28 minute read
Michael Thurmond
TheSHARECROPPER’S SON:
MICHAEL THURMOND MAKES HISTORY
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By Jackie Wright
Ayoung Michael Thurmond spent much of the 1960s in the back of his father’s pickup truck as they sold fruits and vegetables to families across East and West Athens. Decades later, Thurmond would take the same route to the same houses as he campaigned to become the first African-American elected to the Georgia House of Representatives out of a majority white district since Reconstruction.
Elected in 1986 to represent House District 67, Thurmond made history, but this accomplishment took 32 years of education, networking and overcoming racial discrimination and division.
Watching his father’s interactions with customers on the vegetable route was the beginning of the development of Thurmond’s social skills that overcame any prejudice he would face.
“Some of our customers were white and some were black. As a young child, I would watch him interact with people. He would make sure he always treated them with respect, and they would treat him respectfully,” Thurmond said.
Still Thurmond experienced the injustices of segregated and unequal schools and facilities. Additionally, his family suffered the disadvantages of unequal job opportunities and resources.
“My daddy was what we called a sharecropper,” Thurmond said. “So you work the land for the person who owned it, and you share the harvest that you generate from the land. For most of my life, we were just renters, we didn’t own the land. He subsequently bought a farm about eight miles away, but until I was 16, that’s where I was born and raised.”
The Thurmonds lived in what is now known as Sandy Creek Nature Center. Michael’s father, Sidney Thurmond, worked in the fields in the daytime and at a poultry plant in the evening. Selling fruits and vegetables provided extra income. Vanilla Thurmond, Michael’s mother, helped in the fields and cared for her children. “There was nothing he wouldn’t sacrifice to send my brothers and sisters and myself to college or wherever we wanted to go. He knew that ultimately that’s what would make the difference. That’s the great equalizer in the world,” Michael said.
Reconstruction, 1863-1877 In this period following the Civil War, Republicans gain political power. The 13th, 14th and 15th amendments are passed, giving citizenship, voting rights and equal protection under the law to African Americans. This period ends in 1877 when troops are pulled out of the South and Democrats regain power in government. Plessy v Ferguson, May 18, 1896 Homer Plessy challenges segregation on the grounds that it violates the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause in this Supreme Court case. The court holds that segregation does not violate the equal protection clause as long as the Separate but Equal doctrine is upheld.
Passage of 14th Amendment, July 9, 1868 The 14th Amendment to the constitution says all people born in the United States have citizenship. Additionally it says no citizen can be denied equal protection under the law.
Still, the Thurmonds struggled financially with nine children and unfair wages. The youngest of nine, Michael looked up to his siblings.
“I would always study them,” Michael said. “One of the things I did was adopt certain characteristics from all of my brothers and sisters. I had a brother, for instance, who loved to write. And that was one of my inspirations for becoming a writer. I had a sister who was very smart in school, so I wanted to have good grades.”
Like his sister, Michael’s father encouraged his son to learn. Sidney never had a formal education and could not read or write, but in between his jobs he helped Michael with his homework. Sidney knew the importance of education because he experienced the disadvantages of illiteracy.
Clarke Central High School, 1970 As a result of student protests, Clarke Central was founded with a new, integrated student body and identity. The red and gold colors, gladiator mascot, and school newspaper name are all born out of Burney Harris High School and Athens High School’s identities mixing together.
Brown v Board of Education, May 17, 1954 Several cases relating to segregation of schools are consolidated to challenge the Separate but Equal doctrine in the Supreme Court. Students involved in these cases had been denied admission to schools because the schools were racially segregated. The court overturned the Plessy v Ferguson case, deciding separate is inherently unequal. The court also ordered desegregation “with all deliberate speed.” Thurmond graduates, Spring of 1971 Michael Thurmond graduates with Clarke Central’s first graduating class. In his time at CCHS, Thurmond sets a record for the 100-meter dash and is elected student body co-president.
Thurmond is born, January 5, 1953 Michael Thurmond is born to Vanilla and Sydney Thurmond Integration begins in CCSD, Spring 1970 In Spring of 1970, the Athens community prepares to integrate Burney-Harris High School and Athens High School. Initially, Burney-Harris high school was going to be absorbed by Athens High School, taking on its name, mascot and identity. However, black students from both high schools protest the plan.
CHANGING DIRECTIONS: After graduating from Paine College with a philosophy degree, planning to enter the ministry. However, he decided to attend law school at South Carolina University. During this time Thurmond was also in the process of finishing his book, “A Story Untold: Black Men and Women in Athens History.”
