Professor Sabir's Posse

Essence Mercer
02/13/2008
English 201a 10:00


Reaction to Ouida Barnett Atkins

Ouida Barnett is the daughter of former Mississippi governor Ross Barnett Sr. Barnett Sr. was a man that deeply believed in segregation. He announced that Mississippi would not “drink from a cup of genocide” (pg.131) He did not want the integration to happen and so he decided to bock the entrance of a black student into the University even though that it had been ordered to allow him entrance. A riot sparked, three people were killed and hundreds injured. During all of this Ouida stood by her father on the matter. All she had ever known was segregation and she also believed in what her parents believed in.

As Ouida became older her views stared to change on segregation. She had always played with black kids when her father went to go and check on his crops. She loved it and even was able to go inside of their houses. She ended up getting married and having children with a respectable lawyer. Their marriage was toxic and so they divorced. Once she was able to get out of the marriage and raise the children, she took off and explored the world. She saw many things that she had never seen before and also earned her masters degree. Living in this new light invited new acquaintances into her live. They brought less segregationist and more liberal views to the table. As a result she began to change and see the world in a new light. The church that she had been deeply attached to had to be given up. She felt that they contradicted a lot of what they said and did.

She began teaching again and was offered a job at an all black high school. She accepted the job and never told anyone her history. One day a reporter decided to do a report on Barnett and a Civil rights legend of Mississippi, Bob Moses.(138) When the school found out about her past they still accepted her. This was very dear to her.

To this day she will not call her father a racist. He was just a man that believed in segregation because that was all that he knew.(141) He was a prominent attorney as well who’s majority of clientele was black and he always treated them fairly.
 

Theresa Smith
February 11, 2008

- Title
Ouida Barnett Atkins
This interview was written about a white female by the name of Ouida Barnett Atkins who was born on September 4, 1933 in Jackson Mississippi. Ross Barnett Sr., a Segregationist, was Ouinda’s father who started putting demands on her at an early age. Ouinda was born a lefty in which her father was not proud of. Her dad wanted to change her writing style since she was four years old. Ross would tie Ouida’s left hand to her back so that she could not use it. Ross assumed that teachers did not know how to teach young children to write with their right hand so he forced her to write with her right hand.
One late evening while she was resting, Ouida overheard her mother and father discussing the Supreme Court Impending Brown versus Board of Education decision to allow black and white kids to attend schools together. Ouida did not understand segregation. She never combed her own hair, because she had a black maid Essie, who was the one who combed her hair, and attended all her needs. Ouinda also had black playmates. Essie dined out with the family on certain occasions and was told by several owners she could not sit with the white people; and Ouida’s family accommodated Essie and moved so the owner would not continue to disturb their meal.
During the 1960’s, Ross Sr. with his forehead slant back ran for governor he vowed to up hold segregation in Mississippi no matter the cost. Ross once mentioned, “God made black people different so they would be punished”. Barnett started a riot in the 60’s when he blocked James Meredith from entering the University of Mississippi. Ross argued that he did not have any intention on starting the riot. Ouida supported her father until she got older. Barnett started the first riot at the University causing two fatalities and 88 injuries.
Ouida married Aylmer Buford Atkins Jr. a lawyer, when she was twenty three. Ross Atkins and Ouida have five children together Ross Atkins was angry at the Civil Rights Movement for allowing blacks and white to attend schools together. Atkins was so upset he helped to open an academy for parents who did not want there kids to attend class with black kids. Ross Atkins later died in 1976. Ouida got her first job at the academy as a school teacher, and in 1992 Ouida took another job as a substitute teacher in the poorest part of Mississippi, she enjoyed teaching. Ouida began her passion for traveling after her husband died. She visited Italy, Europe, and Russia; she got her Master’s degree in World History and had plenty of friends who were gays, rich black people, musicians, and coaches. She had no preference because she felt people are equal in different ways. Ouida believed that people around the world have different views on things.
Circumstances changed in 1999 a news reporter said Ouida was teaching at Lanier School around a Civil Rights Leader who was her father enemy. The reporter said Ouida took the position to liberate herself from stifling. Ouida proclaimed that teaching made her feel young; Ouida assumed that the reporter was putting her down because of her father’s background. She felt as if it would cause harm to her career but it did not. The people at the school accepted her for who she was and they also felt was a challenge not to follow in her father foot steps.

