Other
JK, alias (audio interview #1 of 3)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the first of three interviews with JK (who chose to remain anonymous) in her apartment in South Gate. Because of arthritis and other medical problems, she became uncomfortable during the interview. Nevertheless, she remained a willing participant and was often quite candid in her responses. 3/31/1980
- Date
- 2021-06-07
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- SUBJECT BIO - JK was working as a live-in domestic before she went to work at North American Aviation. Born in Little Rock, Arkansas, the first of six children, JK came to Los Angeles with her family when she was seven years old. She was attending Los Angeles City College, and had aspirations to go to UCLA, when she became pregnant at the age of nineteen. She lived at home and, at times, as a live-in domestic. Under pressure from her parents to provide income for her child and for the family, she welcomed the North American job with its better pay. She was fired for fighting with another worker, and spent some time at home with her child before taking the Civil Service exam and going to work for the County. She continued to work in various city and county clerical jobs. In the course of the post war years, she married and divorced twice and had four more children. The interviews were held in her apartment in South Gate on her day off. Because of several medical problems, including arthritis, she often became uncomfortable during the interview. Nevertheless, and despite her decision to remain anonymous, JK was quite a willing participant. She was warm and friendly and often quite candid in her responses. TOPICS - family background and family history; childhood in Little Rock, Arkansas; religion; move to Los Angeles; living arrangements; menstruation; and early ideas about sex, reproduction, and her body;childhood; parents; family life; household chores; schooling; life during the Depression; mother and siblings roles as movie extras; living conditions; Los Angeles neighborhoods; race relations; racial discriminatifamily activities; scholastic performance and educational aspirations; school activities; career aspirations; early work experiences; first sexual encounter; pregnancy; social attitudes; pregnancies and single moth
- *** File: rrrjk1.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-3:21)... JK discusses her family background. She has very little memory of her grandparents on both sides of her family. Her father was born in a small town in Arkansas, and her mother was born in Little Rock. JK and two of her sisters were also born in Little Rock; her three brothers were born in California. (3:21-6:10)... Her mother, Elizabeth Wells, was born July 4, 1901. She was a very social woman and often traveled by train to visit relatives and friends in cities outside Arkansas. Although JK does not recall how her parents met, she surmises that it was at a party or some other social function. Her mother attended Shorter College in Arkansas for two years and obtained a teaching credential. When her parents married, her father asked her mother not to work so that she could raise a family. Even though her mother renewed her teaching credential after she gave birth to a second child, JK's mother never taught school. JK's father, Jesse Eugene Gray, also was born in 1901. (6:10-8:29)... JK's father received an eighth or ninth grade education. He could read and write and was considered a literate man by the educational standards of that period. Her father worked as a tire vulcanizer and adequately supported his family. Even though they did not have any luxuries, they were not poverty-stricken. He worked at a service station in Arkansas and was provided with a pickup truck to use for transportation. (8:29-13:12)... JK's parents married when they were both twenty-one years old. She was the first child born, followed by a sister two years later. A third daughter was born in 1928 when JK was almost six years old. She describes what she remembers about her young life in Little Rock, Arkansas. Although the family had visited Los Angeles on one occasion, they did not decide to move there until her aunt settled there around 1928. JK's three brothers were all born in Los Angeles. (13:12-15:41)... As young as she was, JK was aware of prejudice when she was living in Arkansas. She remembers riding on public transportation when she visited her great aunt in a rural area of Arkansas. During these visits, JK played on the farm with her sister and enjoyed her aunt's home-cooked meals. She was a member of the Methodist church in both Arkansas and Los Angeles. She has since converted to Catholicism. (15:41-19:11)... JK was born on May 8, 1922 in Little Rock and moved to Los Angeles with her family in 1929. Her father did not move to Los Angeles until he sold their belongings back in Arkansas. When he finally came to Los Angeles, they moved into an apartment next door to her aunt, on Naomi, east of Central. During the Depression, her father was steadily employed. He worked for a service station located on 28th and Central that was owned by a Jewish family. While employed there he completed various tasks, including vulcanizing tires and steam cleaning cars. (19:11-20:51)... JK has fond memories of her childhood. Her parents were in love and although they occasionally experienced marital difficulties, they provided a stable environment for her and her siblings. JK was an independent child and did not like to be chaperoned by her mother. (20:51-23:25)... Note: there is an interruption in this segment while JK checks on some food cooking in the kitchen. JK's mother gave birth to a son in the 1930s. He was born in their home and JK remembers having to wait outside until the baby was born. She was naive about sex and reproduction. When she was thirteen, her mother gave birth to twin boys. JK did not understand that her mother was pregnant even though her stomach was large. (23:25-29:21)... JK's mother did not talk to her about menstruation. JK started her period when she was thirteen years old while attending a church picnic at Lincoln Park. When she got home from the picnic she told her mother that she "hurt" herself. Her mother told her to expect the bleeding every month and showed her how to use a rag. She also told her not to take a bath when she was menstruating. She did not explain to her why menstruation occurred. JK learned about sex through her girlfriends. Her mother simply told her, "Don't do it." Although she took health education while in high school, the information about venereal diseases and birth control did not make much sense to her. When she learned about boys having "intercourse," she used a mirror to explore her vaginal area. End of tape. *** File: rrrjk2.mp3 (0:00-3:12)... JK describes herself as a tomboy. She liked to play outdoors and