REACHING OUT: Thurmond believes in the importance of getting uncomfortable to build new relationships. “We don’t build alliances and relationships that we need. Simply because we’re afraid. You may have experienced that yourself. Sometimes you want to have a friendship, you want to engage people. You want to walk across the cafeteria and have lunch with someone else, another group, but you don’t do it and why not?” Thurmond said. Photo by Jackie Wright.
Michael spent the majority of his childhood in segregated schools. The Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case was decided in 1954, the year after Thurmond was born. This case overturned Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896) and its “separate but equal” doctrine. The Brown vs. Board decision ordered desegregation “with all deliberate speed,” but it left room for predominantly southern schools to drag their feet in the integration process. Thus Thurmond did not attend a desegregated school until his senior year, 16 years after the decision.
At the first integrated high school in Athens, Clarke Central High School, Thurmond was in the first graduating class. He held the position of student body co-president as well as the school’s record time for the 100-meter dash in 1971. The community’s transition toward integration was not as simple as combining bus routes. The process involved consolidating two existing high schools - all black Burney-Harris High School and predominantly white Athens High School. Before students protested, the plan was for all of Burney-Harris to be absorbed by Athens High. Burney-Harris students were upset by the plan for integration that would sacrifice much of their school’s identity.
“While (Burney-Harris students) might have agreed that Athens High School had the larger building and was therefore the more logical place to house the newly integrated student body, they did not want to adopt the school’s name, principal, faculty, colors, team mascot, or newspaper in the bargain. The situation was further complicated by the intense athletic rivalry between the two schools,” Michael wrote in his book “A Story Untold: Black Men and Women in Athens History.”
While Burney-Harris students recognized they would have to make some sacrifices, they spoke up to achieve a fairer process. In April of 1970, over 100 Burney-Harris students, including Michael Thurmond,
protested in the streets of Athens. Some violence and vandalism resulted on both high school campuses, and Superior Court Judge James Barrow issued an injunction against Thurmond and 12 others, ordering them to attend court. This was Thurmond’s first appearance in court, though he would later serve as an attorney.
Ultimately the protest efforts were successful. Burney-Harris High School’s identity was integrated into Athens High School just as the students were. Burney-Harris High’s The Highlight newspaper and Athens High’s Thumbtack Tribune combined to become the Highlights of the Thumbtack Tribune. The Trojans and the Yellow Jackets became the Gladiators. Burney-Harris High’s blue and gold and Athens High’s red and white became Clarke Central High’s gold and red. Thurmond and his classmates’ protests led to Clarke Central High School’s creation.
“We were leading the effort with the consolidation when we were 17, and Clarke Central exists because we wanted to make a difference,” Thurmond said. “These changes began the transformation to a widely diverse school system. One of the reasons we ended segregation was so that not just my generation, but more importantly the generations that came after me,
would have the opportunity to develop relationships, friendships and partnerships with people, irrespective of race, color, creed or gender. And it has been encouraging to see that process continue.” Thurmond’s attendance at the desegregated Clarke Central helped him build skills he would use throughout his social life, education and political career. “I had grown up in a segregated society. It was a life-changing moment, because it opened up these new experiences and new relationships. It was a historic moment, but it was also a watershed moment for me as a person,” Thurmond said. After graduating from Clarke Central in 1971, Thurmond attended Paine College. He graduated cum laude in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and religion. “My goal was to be a minister, so that’s why I have a degree in philosophy. But sometimes you have to correct your course. We set these goals for ourselves, but sometimes you change your mind. And you shouldn’t be afraid of doing that,” Thurmond said. Michael went to law school at the University of South Carolina and obtained a Juris Doctor degree. Although he did not pursue ministry as he anticipated, he believes his work now has a similar impact. “I believe I’m still serving. I’m not a minister, but it is a ministry because you’re serving people, and you’re trying to lead and help them,” Thurmond said. Later he attended Harvard to complete a political executives degree. During Thurmond’s time at the University of South Carolina he published his first book, “A Story Untold: Black Men and Women in Athens History.” Thurmond was first inspired to write it in his high school African-American History class. “My teacher was Miss Elizabeth King. One day she said, ‘Michael, if you want
“So we evolve - not necessarily because we volunteer to do it. We evolve because we don’t a textbook, why don’t you go and write have any choice but to do it." one?’ And I always said that was the mo—Michael Thurmond ment when the idea to actually write the African-American history of Athens was born, in a classroom during my senior year,” Thurmond said. After completing his degree at Harvard, Thurmond returned to Athens as a lawyer. Then in 1982, he ran against incumbent Hugh Logan to represent District 67 in the Georgia House of Representatives. After losing by 200 votes, Thurmond argued that there were voting irregularities, but he did not take legal action. He ran a second time against Logan in 1984 and lost again. This time he filed a lawsuit claiming there were no polling places or community registration centers in black communities. Thurmond did not want to change the results of the 1984 election; rather he was fighting for fair elections. “One position I took was I don’t necessarily want to change this election. I want to make sure that future elections were conducted in a fair and impartial way. Some major changes occurred after that, and as it turned out I won the next time,” Thurmond said. He was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1986, and represented District 67 until 1992.
