World War II Central Illinois Stories

Oral History Interview with Katie Harper White

 
                                    

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Transcript for file: katie_harper_wright_2008-07-11.mp3

00:00:00

probing porn
crystalline 11 2008 where in East stlouis
st. Louis at the home of dr. Katie Harper Wright Dr White would you spell your name
Forest playing my first name you’re all in your name okay my first name is still OK
Katie the same is Katie Couric’s name on TV
my middle name which is my maiden name is spelled Harper

00:00:30

and my last name is stomach the Wright brothers invent the airplane
invention Wright
so how did you decide to go to the University of Illinois
well it really wasn’t my decision
it was my father’s decision because that is where he could get me
get me a Scottish but I had always wanted to go
to go to not always the one to go to big 10 University because Massachusetts

00:01:05

Vashon High School in St Louis where from the Big Ten you have to know
Juno the back in those days blacks could not attend University of Missouri
and so the state of Missouri pay tuition for

so some of my teachers at the shine guy rapping
disguising of federal putting out with a new version of the 90s
I felt very very proud and fortunate that my

00:01:40

get my dad to get me a scholarship to go to the University of Illinois and how
how did he know who was the Western scholarship from the University
well I think it was the legislative scholarship I think
is my dad serve in politics so he knew the right people but also
also I had a dream I was about to turn of my high school graduating class so I
so I had a good habitat outlet at kind of easy for him to get me in there
did you have to take test to get in to the universal United those days

00:02:15


Smart & M spectrum
didn’t have to take as however Mac Reagan I’m remembering
Grayson high school in Asian always such that accept
septa Confederate want to put my rhetoric 1 convert to raid 2
tell an animal that have to take a test that I’ve been feeling a migraine
so you’re

00:02:50

father I gather was excited that you’re going to Illinois
he was your parents 150 review will not get bus see my mother
divorce many musical the harvest by all here in St Louis MO
amber Roxx my mother was a lock came up from the south and they settled in
St Louis Missouri is that swear herpe best man clarinol those that are congenital
my brother was born in st.louis she was pregnant
pregnant with my brother wins between she move to St Louis I was born in Arkansas

00:03:25


Kmart in St Louis solo and I was always
daddy’s girl so I have stayed with my father
and your father was in politics yes I guess you call me back
remember yeah I guess he call himself a politician he

worst cars ever shut down near the city hall at bedtime

00:04:00

and all the white politicians a mayor and Mary English and all those people
washed their car so he begins with these people Enda
so he could get famous political favors for men tell me about the
about the letter from the mayor that we saw with I
I miss the misery remember right so in order for me to get the v
DM the Illinois scholarship in the Illinois
be able to get the Illinois rachel is a student

00:04:35

then my father had the mirror to see the name of the man that steals
Mary English to write a letter saying that I was a good student in diapers
St Peter villa not
so what did you take at the university do you remember
remember did you know what you wanted to major in yes I thought
thought that I wanted to be a lawyer sonido invited a girl
girls want to be lawyers in those days so then I thought I was going to be in for a long time

00:05:10

sciatica Political Science in aviation but my first tim
Chris Burkley I know I took that
Kris and Bruce getting better in high school and Ice Cube everything’s cool belly ass
sac took the irregular entry courses Pattycakes Einsteins full
I’ve had to take rhetoric but I was accepted red one
Tegra 2 size 38 inches
General Studies and what year was it that you entered the University

00:05:45

what my dad drove us and I’ll never forget that Sunday River Bethel University
Sunday in August of 1940 a graduated from high school
in January of 1940 but in between
Trivette semester I went to the M
trade schools to learn how to tattoo typing and shorthand invented the atom
ways that semester and I said that says he is messed up
step mother drove SFU University Marching Alex he was a great sandwich with as

00:06:20

she introduced as to whether may Pickens who was the big wig in the bath
the Baptist Convention are like that so we drove to the university that are in a tall
Augustana remember the date in 1940 and
and I live to go to make Pickens house and that was on what
Washington Avenue for something Washington Avenue
how did that happen that you happen to live there but she might
Alabama stepmother with friends with women take it

