Oral history interview with Richard Arrington, July 18, 1974
Subtitle: interview A-0001, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)
Contributors: Bass, Jack, interviewer; Southern Oral History Program; University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Documenting the American South (Project); University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library
Edition: Electronic ed.
Publisher: University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill
Published: 2006
Place of publication: [Chapel Hill, N.C.]
Language: eng
Subjects: Interviews; African American politicians; Politics and government; Race relations; Political aspects
Other titles: Interview A-0001, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007); Interview with Richard Arrington, July 18, 1974; Oral histories of the American South.
Description: Richard Arrington, who three years after this interview would become the first African American mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, discusses race and politics in the American South and his nascent political career, which began with a seat on the Birmingham City Council. He describes a city where white elites are very concerned with controlling the kinds of African Americans who enter politics, but where young black politicians are managing to get a foothold in city politics. He hopes that the black presence will continue to increase in Alabama and that African American politicians can set aside their differences.
Notes: Title from menu page (viewed on June 13, 2008).

Interview participants: Richard Arrington, interviewee; Jack Bass, interviewer.

Duration: 00:47:23.

This electronic edition is part of the UNC-CH digital library, Documenting the American South.  It is a part of the collection Oral histories of the American South.

Text encoded by Mike Millner.  Sound recordings digitized by Aaron Smithers.

Text (HTML and XML/TEI source file) and audio (MP3); 2 files: ca. 83.7 kilobytes, 86.8 megabytes.

Original version: Southern Oral History Program Collection, (#4007), Series A, Southern politics, interview A-0001, Manuscripts Department, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Transcribed by Linda Killen. Original transcript: 24 p.

Funding from the Institute for Museum and Library Services supported the electronic publication of this interview.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

System requirements:  Web browser with Javascript enabled and multimedia player.