MAKING CONNECTIONS: Thurmond speaks at an Athens Rotary Club meeting on Dec. 4 2019. The Athens Rotary Club invited Thurmond and another student to attend a meeting in 1971, the spring of their senior year. “What a profound moment in time that was for me because it was the first time I’d had the opportunity to speak to white adults. I met some people who played a key role in my ultimate success as an adult,” Thurmond said. Photo by Jackie Wright.
Thurmond’s effort to reach across party and racial lines propelled his win. At first, he was hesitant to build relationships with white voters, he said. Because District 67 was a majority white district, a win would have been near impossible without white voters.
“I was trying to get elected just with the people I was most comfortable and familiar with which were African-Americans, and I couldn’t do it,” Thurmond said. “So we evolve - not necessarily because we volunteer to do it. We evolve because we don’t have any choice but to do it. I had to choose whether or not I wanted to be successful as an elected official or remain captive to my own fears and inhibitions.”
The combination of a fairer election and Thurmond’s stronger campaign resulted in the first African-American representative to represent a majority white district since Reconstruction. Thurmond was also Clarke County’s first black state representative since Reconstruction.
Mikaya Thurmond, Michael and his wife Zola’s daughter, grew up while her father was involved in politics. Today she works in Raleigh, North Carolina as a reporter and a weekend morning anchor for WRAL-TV. In 2008 Mikaya graduated from the University of Georgia with a journalism degree and in 2018 she earned a master’s degree in journalism at Harvard University. Michael says his involvement in politics influenced Mikaya’s interest in journalism.
“She told me ‘Dad, while the cameras were focused on us, I was watching the people behind the camera.’ And so very early along, when she was seven, eight years old, she had a radio show and she enjoys writing,” Michael said.
Thurmond’s career in politics and government has focused on improving lives through many of the same issues that Thurmond saw in his early life.
While in office Michael worked to lower taxes for seniors and working families, saving over $250 million. In 1994 Governor Zell Miller appointed Michael to be the head of Georgia’s Division of Family and Children’s services. There he built the Work First Program through which nearly 100,000 families transitioned from welfare dependence to full-time jobs.
From 2013 to 2015, Thurmond served as the superintendent of Dekalb County School District. When he took the role the district had a $14 million dollar deficit and was threatened by the potential loss of accreditation. While Thurmond was superintendent, the county’s graduation rate rose from 57-percent to 62-percent, and the deficit turned into an $80 million surplus.
Now Thurmond is the CEO of Dekalb County. Having experienced integration and enjoying its advantages, Thurmond is encouraged by the diversity he sees in schools now.
“[In Dekalb County] we have Clarkston High School, it’s one of the most diverse high schools in the world because kids from all over the world go to Clarkston. Christian, Jew, Muslim, true believers. And what I’ve learned is that kids are kids, you know, we have very similar hopes and dreams, and we’re all just as silly,” Thurmond said.
While Thurmond is heartened by the diversity in many schools, he remains wary of becoming too comfortable. He hopes that the Athens community will continue to evolve.
“I would hope that Athens would continue to be more sensitive to the large percentage of people living below the poverty line. Athens is a very tolerant community
MAKING HISTORY TOGETHER: As Thurmond and his classmates played, learned, and grew together, they were laying the foundation for the Clarke County school district of today. “It was special. We made history, and it changed all of our lives. We know that we were children called to do a unique and special work to change the course of history in Clarke County,” Thurmond said. made up of well educated upper income neighborhoods, but we can’t overlook the fact that there’s still thousands of Athenians who live in poverty, who do not have safe housing, and sometimes go without food. It’s such a beautiful place-- to live and work and play, but there are people who still live in the shadows,” Thurmond said.