00:06:55

and of course she was said about I guess you cover the Big Big Bear in
infected by putting in the newspaper that she had this guest from
St Louis James Harper had brought his daughter Katie
there to attend University of Illinois and service in the paper heaven Berkeley semester at
scrapbook paper the Danville news or something
solum Shih Tzu take me in she had to Carol
Jamin Patrick Harris husband name Leroy

00:07:30

this is all taking me way back and she was 7
very big tits Salem Baptist Church concise statement
state with her but then I think it might
set more year I became friends with a girl for me st. Louis Guthrie play
replay Iyaz and Guthrie midfielder bacillus
814 East Columbia in Champaign
and we became close friends. She says that he wants to move with me will be roommate

00:08:05

rumaisa she was my roommates of foot 2 out my a****** 4 years later
sadly mistaken to be still be friends with him we went to Salem Baptist Church in Olivette
so tell me about
why you living off campus well
and you know and I’ve just wrote a piece for the Belleville news Democrat
that we should not to focus on past injustice
and so I never exist it doesn’t bother me that black stick

00:08:40

text did not could not live on that campus we could not live in the dorms
Campus I don’t guess it bother me then I guess it doesn’t bother me now
I went Napa we could not live in the dumps Beck and forties the baddest bitch
50 50 50 it was early 6
play 50 cent Linkin Park and all those girls to live in dorms
what in the f*** is this could not live in the dough we live.in the town about
about a hundred show black students that we all knew each other but not a lot of black shoes

00:09:15

2008 Campus back in the forties and most of them with him in st. Louis
NFU from stlouis everyday Italian town Nevada
if the town different towns people running and board at the student black students
how could you did you eat on campus in the dining rooms level 270 yes because I
work in the Union Building I had 2 jobs Atlas a Titan
amia in the kitchen placement office ambien
Iverson best girl in the Union government system Union Building came out after that

00:09:50

distilling the forties World Campus
Campus when ww2 in the United States in World War 2 what do you remember
Harbor was fine I just remember that it was just the river just also
how so scared what are the favorites on a Bama fever going to come and get up
H&M Atlanta confusion and ups
obsidian hatred of Japanese calling them bad names
Japanese students on a campus in the US

00:10:25

is it good I didn’t come in contact with them deficit
bedtime for 70 77 do you remember exactly where you
where you were when you heard the news I surely don’t but I’m me was on the show
I’m going to church tonight. I have is that there
Romania been in church I don’t remember her everywhere
did sing
things change perceptibly on campus after December 7th

00:11:00

I remember that
the middle left Dallas left
can we became friends with the guys from Chanute
I don’t remember the things they been insured a good change
back in those days they didn’t have not put your car security in security guard
because I don’t like that so I remember the game is security guard catering
anything like that but I do remember that tab the campus

00:11:35

is a few a student Pamela Moore dessert
deserted hundred percent black students that were there when you
arrived on campus how many boats were men would you say when they happen
half and half for love those
French to Lehman Adamson all those guys Kyle Clements
Gemini and black guy hair
between

00:12:10

but we we became friends with a guy but so just tell me you love me
MFM should I do we need pay me attention to these guys at work from home
show how to do how would you how did you become acquainted
will they hate us so and they would take a step to this
to dance with the soldiers in army to everybody I come so stupid Herriman and so we
until we met and became friends with and they would come to town David come to the things that we say
to the dances and I love that protects the right to say it

00:12:45

what kind of guys were they Olay be good looking
famous smart to take those guys most of them had graduated from college
College I have been to college undergraduate
so some of them for a 2008 study mass
best head library days 50 a.m. That was some smart guys
and then eventually a lot of them
lot of them I just left to go of a list of events M&Ms

00:13:20

Vemma heard em say sample voice James I can see him now
I heard that he was killed in the world are there in Italy

buttjob give me the address to the way we all went out to see a different way
Waze didn’t have rationing
on campus during the war without ever anything that you were aware of remember me
not have enough food or anything just a good hand but I don’t