plant things in the garden. In addition to making mud pies, she played hide n' seek and paper dolls with her friends. They fantasized about their dolls going on dates or going to dances. (3:12-4:58)... JK and her siblings were generally closer to their mother than their father. However, they loved their father and he provided them with their allowance of .50 cents per week, which was used as lunch money. Her mother had a solution for everything whenever there was a problem. She was always home and provided the children with their basic needs. She also was an excellent seamstress and the family was always well dressed. (4:58-9:35)... JK describes her domestic chores. Her mother earned money working as an extra for the movie studios. Whenever she had to go to the studio, JK and her sisters were put in charge of taking care of their younger brothers. Her siblings also worked as extras in the movies. She describes an experience baby sitting her brother during one of his jobs. When JK started going to high school she was relieved of some of her chores because she had a heavy load of homework. (9:35-12:46)... JK describes the types of roles her mother and siblings played as extras in the movies. Most of these parts were in African American movies. They also played small parts in films with predominantly White actors. The family was able to manage during the Depression because of her father's income and the income that her mother and siblings received when they worked as extras. (12:46-13:57)... Most of the homes where JK lived in Los Angeles consisted of two bedrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, and a bathroom. Her mother set up a daybed in the dining room for sleeping quarters. The children had their own room and her parents slept in the second bedroom. The neighborhoods in which she lived were predominantly Black with White families interspersed throughout the neighborhood. (13:57-17:59)... JK was too young when she left Arkansas to notice whether there were any differences in race relations between Arkansas and Los Angeles. Her mother told her about racial tensions in Little Rock; however, JK believed that lynchings and serious racial problems were confined to the Deep South. She did not experience discrimination until she visited Sacramento at the age of twenty. At that time, she was denied admittance into a dance hall because she was Black. While growing up in Los Angeles, she did not experience any racial discrimination. She attended an integrated school and socialized with White girls, but her close girlfriends were Black. (17:59-24:22)... She attended Ward's Chapel AME Church on 25th and Hoover. She was very active in the church. She played the piano for the junior choir, participated in Sunday school lessons, and was a delegate for the Methodist Convention. She eventually became irritated with these activities and swore to herself that she would stop attending church when she reached adulthood. She was somewhat fearful of people who were physically demonstrative in their religious fervor. Even though she could not wait for the sermon to end, many of the principles she learned in church stayed with her. The church mainly focused on religious lessons and social activities. She does not recall whether the church provided social services for the community; however, the church did help people in need whenever possible. People also could write to the Salvation Army or Amy McPherson to request a box of goods during the holidays. End of tape. *** File: rrrjk3.mp3 (0:00-0:59)... In addition to church activities, JK and her family always did something on Sundays, such as picnic and play ball. She usually attended the Sunday matinee, but was only allowed to go if she went to church that day. (0:59-4:23)... While in high school, JK decided that she wanted to teach. She was active in educational and social clubs, such as the German and French Clubs. She graduated from high school in 1939 and intended to go to university. She was a straight "A" student and was a member of the Who's Who for her accomplishments. She continued to play the piano for the choir and also took dance lessons until her mother cut them off because she was afraid that too much "fast" dancing would lead her daughter to become a "fallen woman." JK knitted sweaters for her teachers to earn extra money. On the weekends, she usually attended dances at the YMCA. She never attended dances with boys. (4:23-11:46)... JK discusses the courses she took while in high school. When she graduated, she wanted to go to UCLA but her mother could not afford the fees. Knot enrolled in a city college. She discusses her experiences at the city college and how these experiences led her to quit college and enter the work force. She digresses regarding her high-school graduation ceremony and the dress she wore for the event. (11:46-13:44)... JK's first jobs included baby sitting and working as a "mother's helper" for a woman in Beverly Hills. She visited this woman three days a week, during which time they went shopping and talked. JK did some domestic chores: washing dishes and cleaning the floor. She left this job in 1941 when she got pregnant. (13:44-18:44)... JK discusses her first pregnancy, indicating that she was curious to "try it (sex) out." She describes her first sexual encounter and her mother's reaction to her pregnancy. JK was made to feel ashamed for getting pregnant. Her mother was embarrassed and even attempted to press charges against the man who impregnated her. (18:44-23:34)... When JK learned she was pregnant, she did not have any idea what her future would hold. She felt as if she had "ruined" her life. The relationship with her parents began to suffer because of her pregnancy. She did not realize the magnitude of her situation until she gave birth to her son. She went back to work for the woman in Beverly Hills until she started working in the defense industry in 1942. She worked the graveyard shift (3:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m.) and her mother cared for her son. JK was required to give her mother half of her paycheck. She wanted to move away from her parents, but her son had medical problems and her mother made it difficult for her to leave. (23:34-26:14)... Before JK got pregnant, she wanted to work and save enough money so that she could attend UCLA. After the birth of her son, she wanted to use her savings to move out of her parents' home. However, it became increasingly difficult to save money because her mother demanded half of her paycheck. The money that her mother took was not used to care for JK's son, but to purchase frivolous items. End of tape.
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7113063493201424-rrrjk2.mp3 Public
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2796133339545078-rrrjk3.mp3 Public
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