobacco worms and rattlesnakes. Those jobs were "a frightening experience" for Daisy:" you work ten or twelve hours a day. Every night I went to bed burning from the sun. I could hardly sleep from working in the sun so many hours".
Daisy's parents were very supportive about her wish to move to NY. First, her father planed to send her to college, but something didn't work out and everyone were very disappointed. But later they decided that Daisy still need to go somewhere to look for the better life. And because her aunt were already in Brooklyn, NY, daisy came to live with her. At first sight New York was a great disappointment for Daisy:'' rats,roaches, dirty buildings. I cried many dark nights". But she adjusted herself and her expectations. She ended up in La Guardia and she said:"here I am in LaGuardia and this a great fulfillment of mine".