Today I went to a wonderful program hosted by the Zeta Pi Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and the Zeta Psi Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta entitled “In His Memory, In Her Honor.” In my years of being at the University of Georgia it is a tradition for the Alphas to hold a program called, “In His Memory” that honors the first Black male student at the University Dr. Hamilton Holmes (he is an Alpha). Dr. Holmes helped integrate the school along with Mrs. Charlayne Hunter-Gault during February 1961 marking a major change in the state of Georgia’s secondary education system. Although this is the first year I have ever attended I believe this is the first time Mrs. Hunter-Gault’s name has been attached to the program (hence In Her Honor) as she is a Delta.
The program featured two charter members of the Zeta Psi chapter, one charter member of Zeta Pi, and the often forgotten Mary Francis Early who was the FIRST Black graduate of UGA. Seeing how I am taking a Modern African American Experience and Civil Rights Movement classes it was interesting hearing what life was in Athens back in 1961 and 1969. Three of the panelist discussed how united the Black students were as there were so few of them (one said the number fifteen) and how anytime they a male saw a Black girl walking alone he would make it his job to escort her back to her room. Hearing these people discuss how their white roommates moved out upon discovering they were Black just seemed so sad. I’ve only had one white roommate in my years of going to this school and never experienced this exact behavior, but there have always been times where I felt like some white students still weren’t very welcoming of my presence.
There has not been one year on this campus where I wasn’t the only Black student in some class. I was the only Black student in my English 1101 class and I remember we had to select stories from our books to read throughout the semester. I didn’t have the write book I remember, but when I discovered we’d be reading “The World Without Blacks” I really wanted to know who in the hell would pick this bull. Then there was my Calculus class. A girl who lived across the hall from me was taking the class and I remember one day in class everyone (including the teacher) was discussing the Facebook group they had so they all could study together. I was hurt because I wondered why nobody had ever tried to tell me about the group, especially the girl who lived across the hall because I constantly told her I was struggling with the class. There was also the girl who lived in my dorm for two years and whenever she saw me walking down the hall she would always look down at the ground. I rarely spoke to this girl, but when I did I was always kind so it made me wonder why she kept doing this for TWO years. I think that despite UGA being integrated for the past 51 years to an extent not much has changed. If you look in a large lecture classroom usually Black students are sitting together or somewhere close to one another. At Tate you’ll see them all together in-between classes talking. Even in my service fraternity Black members rely on one another as support because we are the minority in the group.
How much has changed at this University? I think it’s a question we often avoid because we may have one white or Black friend which automatically means we have been fully integrated on this campus in our minds, but we haven’t. Although it’s been 51 years since this school was integrated I often wonder if it will take another 51 years to be truly integrated.