THE NEELY DYNASTY
By Nikkia Bell
SUCCESSFUL ROOTS: The Neely Family members are all successful in their own ways. Many have attended HBCUs. “My grandmother really helped a lot to pave the way for the community and I know I can’t do what she did but I’m just trying to do a little bit of what she did and start where she left off,” said Taylor Pass. Photo by Nikkia Bell.
Growing up, Evelyn Corene Neely was a part of one of the first integrated classes at Hilsman Middle School. Later with her own children in the Clarke County School District in the 1960s, she noticed the gaps in opportunities for all students. She felt that she needed to make a difference.
“She got involved with the superintendent of schools trying to make sure that we had the same opportunities for the African-American students,” said Sheila Neely-Norman, Evelyn’s daughter. In 2013, Evelyn Neely passed away. Services were held for her at East Friendship Baptist Church, and her legacy continues on through her family. Because of her community involvement, some people still refer to Evelyn as the unofficial Mayor of Athens.
In 1980, Evelyn Neely became the first black woman to serve on the board of education in Clarke County, staying active in the community for decades. Evelyn even has a street named after her in Athens: Evelyn C. Neely Drive, located off North Avenue.
“You can sit back and talk, but it’s not until you start getting out there and making changes. She was one to make changes,” Neely-Norman said. Evelyn’s youngest daughter, El Wanda Neely-Pass, is proud of her family and says her own childrens’ achievements make her feel a sense of accomplishment. “My mom always wanted the best for her kids, not just her kids but all kids,” El Wanda said.
A stay-at-home mom who was involved with the education of all children, Evelyn’s activism started in parent-teacher organizations. She was also a role model at East Friendship Baptist Church and worked at Childs Street Action Daycare before founding her own daycare. Neely’s Early Years Of Learning on East Broad Street opened in 1973. Friends in the neighborhood and around the community helped her get the daycare established.
After Evelyn passed away, her oldest daughter Diane directed the daycare. Later on El Wanda Neely-Pass took over that role before Neely’s Early Years Of Learning dissolved in 1996. Evelyn was also an advocate for growth throughout the community. She traveled to Washington D.C, along with Miriam Moore, Jessie Barnett, Virginia Walker, and Dr. Walter Denero to secure federal funding for community health centers, more daycares and funds to build the Broad Street bridge at the intersection of West Broad Street and Martin Luther King, Jr. Parkway. Evelyn also fought for community recreation centers built near Baker Street to provide wholesome recreational activities for nearby kids. Both the East Athens Community Center and Park and Thomas N. Lay Park were established with Evelyn’s help. Being politically active in the 1960s meant that Evelyn was possibly in danger. Some of the the changes she worked toward irritated the local establishment as the civil rights era unfolded nationwide. When Evelyn attended political events her husband, Charlie G. Neely, Jr., stayed with their kids at home.
“I used to worry about her and what was going to happen because that was the time where integration was really bad and they would have civil rights meetings at church. She would carry me to the meetings at an early age. As I got older I started seeing what differences were being made,” Sheila said. Charlie Neely served in the military, went to school and went into accounting and
QUALITY RATED: Sheila Neely-Norman stands outside of Rocksprings Daycare Center. The daycare is located a block away from Clarke Central High School. “We’ve managed to keep the doors open (daycare) and I think we’re doing pretty good,” said Neely-Norman. Photo by Nikkia Bell.
bookkeeping. A bookkeeper for Shiloh Baptist Church, he was a hard worker and wanted the best for his kids. People in the neighborhood knew they could depend on Charlie when they had car issues, and it was Charlie’s sharp looking 1944 Ford with white wall tires that initially attracted Evelyn’s eye after they met through mutual friends.
Throughout the 1950s, Evelyn helped neighbors find better jobs and living situations, working alongside other local figures including Moore, Barnett, Walker, and Dr. Denero.
The group also supported aids who helped people finish college to become teachers. Their advocacy led to the development of city buses, neighborhood health centers and new infrastructure in Athens. A community center was later built because of them: the Miriam Moore Community Service Center located on McKinley Drive. Evelyn Neely’s grandson Taylor Pass played football at Cedar Shoals High School, graduating in 2008, and he now works at the clinic that Neely founded. El Wanda, Taylor’s mom, says that Taylor reminds her of her dad.
“My dad was a hard worker, he wanted the best for his kids,” said El Wanda.
