1 Charles Blockson African American Chronicles. Heritage

Transcription

1 Heritage 1 I went into the Salvation Army stores and Goodwill Stores looking for anything that said any book that said Negro Colored African, West Indies or whatever or Black. Black at the time was a negative word to use even among African people because it meant negative. Everything you know uh everything black. Some people would have to fight over the word Black because we were ignorant of our heritage but what saved me in the sense was the fact that in my home it was in my home my grandfather. My ancestors originally came from Accomack County, Virginia early the white name was Bloxom is the originally name of the Bloxom family from my genealogy 1987 I published '77 I published a book on the first book on how to treat Black African American genealogy and my earliest knowledge from listening to my grandfather come and visit the house and talk about his ancestors. And he would sing spiritual. One day he was singing a song. There's a highway to heaven. There's a highway to heaven walking u to Kings Highway. Ten years old at the time I was outside in the back yard on an orange crate box a box that held oranges I said grandpa what are you singing about. He said I am singing about the underground railroad. He said my father your great grandfather James Bloxsom and other members escaped the Underground Railroad. And I thought it was a choo choo train that went underground at the time because of my young mind. And never did I realize at the time that I would one day spend most of my life having the opportunity to trace the Underground Railroad and find out that Harriet Tubman the great conductor of the Underground Railroad guided some of my ancestors to Canada. St. Catherine, Canada. African-American History I had a substitute teacher in the fourth grade and one day we were talking about American history. And George Washington Washington Jefferson Benn Franklin and others and um I asked her. We were called at the time Negroes. and colored people so I raised my hand. I was curious. I always had an interest in humanity and history and art and so forth. I said uh are there any colored people that we could emulate besides uh Paul Robeson, Jessie Owen, Marian Anderson, maybe every now and then James Walden Johnson who wrote the what you called the African American national anthem. Lift Up Your Voice and Sing. And uh [] Hughes. She said no Charles. Negroes were born to serve white people. She wasn't a bigoted person per se. But she was a victim of her environment. Years later years later about years later about 20 years later. I met her. She said she was proud of what I was doing as far as history and she was apologized. She said she didn't know when she told me that remark. She said she was always hurt because this was the way she was taught. So it was like I forgave her. I didn t hold any grudges. Segregated Norristown

2 2 Our parents told us certain things that African colored or Negro that we would have to endure. Because even in Norristown there were places that we couldn't go. I mean we The movies we had five theaters in Norristown. Four of them had upstairs and on the downstairs we African American or colored people or Negro had to sit upstairs. Why Did You Choose Penn State? Well Penn State I chose Penn State more or less as I uh before my father told me about the great Barney Ewell who was from Lancaster who was a great Penn State track person and of course um the football team. Um my hero at the time was now a good friend of the family uh we were connected Wally Triplett and Denny Hoggard. Um at that time you can also count the number of African Americans who were playing college football anywhere. But Wally Triplett he went to Cheltenham, Montgomery County was one of our rivals although he was a few years ahead of me. But I won the state championship in my uh sophomore year. I broke the state record in shot put and I was uh a discus want to say shot put and discus two years the shot put and three years the discus so I was familiar with Penn State because we had the uh PIAA track meet the state track meet there. And we would travel from Norristown uh District I which I was part of the lower Marion Chester and all these teams. We would go up to Lewistown we stopped in Lewistown. There was a place that sold ice cream. Uh we got ice cream. Then we went on to Penn State. Pressure at Penn State People like my good friend best friend and rival Lenny Moore who was the all time great uh football teammate of mine at Penn State we were Depression babies. Jesse Arnelle another good friend and rival from Roosevelt Park, New Jersey. Rosie Greer who was my teammate in football and track. We were all Depression babies you know. It wasn't excepted for us to go to college but then there was a lot of pressure on us at the time. You know at the time as I recall my freshman year was about 96 between 96 and 98 Negroes or colored people as we were called. We weren't called African Americans or Blacks. But around the time my senior year about 116 out of about uh between 22 25,000 student population. Unusual Recreation Sometimes we would just for the fun of it sit on the wall at College Avenue and count the uh number of African Americans that we would see for recreation.

