Research Catalog

Title

Not all Okies are white : the lives of Black cotton pickers in Arizona / Geta LeSeur.

Author

LeSeur, Geta J.

Publication

Columbia, Mo. : University of Missouri Press, [2000], ©2000.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Holdings

Details

Description

xv, 247 pages : illustrations; 24 cm

Summary

• "Vividly revealing the challenges faced by a group of migrant workers who eventually farmed the multiracial town of Randolph, Arizona, Not All Okies Are White is a celebration of the resilience and adaptability of people too often ignored by history texts.".
• "Not All Okies Are White recaptures the ways of life for black migrant workers, as well as Hispanics and Native Americans, in the first half of the century through richly detailed interviews of the families of Randolph's founders. Through the words of each narrator, these personal stories recount work experiences and survival strategies offering new insights into the people's relationship to the land. The narratives reveal a creative tension between place and identity, movement and migration.
• LeSeur provides a historical, cultural, and literary context for the oral histories by incorporating news articles, information culled from historical society archives, analyses of films and novels, advertisements, and photographs." "Not All Okies Are White will appeal to scholars and general readers interested in oral history, African American history, multicultural studies, and women's studies."--BOOK JACKET.

Subjects

• Cotton farmers > Arizona > Interviews
• African American agricultural laborers > Arizona > Interviews
• Cotton farmers > Arizona > Biography
• African American agricultural laborers > Arizona > Biography

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 237-242) and index.

Contents

A Note about Rememberin', Tellin', and Writin' / Lynn C. Lewis -- I. Introduction. "There Are Pioneer Souls That Blaze a Path": Dreamin' the West -- II. "Men That Press On with the Ardor of Hope" Migrant Places and Randolph, Arizona. Sarah Lucille Smith. Manuel and Eva Acuna. Myrtle Jordan. Jeff Jordan -- III. "Next to You, We Love Cotton Best!" The Fabric of Black Life. Obed, C. Fields. Nick White. Metris White. Ron and Pearl Jordan -- IV. "We Are Sojurner's Daughters" The Casa Grande Valley Cotton Women. Parlee Bradley. Georgia Rupe. Fannie Reece. Mamie Selmon. Beulah Moore and Christine Moore Fields -- V. "Turn Not Away from Their Smiles and Their Tears" Educating Black Migrant Children. Matthew and Elgie Batteau. Ron Jordan.

ISBN

0826212719 (alk. paper)

LCCN

99057338

OCLC

• ocm42842403
• SCSB-3862009

Owning Institutions

Columbia University Libraries