The Interviewer: A Interviewer With Erma Jean Gray

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This interviewer took place on Nov 04, 2014 with Erma Jean Gray was African American girl born on May 15, 1941 in Mark Tree, AR. She was one of the 14 children and lived with both parents as a child. Erma stated she was the fifth girl out of the seven of the girls and it was 7 boys. Erma mother had 6 children before she married her father and they had eight children together. Erma felt her father never mistreated any of her sibling ever though they all not his children. Erma was raise on a farm in a 6-bedroom home and an outhouse when they have to use the toilet. Her father work on the farm they lived on and the family chop the cotton on the farm. As a child Erma stated she had few friends but mostly played with her sisters and brothers. She …show more content…

Ms. Erma said, “she and all her sibling would chop up to 5 acre of cotton per day in the field while their mother would be in the house cooking, cleaning and other things that needed to be done. Her father didn’t believe his wife should work let because he felt a man should do the outside work”. Doing the school year all the children would have choices to do after school and afterward work the field but doing the summer we would have to chop cotton the whole day. Most summer I (Erma) would go to St. Louis or Chicago to visited family for the summer: none of the other sibling would get a chance to go on a summer vacation. Ms. Erma said she never had a job beside chopping …show more content…

Erma said her and her sibling would go to church on Sunday and Wednesday but their parents didn’t attend service, But they made sure they went. As a child she ( Erma) remember going to church and enjoying herself. On holidays the family would get together for dinner and have a good time.” This was when the neighbors was like family and everybody got along. Erma said ever though it was 14 children they all got what they wanted for birthdays and Christmas because her father work hard: they (siblings) work in the field chopping cotton to get things they wanted. Erma didn’t finish high school but she stated she wanted her children to get the education she didn’t get and work for their education to do better for

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