Being from Tallahassee is not always associated positively by outsiders, and its reputation and stereotypes have earned it the nickname: Tallanasty. Despite the negatives, I could not think of a place more important to me. Tallahassee is just the right size to have an in-touch community, where most people know each other, or at least have heard of each other. Even with its southern charm, Tallahassee is not the most flattering to an outside eye, and is usually seen by the world as a combination of a college town and state capital. Living here as long as I can remember, Tallahassee transformed from a place I could not wait to escape into one that I have begun to embrace. Over the past 16 years I have moved across town, and went to polar opposite schools, the mixed experiences that I have had and the people that I have met have influenced the person I am today. Beginning to understand the importance of the community, and embracing the diversity, history, and the progress that has been made has given me an appreciation for Tallahassee; however, I remember for years dreading living in Tallahassee, imagining myself trapped in a small southern city plagued with crime and poverty. While some of my feelings have changed, the idea of being here forever still makes me uncomfortable. Things have improved greatly in my lifetime, but the racial undertones and blatant disparity continue to challenge the community today.

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            First moving to Tallahassee, my family bought a house in Killearn Lakes, a predominantly white suburban neighborhood in the upper income bracket. Living there, my social sphere was mostly homogenous, and I had little to no experiences with any larger communities outside of my neighborhood and school. Concepts like poverty and crime were foreign to me, and my neighborhood seemed to operate flawlessly by itself, remaining distinct from the rest of Tallahassee. Killearn was one of the first suburban developments to the north-east of Tallahassee and because of distance and class divisions, most people in Killearn stuck to Killearn. Moving to midtown when I was 8 meant going to a much more diverse school, and eventually I ended up going to middle school at magnet school that was situated in some of the poorest neighborhoods in Tallahassee, on the south side of town which was an area I had seldom visited or even driven through. I was exposed to the harsh reality that there is a massive divide between the rich and the poor in Tallahassee, and that their lives were two different worlds. This imbalance perplexed me, and has made me think much more deeply about race and realize the problems that continue to exist in the community of Tallahassee today. Because of my connections to Tallahassee, and of my experiences living here, I wanted to understand the history of Tallahassee and its residential segregation and how the two were influenced by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Civil Rights Movement.

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            In the mid-20th century, Tallahassee was a small southern city of about 50,000 (US Census Bureau) that stayed out of the news and was seldom mentioned for government activity or college life, and was like most everywhere in the south, segregated. The white community of Tallahassee felt that they were extremely fortunate to have “contented blacks” (Rabby) who were not as outspoken to inequality, and more susceptible to oppression in comparison to other communities at the time. While race relations were not as tense as some other southern cities such as Birmingham and Montgomery (Rabby), racism was still prevalent and visible. At the time, a large percentage of the black community resided in rural neighborhoods such as Frenchtown, which is a historically black neighborhood that was historically separated from Tallahassee and known for being impoverished and home to many famous black figures (Gaston). Neighborhoods like Frenchtown still see effects of segregation today, with high crime rates, poverty, and negative reputations. Efforts by members of the black community to integrate were often met with fierce opposition, and demonstrations were fought by the law. In 1956, there was a Tallahassee bus boycott marking the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement in Tallahassee. Two FAMU students, Wilhemina Jakes and Carrie Patterson asked to either sit in the front of the bus or to be refunded for their tickets and they were removed, arrested, and prosecuted. Protesting bus segregation, the black community was answered with cross burnings and violence but eventually achieved bus integration in 1957 (Padgett). One instance I found particularly interesting is the white student who was expelled from Florida State University for his actions with the inter-civic council. John Boardman was a Ph.D physics student and his simple actions were very controversial and resulted in his immediate expulsion and denied appeal. Boardman had invited 3 black international FAMU students to an international students’ club Christmas party, violating the then FSU policy prohibiting mixed-race meetings on campus. FSU president Doak Campbell decided that Boardman’s violation and actions in the Civil Rights Movement were dangerous to the university environment, and Boardman would go on to become an important white figure in the Tallahassee Civil Rights Movement (Florida Memory Blog).

