The guardian. [volume] (Boston, Mass.) 1901-1960, 1939-10-21
5hurt Stnry
RETURN TO environment
By Elsa Harris Mabb

SCENE When Sally and Joe
Henderson were married, naturally
they began housekeeping on River
Street. | say naturally because River
Street and it's tributarial ALLEYS
housed the entire colored population
of the miniature metropolis of Over
ton and it was appropriately desig-
mated as the "Black Belt" by the eau
casian inhabitants of the town. Both
Sally and Joe had been born and
brought up in this sepia section and
their new residence was but a few
doors from their parental domains.
Our scene opens one Sunday morn
ing in the fall of 1925. SALLY hesitates
to disturb her husband who is busv
reading the Sunday News over his
second cup of coffee but she finally
decides to breach a subject which has
been on her mind for the past few
weeks.
Joe" Sally begins, 'T've been
thinking lately-that-well don't Won
think it would be a good idea if we
moved from here and bought a little
mouse OF our own-some place across
town? We've over $1,000 in the hank
now; we really can afford to buy, Won
know" you
Say, that's funny" Joe answers as
ne ne puts down the Sunday paper, "but
i've been thinking of the same thing
~ mean about us buying a home
But what did you say-somethino
ABOUT some place across town? Az
you crazy? What's wrong with River
street? All our folks live here"
=. there's everything wrong with
hlver Street-and you know it, WIN
S SUu re Always saying it's miracle we
eyer y turned out like we did living here
t aI our lives. 1t just isn't a fit en-
T T Tor growing children. And
I Ioe' l thlnk we should move from
L ie[e as soon as possible-before the
n lazy comes. We ought to move to a
Ienned neighborhood where orr chill
or en- can be brought up right"
For Pete's sake, Sally. are Won
Ilazy! You know no colored nerson
mas ever lived outside of River Stre eot'
n,S uont believe they'd let us live anv-
where else If we tried"
NOW that's where YOU'RE wrono
Ice Ice henderson. Everyone thinks we
nave TO live here in River Street h.
oduSe no one has ever tried to get q
9lace outside. Let me tell YOU: I was
living Irving with ELY johnson last weei5
VII that Oakdale village. we'll
we we went IN to look at one of the house
VOL SAFE and the real estate agent was
briS S NICE to us. He even asked me ia
nja Mig you over to look at some of the
Suo oeo, Oh, Joe, they really are the
tbo,,,"a sC houses-painted white and
tbo S re so neat and cheerful-not like
"f stey' dlngy houses around here. "
caII,' o, Sally continued enthusiast
old sly s,n us up to us to pioneer. The
olu Iolks here are all settled and Won
tb boe get them to move awav.
and anGIe III, IT'S up to the young people
bar ~ we vac actually are the young leaders
Stroo4 Why, I'm the only girl on River
coiIoa mat graduated from a Northern
t tbbaese and you're making more monav
n rnall any of the young men-or old
I nn' t0o-around here. Can't Won sec
St Hp, mat we're the logical ones to
River Street?" " gan away from
vor 2Sally, now that's where | think
fbinI We got the wrong idea. If Won
b ba,ilN we are the young leaders around
to linen men 1t should be up to us to trv
,,,l improve conditions here-instead If
90 '. 4n away and letting River Street
20 to the dogs" 'ei ''ree'
tbar "n nan continue this table talk fur-
cms; Except to state that at it's CON
in oS' On sally had succeeded in nersnad
drive "er easlly-inf1uenced husband to
mor move out to Oakdale village Monday
tho IA ana so three weeks later we find
c ne Joe Hendersons domiciled in q
Drive colonial Il cottage on Oakdale
dIJ.olooef-already well populated bv mid
Sill IiaSs whites. For the first weat
fion missed the clamor and CONNIE
nioa.ooI River Street but she was
snro,' u Wlth the cultured peacefulness
founding her new home, 'e''
fro %"iiy expected no friendly overt,,res
livinan el nelghbors as colored person
Ova ns across town was a phenomena j.,
when M NJ so she was truly surprised
naia L Mrs. Ann Lotion. one of her
afttsnoors, paid her a social call ono
bioelJhoon: Ann was an attractiue
wbnu girl around Sally's age and
b men 1t was discovered thew H,era CIV. AZ
moU MOVIE mothers during the same
IL established a bond between