00:13:55

but I don’t remember we had rationing in terms of gas for tire
tires are I guess its students don’t know but we don’t even have cars
where can I get some of the what
what flights do intact cars in even know anybody who had a car
but I’m sure they messed up an IRA member rationing
guerrilla war battery live
I remember that I’m sending a message to bed

00:14:30

what I don’t know I work at the Union Building in Detroit
will Paige be plenty of food
tell me about social with your social life was there much social interaction
interaction between black and whites do not really I had
heads unlocked with them because I’m with you why did she a girl
Ava’s demon buddy pass I get as a ridah BCAAs Inside Edition
Cheyenne high school girl girl reserves so

00:15:05

when I get to university I found my way to the weather be Sunday in so I got
do I got you go to that of the lunches in the banquet Panda ghanaweb
why the word in like that but so far is like dancing
and like that no both of us
socialize this with the boys from Chanute Kansas
andrin with each other beheaded library dates what we did
I don’t remember that we had to have a lot of social interaction with the white strips

00:15:40

other than outside other than you did at the Y Yahoo
and who who put on the dances
but you went to that was going to go to that which is not my sorority big sister
she’s still a good sorority Alpha Kappa Alpha was established
what’s a social life and I really because they had to put the dancers are they had a good check
chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority bear delta sigma theta which is nice
natural is not big on at Campus tan incest

00:16:15

afternoon Windsor knot
we had a check today but was not active at that time Alpha Kappa Alpha put on these
stances ELCA churches heads Social Solutions Inc
themes for s2 what to get in England
invitation to an Alpha Kappa Alpha dance that’s really something
and you know they had dance Cardinals days I don’t know if they haven’t gotten hot
what we had dance cards and we were all dressed up in phone

00:16:50

in my friend sister Susan who taught us in the coop eclipse
because I have to write for the same as Argus mail me a cup of farmers
formal dresses cuz I’m having fun with this email may have some prom dresses to wear to
where is it means to be stained what did they look like
where they get the big puffy skirts for semi
my that is gorgeous I stare I now remember that was in the pool
dayz remember it is kind of

00:17:25

the Depression was during the war but
Justin Bieber strip caterpillar did you experience
prejudice course we know you couldn’t live on campus that was certainly
what other prejudice do you think you experience on a resume
I really didn’t accept when I took my practice
I have one incident when I took my practice teaching
that practices in the theory the methods because

00:18:00

acai special day because I fear in negative be cutting methods prices
from a lady by the name is miscarry
never forget the state that all big butt lady right labia cause I never had any any
black professors all the way up the undergrad to grad
the grad school admission Meharry was the teacher lesbian charecter is the profession
and she gave me a baby and I know that I have learned today
because the boys who have accidents in Seville on the road

00:18:35

on the road a lot so I had to help them with their listen to Mr
but she gave me and gave me a baby that’s the only

on the campus finish me im only
make my way actual Winter Festival
recipe of Smith they said he was real Chucky wrote the book on child psychology or whatever web
I said now professor Smith Dr Smith I know you wrote the book and everything

00:19:10

I’m at a street and an expression and an out of this course
so I got an A on if I ever did that I scared him into an egg
thinking about majoring in special ed
no no I didn’t do special ed until 1957
oh so what did you major in as an undergrad political science in speech
and then later on I got into a chicken head have 16

00:19:45

in Figure eight I got my 69th and Ridgeview 8
the penice when I came home I trust a regular s until
until 1957 when I was recruited to go into special
Kesha NB fruity pebble and scholarship to go back to the University
can’t get my message to special head but before that I have a
generalist
what does what classes stand out

00:20:20

can download as you think back other than your one bad experience are there other class
classes are experiences in class of the new remembered that were the corner stand out in your memory
memory foam yes I let in class I can see that can remember that

and he was not letting instructor that I have been
I made accident Grayson in Latin have excelled in Lebanon High School
but I got you that was harder but he works with me on man and Cup

00:20:55

help me with that I didn’t get in an out of hand but I got to be with you
really good in Madden Sebastian from a history question stand out
is Avast the Alabama Auburn history and I guess I love history
straight a particular live like in English history because they have a lot of scandals
and I like to read about that so that my history classes at 9 a.m.
my Latin classes I was not good in Batley
I’ve been getting headaches signs of not getting back I think I got a single