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            I have always noticed a sense of community in Tallahassee that I have not seen elsewhere in cities with the same size population. People seem to look out for each other, and the community outreach is impressive. While there are still many differences, people of Tallahassee are able come together over things such as FSU football, working to help improve their communities. The Civil Rights Act and texts that arose alongside and after it have played a massive role in shaping Tallahassee, and they continue to function today as reminders and memories of the ongoing struggle for equality. In my eyes, Tallahassee is becoming more unified. There has been less of “white Tallahassee” and “black Tallahassee”, forming one community rather than two separate communities. People seem more interested in improving the welfare of impoverished neighborhoods, and fixing the high crime rates. Part of coming together as a community is acknowledging our shortcomings and not forgetting our past. It would be too easy, too simple to state that inequality and discrimination are things of the past, and that they are wrongs that we have overcome. The reality is that they exist today, and to improve the community, it is important to recognize them and to address them.  Prior to the Civil Rights Movement, conditions in Tallahassee for minorities were abysmal and their civil rights and liberties were almost entirely denied (Avirett). With a black mayor and the local government adopting more socially progressive legislation, the Civil Rights Act continues to act as a base from which Tallahassee is still building today.

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            Residential segregation can be a result of either de jure or de facto segregation. De jure segregation is enforced by law, and existed in Tallahassee and much of the south with Jim Crow laws until the Civil Rights Act went into effect in 1964. Many Jim Crow laws were implemented after the Civil War and Reconstruction in 1877, aiming to undermine the rights that African-Americans had gained. Ending only with the Civil Rights Act, Jim Crow laws were largely able to prevent rights granted by the federal government such as the right to vote, an equal education, or right to live in certain places. Major events like the bus boycotts made famous by Montgomery, and large-scale protests across the nation highlight the Civil Rights Movement and response to the unjust denial of African-American rights. The climax of the movement, the Civil Rights Act meant that the American south could no longer blatantly neglect the rights of minorities, leading to increasing freedoms for African-Americans and other minority groups. De facto segregation usually persists after de jure segregation and can result from a multitude of social factors such as income and existing residential patterns. Even after Tallahassee was supposed to be legally integrated, it remained segregated for the most part, with a large concentration of black families still living in poorer neighborhoods around FAMU, Frenchtown, and the rural southside today (Gaston). Federal action was met with local opposition, exemplified by cross burnings and racism confronting school integration. An image of a Leon County Board meeting with a map of school integration plans (Image 1) reveals the concern that many white parents felt sending their children to integrated schools. Many opted rather to send them to private institutions that were created to uphold segregation such as Maclay School and North Florida Christian School. The picture shows the initial growing pains and major opposition to the Civil Rights Movement and particularly the Brown v Board Supreme Court decision in 1954, and how they impacted the community of Tallahassee. Although de facto segregation still exists, its presence is much diminished and ever since the Civil Rights Act (Gaston), the black community has gained increasing residential choice which has led to greater societal diversity and the emergence of a larger Tallahassee community (Gaston).

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            The landmark Supreme Court case Brown vs Board of Education in 1954 accomplished little in Tallahassee initially. The decision which granted African Americans access to public facilities and ended the separate but equal era was not carried out in the south, and Tallahassee was no exception. The federal action was halted by the Florida legislature which declared the decision null and void (Florida Memory Blog) and private institutions were created in Tallahassee, providing an option to those who wanted to maintain school segregation, and there were many other loopholes preventing the federal decision to integrate public schools to be effective. Tallahassee began to see actual changes with the passing and signing of the Civil Rights Act in 1964. The act marked the end of legal segregation and discrimination based on race and ethnicity, and brought immense social change having black families no longer barred from neighborhoods due to race. De facto segregation continued, but the Civil Rights Act was a turning point and led to more equality under the law, and increased integration. In the following decades, Tallahassee grew and developed rapidly (Avirett), becoming one of the most liberal cities in Florida (Rabby). Despite these changes, Tallahassee still has high levels of de facto residential segregation like many metropolitan areas in the south, and while the situation has improved for many minority groups, the community of Tallahassee still has tense and complicated issues involving race and equality.