3 Not Allowed in the Nittany Lion Inn 3 There was the Nittany Lion Inn. When I was there African Americans weren't permitted to uh stay reside at the Nittany Lion Inn. We my senior year we had football training our dinner we ate our dinner there and they permitted that. But up until that time uh W. E. DuBois. Dr. W. E. DuBois was the first African who supposedly alleged to have stayed there. Marian Anderson was refused and stay permission to stay there when she performed at Penn State and my lifelong hero Paul Robeson he was also uh denied. Not a Hypocrite 1955 stands out in my mind. That was the year my junior year that was the year that Emmett Till the young African American boy was lynched and killed in uh in Mississippi and when it came time. It was also the year at the beginning of the bus movement boycotts and Rosa Parks and Dr. King and others and we were at a game and singing of the National Anthem before the games I didn t' sing it. You know I couldn't bring myself to sing it. I sang Lift Up Every Voice and Sing African American I mean the African American National Anthem written by J. Walden Johnson his brother. And I sang that. Because I felt hypocritical. Now here we are going to play a game and this young African American boy was affected. It affected a lot of people in the African American community. Feelings for Penn State It's an honor for me to be connected with Penn State. Let' s be honest. WE know the history of the African American at Penn State. Some of it was good. Some of it was bad. There was antagonism on so many people classes and so forth. I know people who just love African American people and people of African descent. So I had a good experience at Penn State. I know other people who said will never set foot on Penn State. It's sort of a bittersweet memory when you go up there. You know who couldn't like the Mt. Nittany area. It's like a picture postcard. I mean the environment of it. But it was beyond that. We know that there was a lot of suffering. There was a lot of hurt. And there's a lot of joy. I can't speak for every African American person or person of African descent with the Penn State because as I said there s some who enjoyed it. They have a good right to enjoy it. Meeting Paul Robeson Paul Robeson was the he was a multitalented Renaissance Man you know of athlete and scholar lawyer singer whatever. Actor. The fact is uh my ancestor my grandfather had records of some of Robeson records. Old 78s. My father had them. They are old winding

4 4 Victrola we used to play and people. He was a hero. I met him first time all by myself. It was a sad occasion. And the University of Pennsylvania Hospital. On December 27 and 1972 uh when he came was ill. I asked a person a woman a hospital receptionist I read in the paper that Paul Robeson was in the University of Pennsylvania Hospital it was a snowy day. I drove from I was in my hometown Norristown. I drove from Norristown a snowy day. Coming down here something said on the way down you are not going to see him. They said he's not given permission but I came in to the hospital. I asked the elderly woman who was the reception an African American woman [] Mr. Robeson he's not receiving any visitors. An order from his sister and his family. However I know who you are Mr. Blockson. I know you. I've seen you on television. You are always talking about Robeson. I am going to permit you ten minutes to go see Mr. Robeson. He's in room such and such. I walked took the elevator walking into the room. The room was empty but on the desk near his bed there was flowers and Christmas cards and the book Black Magic just was published by Langston Hughes and Mel Maser who was co-author of the book Black Magic. The history of entertainment. I waited for about ten minutes. All at once I heard the clicking of the wheelchair coming in and he had a blue and white robe on. And he came in. I reintroduced myself. He said well Marian always talked about you. All at once I heard the clicking of the wheelchair coming in and he had a blue and white robe on. And he came in. I reintroduced myself. He said well Marian always talked about you. You were talking about me wherever you go. Marian Mrs. [] was his sister. So he realized that I had ten minutes. I had two books. I had his book that he wrote. Here I stand and I had Evan Hoys book called Paul Robeson Othello. And he signed both of them. I spoke for about five minutes with him and we talked about his days uh playing sports all that and so forth. And his music. The last time that I saw Paul Robeson it was December 17th 18th two days after my birthday that I drove into Philly at his house. He was sitting in the dining room holding his head with the same blue and white robe on was going back and forth. And his niece Paullina who was Mrs. Forsythe daughter came to the door. I told her I had my book Pennsylvania Black History I had a [] Mr. Robeson. I want to give it to him. I said I see he's not available today and I left. ON January 23 he passed away. But since then I was able to place a state marker Pennsylvania State Historical Marker in front of his house. Love of Books So I went to Harlem and I came across the Schaumberg Center the research center and I heard about SchaumbergI read about him. There's all this vast material on the people of the African Diaspora so I knew I wasn't alone. AT that moment I became a bibliophile. Books. They are people you know. They are my best friends you know I mean uh I like to read. I like to discover. I like history and um so this is my book collecting. It was I would call it it was the the delightful excursion.

5 Importance of Oral Tradition 5 I mean the oral tradition is important to get the oral expression for a long period of time African people only history they knew were the oral traditional that has handed down from their grandmother to the mothers to the fathers and so forth. There was a time in our history when we weren't permitted to read and write. Passing on History People of all races, creeds, and colors has a history you know and that we should respect it. And the only way to improve ourselves is to understand people of all races. Their history their contribution to this country and to the world because you know we are only passing through. I mean I am only a conduit. I always say people say why do you say you are a conduit. I am only a conduit. I collected the information and [] I am going to move on. So the information I collected would be passed on to generation unlimited generations to come.