00:21:30

thinking that I might have got to be
Baytown also my physics class Eastern Ave ice skating
at the tennis I don’t know what they do now in theatres
the university but in those days in order to get your degree you have to have a certain number of
always in physical education and I remember one girl who died
who got hit on the forehead in 20 hours are almost all have that he couldn’t graduate because she
fishing in half hours and visit Samantha’s in a sentence

00:22:05

I hate pictures of me ice skating I like that would make good in bed
Interactive stand up on the ice alphabet picture
what picture that we found out with a PE class Idaho speed class

tell me about the fashions of the day on campus
what kind of clothes were popular Yakuza puppy
sympathetic lose weight in the descendants of the same stuff as you can see him that

00:22:40

pictures that have the same stuff as they were at now penny loafers
loafers this will be what fish is the 72 names of coming back to me now
how to settle acid you know cell access road very big on that campus
that was a cold campus cold and so we will believe that we were sweaters in
is I had to remember Angora goat herder bankruptcy credit
aya grey sweater ti am I always like fashion
ENSO that’s why I had 2 jobs so I can

00:23:15

member married
that says I had a camel hair coat
navigate fashionable Band Perry still got them they still have those numbers can
and that was only coat that I had beside my fur coat in the head with a bat
Adam Ant dead but didn’t state admissions list move from Denver
send in for doe B hair and my dad would send me the money to pay her so that way
that one time I didn’t pay her I will pay her later when I get

00:23:50


will call 2 ideas novice alteration is blind

ask me a Korean girl in let me see what you have on and she was
steal my clothes and so she fell is fun and I think about it
about that night she felt this is smooth Gary Danko machine Muzik mp3
smooth and the camel service rep she said girl got a new

00:24:25

got a new coat I thought you said your dad didn’t send you any money
so we had to
so tell me about tell me the story about getting your dad to go to the first cut
what is a so cold on man everybody wants to love everybody had a fur coat

$50 the Bevis a lot of money on those that he might have paid $100,075
bath house whatever that I said that it is speech is true it was so cold on that campus

00:25:00

and all the other girls that I knew had affair coat
so he sent me the money to get this xnnx call Marvin
is called Marmot in those days anti captain Cove Inn
Edward Egan Instagram teacher we made it Africa
is cold you know they can be sent you disco
and I miss a comeback cast for a 1996 4
homecoming at the university that was the coldest day of my life in the football

00:25:35

football team lost I was all but little bit I had a good for a cold
how was about his life in a mink coat tonight 2009 iMac Arizona everything
Big Bend and brought back memories how cold at Campus really gets in the winter
the mad dad good scrap metal from somewhere got me pissed
reset my picture messages

remember the Tuskegee men talking about

00:26:10

prejudice or racism or any of the fact that they were not
separate unit and they were just being allowed to finally allowed to leave
do something on forces remember them talking about that money is we talked about that
what did they tell you we fuss about it and negative atoms so you know they won’t
do this than any other than real estate a good thing is like that of course
the town if we talked about that I know they didn’t like that
I take everything you have to know you

00:26:45

does the end of days everything with separate schools in the separate everything
everything with separate the universe separate
never even so it is why they’re minerals guess I did it I did I don’t remember them
Nova baby talk about it coming I sell
ok
Hey

00:27:20



how do you think if you look back on
the war and not just your experience on campus at how do you think the war
war changed your life when what ways did it
make an impact on your life love
one thing

00:27:55

93 became more serious I knew that I had to get my dick
get my degree who became a teaching position van mai tai

so mm the world is still going on
and so I took the place of a joke. For example who was the
salt in water when he came back I had to move and give him his place I think
I think the war made me more serious cause I’m a fun loving person to an

00:28:30

like to stay at home but the wood good gun
open app to Samantha Mohr Pawtucket RI
why was that and how is that woman
what money was closer to the earth is
what is taking money from a Canon everything but the water
ww2 open Epson jobs
system update coming is better is that make sense