The way Civil Rights are present in Tallahassee’s community today is often either in the form of monuments or commemorations. For the community, these markers signify areas with historical significance and are a reminder of the social progress that has been made, celebrating leaders in the Civil Rights Movement like Reverend C.K Steele. Constructed in 2015, the Smokey Hollow commemoration sits near downtown Tallahassee in Cascades Park. The area was gentrified in the past 5 years (Ensley), and now boasts a beautiful park, and the addition of the Smokey Hollow commemoration is an important recognition paying homage to the historically black neighborhood and the land the park is built upon. Home to famous black figures such as Wally (Famous) Amos, and musicians Nat and Cannonball Adderley, Smokey Hollow was a tightknit group of black families. As Tallahassee developed, urban sprawl came with it. In the 1960s with the expansion of Apalachee Parkway, Smokey Hollow was gradually bought out and demolished, and for most, forgotten. The frames of the houses serve as a reminder of the black community that existed there, and the urban sprawl that uprooted it. A community reminder, the commemoration was built for the people of Tallahassee and although it can be observed by any passerby, it is difficult to decipher what the significance of Smokey Hollow is and many people in Tallahassee are unaware or ignorant of its existence.

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            Another commemoration can be found in the heart of downtown. Heritage Walk is a decorated sidewalk celebrating the Civil Rights Movement in Tallahassee and remembering the struggle for equality. Recognizing 50 important figures and civil rights activists, the commemoration is spread across a stretch of sidewalk right across from city hall. Commissioned by the City, Heritage Walk was built in 2013 as a 50-year celebration honoring those who took part in Tallahassee’s Civil Rights Movement. Unveiled in a ceremony it was originally part of, the walk is now a decorative commemoration that is intended for the public and residents of Tallahassee. Because of its area and the nature of Tallahassee’s downtown, many residents probably are unaware of its existence, but it still can influence the community of Tallahassee as a whole, reminding us of our roots. Although the area does not have heavy pedestrian traffic, the consequential audience are the lawmakers, lobbyists, and city-workers who pass over heritage walk nearly every workday. The lawmakers could be moved or inspired by the walk to strive for justice and equality being reminded of the struggle that happened in the same place 50 years ago for rights that seem unalienable now. Highlighting important events such as the bus boycott and sit-ins, the commemoration honors those who fought for justice and were met with oppression. Images of protests and quotes from the movement in a public place are important today as we continue to face social inequality, and heritage walk reminds the community of our not so distant past.

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            Although it was a large movement that spanned the entire United States, the Civil Rights Movement played a crucial role in shaping Tallahassee’s future, and its influence is still evident in Tallahassee today. Through research and reading, I was able to see the shift in residential patterns as more and more black families moved into neighborhoods that had been distinctly white before the Civil Rights Act. In large, after the Civil Rights Act while there was still relatively high residential segregation, African-Americans became less isolated (Gaston). The gradual shift of residential patterns has been mirrored in Tallahassee’s progressive political attitude in the last few decades (Gaston), and the community of Tallahassee today is reminded of its history through monuments and commemorations such as Heritage Walk, a sidewalk downtown I walked on nearly every day this summer adorned with a quote in homage to Civil Rights Movement protest signs “What we ask for is simple, impartial service for all”.

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            The subject of Tallahassee history has been one of my interests and is important to me because I have spent a large majority of my life living here. This research project delves into some of Tallahassee’s history and focuses especially on the Civil Rights Movement, and addresses difficult and complex problems such as socio-economic divide and residential segregation. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was an integral part of the struggle for equality in Tallahassee, and undoubtedly an event which would shape the way Tallahassee grew and developed. Learning more about the community through research is going to weigh on my mind, and I will be conscious when I graduate college and decide what sort of community I will become a part of.

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Works Cited

 

Rabby, Glenda Alice. "Out of the Past: The Civil Rights movement in Tallahassee, Florida." Ph.D. The Florida State University, 1984. United States -- Florida: Dissertations & Theses @ Florida State University - FCLA, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Web.

 

Gaston, Juanita, and Darryl K. Clare. "Residential Segregation Patterns in Metropolitan Tallahassee, Florida: 1970 to 1990." The Negro Educational Review 51.1 (2000): 3. Periodicals Archive Online. Web.

 

United States Census Bureau. census.gov. U.S. Census Bureau, 1 Apr 1970. Web. 26 Nov 2017.

“John Boardman: A Civil Rights Activist.” Florida Memory Blog, www.floridamemory.com/blog/2017/02/28/john-boardman-a-civil-rights-activist/.

