Oral Histories

“I am a believer that education is essential, just like air. Just like oxygen. We have to feed our minds, and I also believe we have to feed our souls.” - Sandi Abbo This interview was a part of the Marian Cheek Jackson Center Education series. Ms. Abbo grew up living in Pine Knolls and Tin Top…

Sandi Abbo: “I remember being in high school. I went to high school in 1970…well, ‘69 I guess, ‘cause then after the new year it was ‘70. I was in 10th grade. When I was in high school, it was 10th, 11th, 12th. We were just excluded. We weren’t wanted, we were very clearly told ‘you don’t belong…

Patricia “Pat” Jackson: We have a young lady coming up. Come right up young lady. Shareka Abbo: Good evening, everyone. My name is Shareka Abbo. I will just say we were very blessed to be able to grow up in this neighborhood. I think we moved here when I was 13 over on Starlight Drive. Just to be…

"That buzz, that hum that’s going on where they’re talking to one another and exploring things, that is crucial. There are times for quiet, you know, like when you’re doing testing or things like that, but all the other times, no. You want chatter, you want buzz, I know I did." - Sarita Allen Sarita…

"I feel like home is where you feel comfortable. If you can walk in somebody else’s house or knock on the door and they just let you in, that’s considered home." - Chelsea Alston Chelsea Alston shares her experiences as a youth leader in the community. She describes the changes of the community over…

Alexander Stephens: How have you seen it [the community] change? Chelsea Alston: I’ve seen it change from—Well, like I was saying a lot of my friends live in close proximity of each other. It’s changing to where that it’ll be more of my friends living in the neighborhood than it is now. A lot of my…

Patricia “Pat” Jackson (PJ): We have coming to the mic at this time, Ms. Dorothy Alston. Dorothy Alston (DA): Good afternoon. I wasn’t gonna come up here but I can’t– PJ: What’s your name? DA: Dorothy Alston. I wasn’t going to come up but Hargraves pool has been a big help for my kids. I had six…

"And you know, when we would have a parade, you know, because we were black...we were always in the back! But they always saved the best for last, and we were good!" - Janie Alston The interview includes the history of the Hargraves family: her great-grandfather, Jerry Hargraves had a role in the…

Alex Biggers (AB): I'm Alex Biggers, this is Hudson Vaughan. We're here with Janie Alston on Lindsey Street. It's April 20th, about like, 10 o'clock in the morning. Hudson Vaughan (HV): Awesome. We're just going to put this down, and then, let's just keep going. You just forget about that. At any…

HV: What do you think, like, stands out most about, like, what do you like most about your home? JA: Because I grew up here, and I grew up in the area. See, my kids don't have any connection, because they grew up in Connecticut. But, you know, we could walk – I'd come by here every morning and wait…

Janie Alston: My name is Janie Alston. I’m a Hargraves and Billy Hargraves was my first cousin. I was raised in a house right there with my grandmother. My mother lived on the corner of Lindsay and Cotton. I like to say this, I was born in Harlem Hospital in New York, but anyways I was raised in…

Patricia “Pat” Jackson: Now, get your hands together for that fabulous Ms. Janie Alston! Janie Alston: Thank you Ms. Pat. Hello, everybody. That house behind you, I grew up in. That was my grandmother’s house. I am a Hargraves and a Weaver from Chapel Hill. I was born in New York City in the Harlem…

Jerdene Alston is a Chapel Hill native that was born in 1944. She grew up having no issues with others regarding race, but when she learned about racial injustices facing fellow Black Americans across the country, she joined the civil rights movement. This was after graduating second in her class in…

Freda Andrews is a daughter of the Northside. Notably, her primary and secondary school education transformed her life immeasurably. Her teachers, especially at Northside Elementary, created a classroom setting that directed individual attention to each student. Fostered by these nurturing teachers,…

Freda Andrews: I grew up walking to Northside Elementary School because that’s the mode of transportation in those days. And I would cross a little branch everyday going to Northside, which was 20 minutes from my house, if that much. The only difficulty with that sometimes, the little water would…

Freda Andrews: The schools were, as I said, full of caring teachers and the reason I chose to be a teacher today or an educator was because of some of those teachers then that taught me and instilled in me that you want to be somebody. So, when you want to be somebody, you have to grow up and watch…