00:29:05

so I became a prophet
prosperous I put in my fat do you think you have more opportunities on cam
campus because there were fewer students orange because there was never anything
can you pump with a paternity Church Mequon campus the only the only problem is we could not live
because I told accepted with glass
SIAF exam Patrol accepted in the in the debate club how was the first black
probably the first black person to serve on redtube 18

00:29:40

but it was made about accepting eBay serving on their own those places I’ve been
made my way with these people tell me about the debate club
when did you you traveled around every man we went to the universe to get what we want to do for you
Tiffin University I think we picked on the Indiana win tonight NFL
but you definitely s. C
it hot in high school I was president of the debate team
so into things I did in high school I just found a bone through

00:30:15

route to make my way into university Enda
we had it be reversed if we had a girls to bake a minute. If a teen having sex
18 and I don’t know how I got on there I guess I got it with somebody
somebody to get on this debate team maybe somebody from a palace a clases
anyways John Anderson I can see him now
grant for president and you have probably too young to remember when he ran
independent and he loved

00:30:50

lost in hatchet the presidential race but he was on the boys to be
debate team and I was looking to sell my old Kipling and I sent Jenna Sansone
how to add wrap can be lost to be prude girls beat them
and I wrote him a note to Jenna Allison you never could debate affirmative
the presidents
but you what issues did you debate Kohls
the day happy talk about the war

00:31:25

did the Clippers playing on Europe think that
Amazon the debate team before 19th and 19
look before they declared war on us 1942
revista talk about the world we also talked about sex
segregation in back of those days I remember that
so tell me about that hanging scene it movie 2
did you see that movie The Great Debaters when will the Washington should see that no but I have

00:32:00

I just bought the dead DVD and I like the same that these
these kids you know debated type of gation quite a bit do you remember
amber specifically like going to white colleges and debating those issues
shoes about segregation and desegregation remove hair but I don’t remember
remember specifically I have to look back at my clippings to Safeway
where did we talk about that was a big part of your college
college experience what is it was in like a University of Indiana

00:32:35


I remember those places where not of the Avengers
couldn’t have on the campus of what not but they were not segregated
segregation going out in the out in the big world
does Jay Z talk about segregation so good
didn’t do anything about it
you went off of school and never had

00:33:10

never had a white teacher and you came to being a birthday nearby that’s right you’re high
High School never had a white teacher that sings these medications definitely
all those people weather going to be like
University Missouri a good verse Missouri did not accept black students
but the state of Missouri pay tuition for them to go to
what universities can you imagine that and so these people went to
into the Big Ten universities near Versailles Ohio they could accept that would accept

00:33:45

lips like sugar so much is it fashion for bigger
people and that’s one reason I guess I want to go to university
I never had my teacher then as it exits
inspirational school from 7 undergrad all the way up to my tank
doctoral program I never ever had a black professor Ben Affleck
I became a black professor at Harris Stowe State University

00:34:20

when I play basketball
Kyoto
iopen wonder what happened to some of those guys from Chanute
sube became the 99th Pursuit Squadron fat couple of those
guys are good the from Maya to join
join 4 pics Joe and Dionysus precyse quadrant another places
Whitmer high school graduating class Columbus Christmas bash made

00:34:55

Chris Stacey Murray Chris
where in the 99th Pursuit Squadron that they did not train in Chanute
did they have car Herriman
I guess they did no they didn’t
they didn’t the one that I knew you didn’t
hello maybe get a ride down to town this size didn’t have a car
send voice verse James guys now

00:35:30

they get a ride should we did to you so ugly with that go up there to dance
the dancers in all of us are within Champaner reviews
m.m banning maybe holding a banner
do you remember when you learned about the death of
FDR when breathing out
new
exactly I remember exactly where I was

00:36:05

is the John F Kennedy question that was not is not is not going broke
how about after the war and what order
ordering war did you know any boyfriend I’d kill for you

cute little guy to go smart he was killed at Pearl Harbor
my brother was hurt at Pearl Harbor Enda
member of a particular club Williams

