Features
February'2oog
Con$ol;d atiugcsl*rs Athens High School was integrated in phases between tgfu and t969. With school consolidation the next year, people on both sides of the racial diuide remained in Athens, Ga. as reminders of the road towards equality. n
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n 1969, Athens, Ga. was in the midst of social change. The two major high schools, Athens High School and Burney Harris High School, were consolidated into one school under the name of Clarke Central High School. AHS rvas primarily u'hite, while BHHS was primarily black. For the students from both schools, everything was changing. Ner.v students, ner,r, school colors and a nelv school name. \Valter Alle n l'as the assistant principle of AHS the first black administrator at rhe school
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l-righ schools s'ere merged. "\Ve had the Athens High School Trojans, u'e h.rd the Burney Harris High School Yellon,Jack.ts, no\\r rve have to phase out both of those ideas :Lncl come up u,ith something new," Allen said. Allen transferred from being rhe bancl directtrr at BHHS to tirking the position of :Lsslstant principle at AHS several years before the consolilation. At AHS. he found himself in a sometimes unu'elcomlng cultural environment. Nlanv teachrrs and staff n-rembers \\,ere \\'ar,v of his presence "I gave up music to come here as ;ln administrat!rr. Some people thought I as being sent over here .rs a spy for the NAACP," Allen said. "l think that rrnce they got to trust me and kr-rorv that I u,asn't ,r spy for the N,A-ACP or the Black Par.rthers (the1' .rpened up)." While,{llen rvas facing nerv challenges u-ith trving to establish himself as a black administrarLrr in the ne\v1y'merged school, mcial tensions in {HS had been building long before 1969. In 1963. Wilutia Green became one of the first 'nlack srudents Lo attend AHS. Under the Freeclom .rf Choice progran-r, u,hich allon'ed certaln black .rudents to attend lr,hite schools b,v appllcatron. Green rvas permitted to transfer into AHS. Green's first steps into AHS r,r'ere groundbreaking. .
"Hirrnilton Holmcs ancl Charlene Hunter integrrted (the Universit,v of Georgia) in 1961. \\re \\'ere a\\r:rre that that \\.as horr, Lhe rl,orld u.rs going. It \\.as not beyoncl prossible that you cou1cl .1. t lr,rt.'' Cruun rri.l. 'Anrl it \\ r- .r community organized thing t1-rat finall,v passed it in the Clarke County school clistrict that l,ou could app1,v to go to the
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Green transferred from At1-rens High :rnd Industrial Sc}rool. later to be ' come BHHS. to AHS s-hen she u'as in eler-enth grade. At a segregated school. Creen lircked thc tesoutces that r.r'ele available to students in *'hite schools..
"I clicl not have the s:rme things tl-rat everybody else dld. Our textbooks often came ils the textbooks th;rt they had stopped using:rt Athens High. ,$d obriousl,v, if ,vou compare the buildings ou rr ,rlll.l .et Ih.tr rhcr rr e rc i nr rrllr l.l 1 rirb1e." Green said. ,\side from gaining access to the upclated resources of Athens High, Green felt integratior-r benefitted the learning
Above: ASSISTING THE CIIANGE: Athens High assistant principle
environment. Walter Allen poses for a yearbook picture in r97t; the year after the '' \rhenr High -chool rr'.r. mi'.inq schools were consoiidated. "(The consolidation) wasn't all a nightmare," Allen said. "There were some verypleasant moments working through something b1- not being exposecl to the this whole thing. This whole process." srudents at Athens High and Inclustrial. We both har,e son-rething to give n-as an inconr,enience. each other," Green said. "Once you get "l never used the same rest room. I alu,ays usecl to knou. each otl-rer better, you figure out that thc rest room that u as in the nurse's office," Green basically u,e r,,-ere all the same. We had the same saic1. "l s.ent in the rest room once the first da1,, aspirations, ,.ame goals. But as long as,vou only and turned arouncl and n alked out. It lvas not a stand on,vour side , you never figure that out. And friendly p1ace." that's u,hat my thought u'as in the beginning of Green countered the intimidation by focusing the process u,hen I integrated. That's rvh,v it rvas on her school u.orl< and her purpose in the school. important." "At the end of the da1,, acceptance \\ras not necGreen often found it hard to feei comfortable in essaril,v s.}rat I n:rs looking for. I u.as looking for AHS, as she rr-as a*'are that she rr,as a minority in an education. ancl I did receive that," Green said. the school. "(\I,v first da1') n.as interesting," Green said. Green felt that she rvas bettering her situation "There u-as some intimid;rtlon. I felt r-ery much b,v choosing to attend AHS. But b,v 1969, after Crccn gr.t.lu.r1qJ. .elecrirr inreqr.rtion \\ J\ gon(. .r.10ne. Consolidating the schools meant that AHS u.ou1d \{ost students simpil- ignored Green, and even be completely integrated. Racial unrest betu.een rhose tha[ u-ere lriend1,v p1a1'ed a n.rajor ro]e in her stuclents escalatecl to a neu,1eve1. handing Al1en 1ife. "l met some people there. But friendship u'ould the chailelrge of trl,ing to keep the school together "It u-asn't just that all u,hites u,anted this, there be a stretch." Green said. "There u-as tremenclous s'ere blacks u,ho didn't want to give up anything. peer pressure cln their part not to be a p:rrt of \\'hites u,ho didn't \yant to give up anything, and rvhatever I supposedl,v represented. During those it u':rs a Herculean task to bring together tlr,o times you just didn't interact." groups like that," Allen said. Green learned quickly to avoid situations in the