Oral History

Fred Battle - On the African American freedom struggle and Civil Rights Movement in Chapel Hill

Interviewed by John Kenyon "Yonni" Chapman on April 1, 1991

"I would always look as I would walk down the corridors of the hall in Lincoln, and I could still hear some of the teachers speaking now. Giving guidance, giving direction, giving praise, and all the motivation we would need to excel as students, excel as athletes."

- Fred Battle

Fred Battle was born on Hillsborough Street in Chapel Hill, which was a predominantly Black neighborhood at the time. He reflects on the power of community and how the institutions of Chapel Hill shaped him into the man he is today. He discusses Lincoln High School and the atmosphere that surrounded him during his youth. He also notes the meaning of sports to him and the influence of the coaches he had in college and high school made on him. The interview emphasizes the huge support he received from his family and friends and how it drove him to advocate for desegregation and a better future for Black youth in the US. The interview also discusses the contrast between how white people and Black people lived their lives in Chapel Hill.

Audio recordings of interviews conducted by Yonni Chapman with participants in the African American freedom struggle and the civil rights movement in and around Chapel Hill, N.C.

Fred Battle - On the African American freedom struggle and Civil Rights Movement in Chapel Hill

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Oral history interview of Battle, Fred conducted by Chapman, John Kenyon "Yonni" on April 1, 1991 at Chapel Hill, NC. Processed by Gragg, Joshua.

Citation: The Southern Historical Collection at the Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library, “Fred Battle - On the African American freedom struggle and Civil Rights Movement in Chapel Hill,” From the Rock Wall, accessed December 14, 2024, https://fromtherockwall.org/oral-histories/fred-battle-on-the-african-american-freedom-struggle-and-civil-rights-movement-in-chapel-hill.

Rights: Open for research. The Southern Historical Collection (SHC) welcomes non-commercial use and access that qualifies as fair use to all unrestricted interview materials in the collection. The researcher must cite and give proper credit to the SHC. The SHC requests that the researcher informs the SHC as to how and where they are using the material.

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