00:36:40

when you heard Pearl Harbor was bombed did you know your brother was there
yeah that was that one
you take that back my brother my brother after Pearl Harbor who was in the Navy
Everett he was hurt after Pearl Harbor Fitness Club
William Smith killed at Pearl Harbor
so how about after they after somebody’s hand man came home did you
did you associate with any of them after they came home and you remember

00:37:15

remember the Titan how many different or was that make an impression on you that they
they came home and work change from him out of war
no they
thankful to be home but she packin those days we didn’t hear anything
anything about weddings at post traumatic stress it on like that people came on these boys camo
can women get pedicures John BC they had them Wichita DJ
GI Bill if nose if I came home and the ones that I knew and got in college

00:37:50

I met my husband he list of ww2 I did not know him and make Him known after the war
what are the best guys came home and garden College the ones that I do
but they hate it I know like with my husband
entrust does it talk about the word match but um
they went through a lot I know he I said in an interview interview
interview that the newspaper good with ham on ww2
episodes interview looks like you he was able to pull things out of him and I

00:38:25

and I heard him tell things about what happened to him at the Battle of the Bulge it on my add baby hitting every
never even talked about so those men from ww2
what not talkative too much about it
I know you that feel better GI Bill to go to college
I don’t know if I don’t know of anybody that went crazy
fat should have a claim that the date the quarry in the people crazy and I like that
that’s not my experience with the guys that I know my brother came home

00:39:00

M&M hips hurt badly he got too much
disability office Hebron you got better right I got his degree that a good job
job at the federal government what’s inside was different than Reba
the heart of which I don’t know I haven’t talked about the people inhabiting Weaver Heartbreakers
revenge guys came back and ready to M Jamaica airways
and I’m sure they some of them didn’t but the one that I know you
use their work experience to the advantage

00:39:35

anything else we look back think about the camp of anything else related to
add to the Warren your experience on campus during the war anything that will be worth
will be related to the word that we haven’t talked about
text about a lot of it
you don’t want that I think I read in your trans if you don’t really remember a lot of f***
soldiers in uniform on campus for that feeling to feel their logo
7909 Campus I do remember that we as ice

00:40:10


we dream in my cup and so we were friends with the bow


what we call them for apps
No
is that in the back of the system Sutter high station

00:40:45

good days Fermi you say they will
Horsham any River High School Sweden have money we don’t have car as I walked out
the town that the end of town to the campus
if we all did those festival downtown we didn’t have a lot of money
money in between Hitler and Two Smoking everything but cigarettes worth
where to buy 54 pinon inmate search
I can still remember that I had a hard time at the university

00:41:20

mature as time goes on
something bad smells out the wrinkles SAT prep ahead
her s*** that I remember

and by the time the world is over I was here already hit the
ending to open up Verizon Christie
visitations we made $100 a month but that went a long way

00:41:55

Conway red eye guest was a nickel I don’t know if it’s 2050 Cincinnati
hello for whatever
new Beckham Twitter is good to Travis is good to have
good to have brought back the memories you take me way back
right when I think we probably wanted gifts for mother
smother foot interview

00:42:30


the possession
the boys because the boys thought they were
David Mann and they were all of them a college men and so we had a
we have a lot in common with them and they I can tell you I can t admit they in
the enhanced a socialite Kiwi widget and many people attend voice to dance with
where is back in those days they knew the dances bachata said the dances and then

00:43:05

we dance to the music at the start Destin you don’t know anything about that
song Stardust in a stairway to the stars that they really make
made social life good for us for black students to black girls on the
on the campus they also help desk education only because
because they would study with us we had library dates with them can particular D
India India in a science and math courses at night bad
who dat ass I know Glee news attempted but they fixed it with us

00:43:40

what the main thing is it’s a really good how fast have fun and a good
good time and we were so sad when they had to pull out
no they can only be one
I guess our friends the ones that we dealt with it with the wind 2 preview
baby cell when you know someone says gone in 30 Adaline
set times for us but we had good times during the W
the war with the young man from Matt Davidson

00:44:15

smart guy name of good soldiers





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