Pass has carried on his family’s legacy by running for an Athens-Clarke County Commission seat (District 2), losing the race by only 13 votes. Pass appreciates his experience in the race. “When I first started I didn’t really know a lot about politics. My main reason for running was to be a positive influence for the younger generation. You don’t have to be famous to succeed,” Pass said.
Taylor’s campaign was another family affair. His cousin Dr. Cshanyse Allen was his campaign manager. Dr. Allen teaches a nursing assistant and phlebotomy course at the Athens Community Career Academy. Taylor’s sister, Kisha Bailey, was Timothy Road Elementary’s teacher of the year last year, and she served as his campaign secretary. Throughout Taylor’s early contributions, his grandmother motivated him to stay active in the community. Food was the way to his heart. “When I would get in trouble at the daycare center on East Broad Street my mama would call my grandma to come pick me up, She’d always take me to her house and get me coffee and all types of sweets,” Pass said.
“We’d go to the grocery store. Every grocery store, not just one. We’d go to Food Lion and get some greens then go to Barlow and get some meat. Then we’d go to Bell’s on the East side and then get on the bypass and go to Bell’s on the West side and then come back to the house.”
Evelyn’s influence was strong enough to persuade her grandson to attend military college, even with other options. “I had other football offers, but not from places I really wanted to go. When I got offered to go to Georgia Military College, I went down to visit. My grandma basically told me ‘I think this is where you need to be,’” Pass said.
After attending George Military College and Morgan College where he graduated with a degree in sociology, Pass began volunteering at Cedar Shoals High School as an assistant football coach, training some of the players in the offseason. They woke up around 5:30 a.m. to work out — the same schedule Pass followed at GMC.
“In high school it’s unheard of for kids to get up that early, but seeing that motivated me. Most of them are in college now, so I think we both served each other a good purpose,” Pass said.
The same influence that his grandmother Evelyn had on Taylor gets passed on through his work.
“I see so many of my friends doing the same things they did in high school. Some of them are getting worse, some of them better. I just don’t want to see these kids do the same things. I try to lead them in the right direction,” Pass said. Evelyn Neely-Norman was dedicated to making sure that all children had equal opportunities and schooling. She achieved this goal by developing and securing resources and services for her community to enjoy. The impact that she had on the Athens community continues to live on throughout her family. “Martin Luther King had a dream, and I’d say my grandma had a dream,” Pass said.
Art by Megan Wise
By Chloe Howard
Not many people can say that they have lived on two different continents by the time they are 15-years old. Junior Oluwasumisola Odeyemi went from Nigeria to South Africa to the United States all before she hit age nine.
Born in the tribe Yoruba in IIe-ife, Osun state, Nigeria, Sue, as her friends call her, moved to South Africa when she was one-year old, and her seven year experience in South Africa would affect her for the rest of her life. Sue’s parents Ebunoluwa Odeyemi and Alfred Odeyemi were born and raised in Nigeria, living there in Secunda for 30 years.
“It’s a tropical, evergreen rainforest region. The environment is cool. We don’t have winters. The only seasons are wet and dry, since obviously we lived near the equator. Nigerians accept anyone. They are friendly people; they didn’t fear foreigners,” Mrs. Odeyemi said.
Sue Odeyemi recalls a strong sense
PICTURE PERFECT MOMENT: Sue and her mother pose for a selfie in the kitchen. They enjoy time together from shopping to late night talks. “She’s like another best friend. I tell her everything and she helps me when I need it the most,” Sue Odeyemi said. Photo courtesy of Odeyemi family. of xenophobia in South Africa toward Nigerians.
“People treated me differently. They spoke to me differently, even the teachers treated me differently because I came from Nigeria. My mother was a teacher, and students would torment her because she was Nigerian. And then with my dad, he also got a few comments as well. It does get to us sometimes because we were foreigners,” Sue said.
Her mother explains this phenomenon by noting how South Africans may not be as accustomed to foreigners yet.
“South Africa is a relatively young democracy and they are just getting used to having non-South Africans living in their midst,” Mrs. Odeyemi said.
As a child, Sue remembers an incident where she was physically assaulted on school grounds.
When she was in grade 2, there were specific fields assigned for school children to congregate based on age. As a younger student Sue was told not to go around the fields meant for upperclassmen. Sue did not understand the issue, just wanting to play with her free time. She went to the playing field and started rolling down a hill for fun.
“So I remembered, I was kind of hesitant (to continue to play). It was like five minutes before the bell rang. Then this white older guy came up behind me and just shoved me. And I just started rolling
down the hill and my left arm hit a brick wall,” Sue said.
