{"id":863,"date":"2019-04-22T17:54:56","date_gmt":"2019-04-22T22:54:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jesuitarchives.wordpress.com\/?p=863"},"modified":"2022-08-22T19:23:28","modified_gmt":"2022-08-23T00:23:28","slug":"2006-interview-with-arthur-allen-59","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jesuitroundup.org\/archives\/863\/2006-interview-with-arthur-allen-59","title":{"rendered":"Arthur Allen ’59"},"content":{"rendered":"

This summary is compiled from Mr. Allen\u2019s talk in 2006 with freshmen in Ms. Celeste DesOrmeaux\u2019s English class and from previous discussions with Sheryl Row, Jesuit Archivist. The talk in 2006 was recorded.<\/em><\/p>\n

In early 1954 a group of city leaders met in the Adolphus Hotel to discuss integration in Dallas schools.\u00a0 Attending were J. Erik Jonsson, CEO of Texas Instruments; W. A. Criswell, pastor of First Baptist Church; Stanley Marcus, president and founder of Neiman Marcus.\u00a0 They believed school segregation would be outlawed in Brown vs Board of Education.\u00a0 They didn\u2019t want the city to experience riots when children were forced to integrate, so they discussed ways to avoid this.\u00a0 They believed if they could show that school integration could work in Dallas, they could avoid a disaster.\u00a0 Jesuit looked like a good place to start.\u00a0 It was physically set apart from the public schools by geography and religion.\u00a0 If integration failed there, it would be Jesuit\u2019s problem not a city problem.<\/p>\n

The men talked to Fr. Shields and Fr. Kamara about the idea.\u00a0 The priests initially refused because they were afraid they would lose students and thus tuition. Jonsson suggested the group would cover any losses.\u00a0 For every student lost, they would cover double the tuition. Three students pulled out of Jesuit in protest, but two eventually returned.<\/p>\n

The adults in the school had the same prejudices as the general population.\u00a0 Many made it known to me that they weren\u2019t happy I was there, but others accepted me.\u00a0 The students and I bonded into a friendship that has continued all these years.<\/p>\n

I grew up on 2230 Hatcher St. downtown from Lincoln High School.\u00a0 I took the bus to McKinney Ave. to Oak Lawn to attend Jesuit.\u00a0 During the day I studied hard, but I got involved in numerous activities:\u00a0 football, baseball, elocution, track.\u00a0 At night I returned to my neighborhood, to a totally different culture.\u00a0 I got some heat from some of the neighborhood for attending Jesuit.\u00a0 They\u2019d ask me: \u201cYou too good for us?\u00a0 You going to talk white, now?\u201d<\/p>\n

Frankly, I hated Jesuit.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t want to attend, and my family\u2019s decision caused an alienation between my father and me that lasted for many years.\u00a0 Two days after the news reported that Jesuit would be integrated my mom and dad and I were watching TV when we heard a loud boom.\u00a0 A stick of dynamite had hit the house, bounced off, and landed on our neighbor\u2019s porch,\u00a0 knocking it off its foundation.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t know anyone at Jesuit, and it wasn\u2019t near my neighborhood. I couldn\u2019t attend dances since mixed race dancing was illegal.\u00a0 Some schools wouldn\u2019t play Jesuit if I even suited-up with the team.\u00a0 Since Jesuit didn\u2019t want to forfeit a game, I didn\u2019t participate.\u00a0 Usually the priests would ask me to make the decision, which was, of course, a huge responsibility to put on a young boy.<\/p>\n

On Friday before a football game I\u2019d hear an announcement calling me to the principal\u2019s office. I would be given the choice to sit out the game or have the team forfeit.\u00a0 After these meetings I would go downstairs to the locker room and cry.\u00a0 Then, I would come back up.<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t play Galveston Irwin in 58-59 for the state championship.\u00a0 Cathedral erected chicken wire to keep the schools separated.<\/p>\n

Sometimes a school\u2019s junior varsity would be willing to play with me when the varsity wouldn\u2019t.\u00a0 Then I would play with the junior varsity.\u00a0 Often during the games I played the other school\u2019s crowd would hurl obscenities, throw Coke on me, and spit at me.\u00a0 Bob Cahill appointed himself as my protector, and he\u2019d mete out justice as he saw fit.\u00a0 Most of the guys were my friends, but some faculty and parents would make snide remarks.<\/p>\n

I did enjoy some things about Jesuit.\u00a0 I liked my athletic prowess and my public speaking talent and the affirmation they gave me with my peers.\u00a0 I also learned survival techniques that helped me succeed, form partnerships, solve problems, etc.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
1957 Varsity Football Team<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This summary is compiled from Mr. Allen\u2019s talk in 2006 with freshmen in Ms. Celeste DesOrmeaux\u2019s English class and from previous discussions with Sheryl Row, Jesuit Archivist. The talk in 2006 was recorded. In early 1954 a group of city leaders met in the Adolphus Hotel to discuss integration in Dallas schools.\u00a0 Attending were J. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":864,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,60,34,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-863","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-1950s","category-featured","category-integration","category-memories"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nArthur Allen '59 - The Archives of Jesuit Dallas<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/jesuitroundup.org\/archives\/863\/2006-interview-with-arthur-allen-59\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Arthur Allen '59 - The Archives of Jesuit Dallas\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"This summary is compiled from Mr. Allen\u2019s talk in 2006 with freshmen in Ms. Celeste DesOrmeaux\u2019s English class and from previous discussions with Sheryl Row, Jesuit Archivist. 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