On August 27, 1956 in Clinton, Tennessee, twelve African American students made history when they were the first to walk through the doors of a legally desegregated high school. On that day, integration in the South formally moved from the courtroom to the classroom. Author Doug Davis was a frontline witness to history. His mother was an English teacher at the high school, and his father was a lawyer in the initial court case. Although school opened with minimal disruption, the first week ended with tanks rolling into town to keep order. Later, when the parents of the black students were reluctant to send their children to school, the author's father was one of three who escorted the students through a gauntlet of angry racists that had gathered in protest. Davis was just eight when this happened, and the memories of those tense days were the inspiration for this story. The conflict followed the family home and included the burning of a cross in their front yard. The family members were eyewitnesses to their hometown's turmoil, conflict that escalated from riots and protests, culminating in the destruction of the high school with one hundred sticks of dynamite. Th e people of this ruptured community bore the brunt of this momentous era of societal change in America. Here, childhood memories of family and community shed their light on the story.

Gifts Given

Family, Community, and Integration's Move from the Courtroom to the SchoolyardBy Doug Davis

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2012 Doug Davis
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4620-5732-0

Contents

Letter #1: The blast that launched this ship (1951-1962, the back story begins plus a glance at 1935 and 2006).....................1Letter #2: Crime to start, then the tale of Buster and Anne (2006, then Davises from 1900-1960)....................................20Letter #3: Death and damage, near miss and salvation (1942 to 1958, Long loss and Clinton arrival).................................26Letter #4: Green McAdoo, Edward R. Murrow, and Eleanor (1956-1959).................................................................37Letter #5: Dad starts law school, Doug's 2nd grade (1940, then 1954-1957)..........................................................43Letter #6: Sid Jr. in the field and my parents in college (1951, then 1936-1938)...................................................48Letter #7: Igloo to start, then wedding, war, and planned-parenthood (1957, then 1940-1945)........................................53Letter #8: Post-war: Clinton with newborn, toddler, and "apavasifiddity" (1946-1949)...............................................62Letter #9: I arrive Dad takes his shot (1948-1950).................................................................................67Letter #10: Cute beyond memory, trampolines and attempted brain damage (before 1955, then a peek at 1964)..........................71Letter #11: Only parents remember, then wedding and the appearance of youth (1955, then 1961)......................................74Letter #12: Carlson and Burpo cousins post-wreck, then golf without a Sherpa (1960-66, 1955).......................................80Letter #13: Yard and charred (1957-1958)...........................................................................................85Letter #14: Bathing with Presidents, let the games begin (1957)....................................................................90Letter #15: Piano, music, and a duet for the ages (1930-1961)......................................................................96Letter #16: Males and development, baseball and Britannica (1957)..................................................................100Letter #17: Sleepover and scoreboard (1956-1957)...................................................................................105Letter #18: Saturday, Dad's curios, and Québec (1957).........................................................................110Letter #19: Kasper on trial, food, and football (1956-1958)........................................................................120Letter #20: Disease, comics, and holiday damage (1958).............................................................................127Letter #21: Age inversion (Uncle John), Mom's cataract, Anne's tobacco, and Isaiah speaks (1910-1964)..............................132Letter #22: Scene stealing and dungeon mayhem (1949, 1959-1960)....................................................................141Letter #23: Urgency intrudes, then growth hormones (1956 or 1958)..................................................................145Letter #24: Skill acquisition and dynamite (1958, plus 1939-1945)..................................................................151Letter #25: Cock-eyed optimist and growth pains (1955-1961)........................................................................160Letter #26: Family routines and B-ball (1959)......................................................................................169Letter #27: Tournament ball and diabetes (1959)....................................................................................175Letter #28: Cotillion and "chasin' rabbits" (1959).................................................................................179Letter #29: Politics and KKK (1910-1971)...........................................................................................182Letter #30: Fiefdoms (1960)........................................................................................................187Letter #31: Brains and brawn, St Louis and forgiveness (1960)......................................................................192Letter #32: The challenge and "busting a move" (1959-1960).........................................................................195Letter #33: Parties, Westerns, and Work (1960).....................................................................................200Letter #34: Sid's baseball, ROTC, and the "wild card" (1960).......................................................................203Letter #35: Neighborhood Olympics and new moves (1955, 1960).......................................................................207Letter #36: Harry's Human web, Holtsinger, and Hopson (1960-1961)..................................................................212Letter #37: Harry's ready attack, my lack, and Mother's courage (1956-1960)........................................................217Letter #38: Marriage, friends, and community (1950's)..............................................................................220Letter #39: Eleanor's grand vision and chemical storms (1930-1960).................................................................224Letter #40: Stunning shape, a bit of comic relief (1958-1961)......................................................................228Letter #41: Sid to Harvard, the Math and Spanish encounter (1960-1961).............................................................231Letter #42: Freshman basketball and the miracle worker (1960-1961).................................................................234Letter #43: Little League: baseball's perfect replica (Summer, 1961)...............................................................238Letter #44: All-star status, Clinton to Athens (Summer, 1961)......................................................................243Letter #45: Terrible things and the need for forgiveness (1958)....................................................................249Letter #46: Armory and football (Fall, 1961).......................................................................................253Letter #47: Boxing and 2nd team discoveries (1961-1962)............................................................................258Letter #48: Focus expands and piano ends (1961-1962)...............................................................................264Letter #49: Dad from law to sci-fi, then a medical shift (1961)....................................................................267Letter #50: Sanity set aside (2010)................................................................................................271Letter #51: Square dancing? Singing! (Spring, 1962)................................................................................273Letter #52: Center-stage and the threat (Spring, 1962).............................................................................276Letter #53: The spawning of a garage band (Spring, 1962)...........................................................................280Letter #54: Clinton's conscience and a narrowing of focus (1956-1964)..............................................................285Letter #55: Second year, second team, New Testament, and Mother's clarification (1961-1962)........................................291Letter #56: Sid's return, Doug's valedictory, and Dad's final word (Spring,...