Sue’s parents were not contacted at all, and she went through the entire day holding her broken arm in pain. Her parents realized what was going on when their daughter came home.
“My dad was saying ‘Get the principal now, right now before I yell.’ He asked the office people, ‘how could you send my daughter home like this?’” Sue said. They gave an uncaring response and an apology that did not address the issue, but their reaction changed once Mr. Odeymi revealed that he is a doctor.
“That told us something. If he did not have a superior job, then they would not care. He would not have gotten the respect that he did. It was cool when he told them off, I’m not going to lie, but at the same time it was terrifying,” Sue said.
“We didn’t really feel good about the situation. We corrected their behaviors towards my daughter. We called the principal to order who also called the teacher to order,” Dr. Odeyemi said.
Moving to a different continent was a big change for Sue as she began to experience new cultures.
“I had never seen a Latino person until I came here. I’d also never seen an Asian person. I had only seen white and black,” Sue said. Though she found Americans to be kind, Sue still experienced insensitivity and immaturity from her peers, though that treatment has lessened with age.
“I did get treated differently. ‘Oh my God your name is so long,’ or saying “she has the Sue touch.’ Apparently people think I came from a third world country when it’s not. We have what America has. They made fun of my accent. I experienced this until 8th grade. I feel more accepted in Cedar,” Sue said. Sue also feels more socially accepted now that she is finally a green card holder in the United States, but this process was emotional for the Odeyemi family.
“We just kept getting rejected. I remember this one time my father was just like, ‘okay, we’re all going to pray together.’ We all wanted to get a green card, so we prayed for it. Personally, the thing that kind of got me is Donald Trump and his policies. Now it is probably going to make it harder for anyone to get a green card,” Sue said.
RADIANT IN RED: Sue poses for a portrait wearing her favorite red sweater. Her friends say she looks like Christmas. “I wear red most of the time,” Sue said. Photo by Coriander McGreevy.
Dr. Odeyemi explained that their eventual approval was largely based on his wife’s work on her doctorate.
“(Her work) was categorized under the United States National Interest. It was an intensive and detailed process. We are currently permanent residents of the United States of America. It was an emotional process,” Dr. Odeyemi said.
The age difference in terms of grade levels and schooling makes Sue younger than most of her classmates. In South Africa, Sue began the equivalent of American preschool at 3-years old.
“Before I came here I was almost done with fourth grade. When I moved here I was younger than everyone else,” Sue Odeyemi said.
PROUD OF HER PARENTS: Sue is close with both of her parents, seeking wisdom and companionship from them. “I’m close to both my mom and my dad. I have a great relationship with them. I feel like I can tell them anything,” Sue said. Photo courtesy of the Odeyemi family.
SAY CHEESE: Taken in South Africa on her little brother’s birthday, 3-year old Sue strikes a pose. She recalls a cheerful childhood. “That was my brother’s first birthday, my father used to tell me I was a photogenic baby,” Sue said. Photo courtesy of the Odeyemi family.
The separation of ages and the grade level process is different in South Africa, and different terms are used for grade levels. Students begin in grade RR (Pre-K), followed by grade R (kindergarten), then grades 1-7. These years make up primary school, and then students move to secondary school for grades 8-12.
The study of language is much more intricate in South Africa than it is in the United States. Sue understands Yoruba and speaks it a little. However, after primarily being around English language speakers it is hard for her to practice speaking Yoruba. Her parents speak Yoruba, English and a bit of Zulu.
“We do have different language classes offered there [South Africa], but one class that we must take is a class called Afrikaans,” Sue said. Many of her peers ask her if she had English classes in South Africa. “We did have English classes, but I already knew English,. My parents taught me. I’m bilingual because my parents speak Yoruba and English, but really I speak a little bit of Yoruba. I’m not fluent, but I understand Yoruba. My parents are trying to teach me more Yoruba so I can respond in the language, but sometimes I won’t remember what it is. My parents have to speak more English because my younger siblings do not know as much Yoruba as I do. They are trying to make sure that we know Yoruba,” Sue said.
Aside from their influence in terms of language, Sue’s parents stress that her education is important for the future. Dr. Alfred Odeyemi found a job opportunity as a dentist in South Africa, and Mrs. Odeyemi was a teacher before pursuing her doctorate in housing and community development, planning to graduate this Spring.
“My dad explained to me that I didn’t want to get to a point in my life where I have to sacrifice a lot, and I know that they sacrificed so much for us. I want to give back to them in the future,” Sue said.