10:58 AM
 

Erik Del Nero
2/18/08
English 201 B




Quida Barnett
Quida is the daughter of a man who believed in segregation. When she was little people and including her father forced her father to write right-handed. The reason they did that is because they didn’t know how to teach left-handers at the time. Being left-handed was like a curse during this time period. I think being left-handed is cool because I am left-handed.
Quida father was Ross Barnett Sr. he was the governor of Mississippi. When her father made decision about segregation she just agreed. Segregation is the only thing that she knew as a child. Segregation is something that most people took for granted, because they thought that is how life was supposed to be.
Today Quida teaches at an all-black high school. The school was to be considered one of the toughest schools in Jackson, Mississippi. As of 1960 when her father was running for governor he said he would do everything in his power to uphold segregation no matter what the cost. Segregationist made a lot of phone calls to her father to give him support on the issue at hand.
Quida was born in Jackson, Mississippi on September 1933. She was in elementary school when she got her first lesson on segregation. She thought it would be fun to go to the schools with the black kids, but as soon as her father heard that he quickly dismissed her. Blacks lived pretty close to whites in the south, but in the north they did not which seemed to work a whole lot better. As riots broke out violence became a huge issue on segregation. People thought if blacks and whites went to the same schools the schools would crumble.
At the age of twenty-three she married a man named Aylmer Buford Atkins. He was seventeen years older than her which was ok for that era, but would be outrages for this era. The two of them ended up having five children. The man she married was a huge racist. After the death of her husband in 1976 she decided to go to school and earn her master in ancient world history. She began subbing for a friend she had at a public school in Jackson. A year or two later she became a full time teacher at the high school.
Overall the story is very touching. She dealt with racism all her life. We got to see two points of view of the story.
 

Chesi Brown
February 18, 2008
English 201B


Reaction of Quida Barnett Atkins


Quida Barnett Atkins and father Ross Barnett Sr. the choices Ms. Atkins made. Despites her fathers, and the changes she made and why.

Quida Barnett Atkins is the daughter of Ross Barnett Sr. a Mississippi governor, who was a segregationist. His focus in the sixty’s were to make sure black and white never united as one. His objective was to make sure that blacks never attended the same schools as whites, and too mainly to make sure white were superior to blacks. Quida says: “I was taught when I was young that they were not as smart as we were.”(pg134) Mr. Barnett was taught that blacks were never to feel equal and did his best to make sure white received as better eduation then blacks and a better life.

Quida Barnet Atkins, who was married, and conceived five children, An Eventually earned a masters degree in ancient world history. She love’s to travel and meet new people. Which she pick up from her father, she says: “He taught her to love being around different people.’ My fathers had so many different friends (pg 136). She enjoys meet different people. Whether, their culture or sexuality. She appreciates them and calls them her friends. She love’s learning and enjoys the teaching. She admits when she was a child was aware of her father job and didn’t quite now how to tell him how she felt.
With all this in mind Ms. Atkins is now a strong believer she as decided to make her own decisions, and has chosen to do what make her self happy not her father. She is now currently teaching at a public school by the name of Lanier which is mainly an all black attends school in a real poor area.

Despite the way her father feels or the role he played. Ms. Atkins is doing things her way and is now happier than ever. Her segregation beliefs have now changed. With her new outlook on people, her new friends, and job she is now enjoying what she do.
When growing up in a house or a mansion as a daughter of segregationist fathers, there are so misleading thing that can occur. With the option to learning there are so many doors that can open your way of thinking and your views. Quida Barnett Atkins is now enjoying her life in her on way of thinking. She doesn’t feel know guilt from her past nor does her father. The world is a learning process and that what we as people are her to do. Learn thing that we have know answer to and teach thing to others that we are sure of. Today Ms. Atkins is now loving her job and accepting people for who they are. She is now fully aware that she is just as equal as everyone ells.
 

Chad Doyle
201A Response

Title: Ouida Barnett Atkins

The story was about a woman named Ouida Barneett Atkins whoes father was a racist man. She grew up during a period of segregation and was brought up by her parents to have the same beliefs as they had towards segregation. Her father was Ross Barnett Atkins Sr. He was the governor of Missisippi during that time. He was a very outspoken segregationist and had a very negative outlook on life. Ouida, on the other hand, had very differents feelings about her father's views and strange antics. On September 30, 1962, Ouida's father started a riot due to his firm beliefs on segregation and tried to challenge the government. When Ouida was growing up, she never shared her questions on why she couldn't attend schools with black children. She never openly questioned her father either. "In 1999, a newspaper reporter wrote a story on her new career." (pg. 138) She now teaches at a Lanier High school. This is the same school that Bob Moses, a former civil rights legend who stood against her father, now teaches.
 

Ewa Dobrzynska
English 201B (10-12)
Ouida Barnett Atkins is the only daughter of former Mississippi governor Ross Barnett Sr., the man who was a segregationist. When Ouida was four her father tied her left hand to break her habit of being left-handed. He told her that nothing is for left-handed and teachers do not know how to teach them write. During the riot Ouida supported her father in decision about segregation. She grew up in house full of black servers and that was everything she knew about it. She said:”I never had to brush my hair”(pg.131) Segregation was obvious thing for white people and what Ouida could know about it as a little girl. She grew up in her father’s ideas of segregations; his objectives to not allow bring black and white children together at schools.