 

“LeRoy Collins and the Brown Decision.” Florida Memory Blog, www.floridamemory.com/blog/2014/05/16/leroy-collins-and-the-brown-decision/.

 

Ensley, Gerald. “Smokey Hollow Commemoration Celebrates Lost Neighborhood.”Tallahassee.com, Tallahassee Democrat, 24 Sept. 2015, www.tallahassee.com/story/news/local/2015/09/24/smokey-hollow-commemoration-celebrates-lost-neighborhood/72735610/.

 

 

 

 

 

Project 2 Annotated Bibliography

 

Avirett, Lee. Personal interview. 8 October 2017.

Although having strong nostalgia and a pension for storytelling, the interview was extremely useful, giving intimate detail that helped set the scene of Tallahassee. Several of the questions were pointed at finding events and other sources that would aid the research process. Lee was for the most part unbiased, but it is important to acknowledge shortcomings or gaps that occur as a result of inability to retell events precisely or the narrowness of an individual’s experience contrasted with what was ‘normal’. The interview made me aware of all of the social progress that Tallahassee has made, as well as all that it has not. Lee was able to describe to me the way that Tallahassee developed as it grew from a town of 30,000 to nearly 200,000. Besides the physical growth, Lee recounted the attitudes and responses of residents, especially to desegregation and racial inequality. I used the interview as a stepping stone to determine what would be the focus of my paper, and learn what other texts would be useful.

 

Barrow, Robert Van. "The Politics of Interstate Route Selection: A Case Study of Interest Activities in a Decision Situation." Ph.D. The Florida State University, 1967. United States -- Florida: Dissertations & Theses @ Florida State University - FCLA, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Web.

After initially learning about this event from the interview, I was able to find this dissertation that went into meticulous detail about the whole process of moving where Interstate 10 (referred to as I-10) went through Tallahassee. The event itself was a prime example of the influence and power that ‘white’ Tallahassee had, moving the original plan from the south of town near historically black and poor neighborhoods such as Frenchtown. This decision was public and involved much debate about where the important roadway would be constructed. Though there was no shady business, the plan north of town being chosen would exemplify the divide between the different socio-economic and racial groups. This source influenced the residential patterns that would be crucial to the ways in which Tallahassee developed. Making it clear which groups were instrumental in this decision showed how Tallahassee land and neighborhoods were affected, the land north of town already inhabited by wealthier white families became more valuable.

 

Rabby, Glenda Alice. "Out of the Past: The Civil Rights movement in Tallahassee, Florida." Ph.D. The Florida State University, 1984. United States -- Florida: Dissertations & Theses @ Florida State University - FCLA, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Web.

Rabby’s dissertation was important in the research process because it provided crucial information about the Civil Rights movement, and especially about the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Civil Rights Act would forever change the residential patterns as black families now had the option to live in neighborhoods where they were previously unable. Desegregation, at least legally, led to more interactions between blacks and whites than ever before, although both groups remained relatively separate for decades. This source is credible and the firsthand personal accounts capture the struggle for equality that happened in Tallahassee. The history of Tallahassee does not discuss much about the Civil Rights movement in town, but learning about the bus boycott and organization of black communities is helpful in understanding the neighborhood and residential patterns that resulted from the events that took place.

 

Parents viewing maps of school integration plans adopted by the Leon County School Board. 1970. Black & white photonegative. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. Web. 10 Oct. 2017. <https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/272931>.

The photo, which shows several white parents looking at a map which detailed plans to desegregate elementary schools in Leon County. This image captures the opposition to integration, as many people were unsure of how things would turn out with desegregated schools. This text is an important part of Tallahassee’s residential history, and can be viewed as a typical response to residential integration, even though through de facto segregation, an overwhelming amount of black families continued to live in poorer historically black neighborhoods such as Frenchtown, southside, and other rural neighborhoods. This important text is giving insight into how many white communities at the time were responding to the looming new changes.

 

Aiken, Juliet R., Elizabeth D. Salmon, and Paul J. Hanges. "The Origins and Legacy of the Civil Rights Act of 1964." Journal of Business and Psychology 28.4 (2013): 383-99. ABI/INFORM Collection. Web.

