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Marjorie J. Birch's avatar

Also: in re prejudice being limited to certain "geographies" -- my parents moved to northern Maryland (just below the Mason Dixon line) from St. Mary's County which is as Southern as Maryland gets. I don't know the percentage numbers, but there was about an equal number of black and white people.

So there they were, newcomers in northern Harford County just south of York County and they later told me that they had never witnessed such virulent racism. (It seems our back field had once been used for Klan meetings and no, I am NOT bragging about it.) Some York county towns had "sundown" laws.

What's crazy about this is that there were so few black citizens in that locale.

I do have to admit that my parents used the N word. But when I was a kid, I was rebuked for using that word myself. Being a logical tot (and a nuisance) I pointed out to my mother that she and Daddy used that word themselves, from time to time.

My mother looked thoughtful for a minute and said "Well. It's a hurtful word and you shouldn't use it. But your daddy and I were raised at a time and in place where we didn't think it was any harm. We know better now, but since we heard and used that word from the time we were children -- well, now it's just a stupid habit and we're trying to break it -- and sometimes we forget. We don't want YOU to get in the habit of using that word, because you have a chance to be better than us... and we want you to be."

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Marjorie J. Birch's avatar

I read "To Kill A Mockingbird" when I was in the eighth grade -- carried it around in school one day, and a girl from the senior class said (her forehead all pleated in concern lines) "Do your parents know you're reading THAT BOOK???" I was puzzled, but said yes, they did.

(The problem wasn't rape or racism -- my father turned red when I asked him what a "morphodite" was.)

Of course, when I first read the book, I saw myself as a version of Scout (and I was a tomboy/bookworm). What happened was that I grew into a version of Miss Maudie Atkinson, the friendly, rational neighbor lady who sort of acted as a Greek chorus (commentary/back stories provided on demand, etc.)

I am now a single lady of seven decades, I grow flowers in the front yard, let the neighbor children pick them for bouquets (with my supervision, just so they don't accidentally rip them up by the roots) and listen when they want to talk or ask questions.

I could say a lot more, but I'm SUPPOSED to be working from home. Thank you, Corey.

(you sure are a purty thang)

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