This source described all of the effects that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 had in the social, political, and legal spheres of American life. Using legal and historical resources, this source goes on to explain the impact the major act had. Ending legal practices of workplace discrimination and residential segregation, forever changing the way Tallahassee would develop. I found that this source was best utilized in understanding the roots of the Civil Rights movement, and then analyzing the legacy it had on the rights of African-Americans and other minority groups. Leading me to other sources about the Civil Rights movement, especially those focused in Tallahassee, the paper helped me understand the lasting implications and effects of the Civil Rights Act.

 

Gaston, Juanita, and Darryl K. Clare. "Residential Segregation Patterns in Metropolitan Tallahassee, Florida: 1970 to 1990." The Negro Educational Review 51.1 (2000): 3. Periodicals Archive Online. Web.

This source analyzed the amount of residential segregation and shows patterns of African-Americans especially in historically black neighborhoods such as Frenchtown, FAMU, and Smokey Hollow. The data presented in this source was extremely useful in my research as it explained trends in residential patterns, and revealed some things I did not know about Tallahassee. After legal segregation ended and many more neighborhoods became integrated, areas around the historically black neighborhoods saw an increase and expansion as families began to move into new neighborhoods. Over time, the black population became less isolated and although the data is useful, it neglects the social implications and the reactions that occurred because of new interactions between residents.

 

Padgett, Gregory, and Marvin P. Dawkins. "Tallahassee's Bus Protest: The Other Boycott that Sparked the Civil Rights Movement." The Negro Educational Review 49.3 (1998): 101. Periodicals Archive Online. Web.

This source contained much valuable information about the black community and the organization that was involved with the Tallahassee bus boycott. The accounts of important figures help explain the influence that the black community, especially FAMU students had in the boycott that eventually would lead to social change through the Civil Rights movement. The retelling of events, and the detail help set the scene for important social changes that would change the buildup of Tallahassee. Understanding they dynamics of important events in Tallahassee history is essential to writing my paper, as it gives me insight that allows me to see the core of the community and how the Civil Rights movement functioned and how it continues to function today.

 

Reardon, Sean F., et al. "The Geographic Scale of Metropolitan Racial Segregation*." Demography (pre-2011) 45.3 (2008): 489-514. ABI/INFORM Collection, SciTech Premium Collection, Social Science Premium Collection. Web.

This source went into depth about the technicalities of residential segregation, especially in metropolitan areas. Although Tallahassee is not a large city, there are similar patterns to the findings of studies presented in this paper. Overall, the residential segregation results from socio-economic factors, and decreased significantly after the Civil Rights Act. Using many different equations, this study is both reliable and useful to find out about the statistics of racial residential segregation. Understanding how residential segregation has influenced Tallahassee is important to understanding how it functions as a community, and how different groups function within the Tallahassee community.

 

Ensley, Gerald. “Smokey Hollow Commemoration Celebrates Lost Neighborhood.”Tallahassee.com, Tallahassee Democrat, 24 Sept. 2015, www.tallahassee.com/story/news/local/2015/09/24/smokey-hollow-commemoration-celebrates-lost-neighborhood/72735610/.

This online article published by local newspaper, the Tallahassee Democrat is about the opening/commemorating ceremony of Smokey Hollow, a historically black neighborhood infamous for poverty and poor living conditions. The article talks about the commemoration project, and discussed the important history of the area. The neighborhood was home to a few famous people such as “famous” Wally Amos (cookies) and Nat and Cannonball Adderley (musicians) Describing the project and the history of the neighborhood, the article explains how Smokey Hollow is an important part of Tallahassee history and is a reminder of how residential neighborhoods have developed. Where Smokey Hollows used to lie has state government buildings, and the article harshly contrasts the area today and the memory of the blue collar African-American families who once lived there.

 

Burke, Matt. Heritage Walk. N.d. Tallahassee. Tallahassee Magazine. Web. 15 Oct. 2017.

This photo is of a sidewalk downtown that celebrates the Civil Rights movement in Tallahassee. Images such as the bus boycott and quotes from influential figures during the movement are a reminder of the history and commemorate all of those who opposed segregation and inequality. This source is a easily accessible and is useful to briefly explain the history of the Civil Rights movement in Tallahassee, and shows the dissent and opposition within the Tallahassee community.