Now Ouida teaches in all-black public high school in one of the toughest sections of Jackson, Mississippi. She made new friends and as older and more experienced woman she start change her idea about segregation. She has never thought about black people as worst. Now when she has a chance to meet new people she realized that Negro is not more stupid then she was. She made a great friendship with black. She was seeing a nice young man, who told her to quit her job or stop seeing him- she stop seeing him. She become a wonderful person and against her father rights she did what she thought was right.
Ouida loves her life and what she is doing now. She is very open-minded for people. She change her opinion of blacks being not as smart as white. Everybody is equal. Ouida Akins had a little friend Essie. Once the hotel manager did not let Essie eat with them in the table because she was black. Everybody rather go to the kitchen with Essie then live her eat alone. That a great example of being equal. Nowone should be treated different just because looks diffternt.
 

Kay Kaunda
english 201b
10-12

In ‘Quida Barnett Atkins, Daughter of Ross Barnett sr’ Ross Barnett believed in segregation and that black people were not equal to white people. He once said ‘the negro is different because god made him different to punish him’ (133) Ross Barnett felt so strongly about keeping the segregation that he tried to stop James Meredith admission to Ole Miss, which resulted to a mob of 2,000 white people and 188 people were injured. When he realizes how bad it was he explains that ‘somebody has doubled-crossed me’ (133) The riots had really affected him with his ‘hands shaking’.

When Quida was younger she had always followed her parent’s views and had never questioned them. When she began to get older her views on the world began to change. Even after the riots she still stood behind her father’s views as she said ‘I grew up that way’ (134) for her views to change she first had to get away from a bad marriage. When her marriage finally ended she began travelling meeting new people. This also had an effect on her children with her son Ross Atkins saying ‘It was definitely good for us kids, good not to be influenced by angry white men’ (136) This was good for her children so that they would not have the same views as her ex husband and her father. Thought after all what her father had done she never classes him as a racist. Through she only says positive things about her father. ‘He was always telling jokes and having fun. He was fun to be around’ (137).

The story shows that people’s views can be changed over time. Thought both Quida and Ross Barnett believed in segregation, other time when associating with people from difference races made them change their view.
 

English 201, 10-12

In “Ouida Barnett Atkins: Daughter of Ross Barnett Sr.”, I encountered a child of the segregationist leader who ignited a riot in 1962 when he blocked the admission of a black man to the University of Mississippi. Ouida was born in the segregated world, and later, she transformed to a person who works on a high school that is located in one of the poorest black neighborhoods in Jackson. From her life story, I learned that how people easily think the environment that surrounded them as a truth and easily accept it.

In the essay, when she was describing how the segregationist beliefs ruled over her former life, Ouida said, “When you’re taught something growing up, you take it for granted that that’s the truth. It’s the hard to get it out of your mind”(140). She had lived in the world that her father and the White superior life created, and the world was all and the only truth she knew to the point she transformed. She didn’t regard blacks as equal human being even she grew up with black playmate, and genuine affection built between them. On the other hand, many Black people in the South believed they were inferior people than White because of that they were taught and treated by White like that. Based on what they learned from their environment, both of them were cognized each other as a different level of human being.

The author closed the story with the daughter of the segregationist, Ouida’s refusal to live according to her father’s view of the world. However, when I finish reading this story, Ouida and her brother’s viewpoint about their father made me ponder on the relationship her father made with black people. What I thought was if Ross Barnett Sr. preserved segregation and was a white supremacist, though he had had affection with Black people and tried to be a fair lawyer for them, their [he and blacks] relationship couldn’t be a relationship between equal human being. That affection, Ross Barnett Sr. who preserved segregation had toward Black people, may feed the inferior people who hunger for today’s need, but finally, it may lead them to lose the right of equal human being since the affection blinds them to see his segregated mind, the truth.
 

Ashley Dorsett
2/19/2008
ENG 201B 1-3
MS.SABIR

Oudia Barnett Atkins, is the daughter of former Mississippi governor Ross Barnett Sr. Barnett was a segregationist who sparked an armed insurrection against the federal government. In 1962 he ignited a riot so that James Meredith a African American male could not apply to The University of Mississippi.
Through all of this Oudia supported her father because her parents made her believe that segregation was right. As Oudia stated “ I never had to brush my own hair”. P(131) meaning that that's all black people were worthy of being were servants. As Oudia got older her views changed, she thought her fathers views were tying her down.
Eventually she married a lawyer Aylmer Buford Atkins, they had 5 children but their marriage didn't last to long because he had a drinking problem, he even helped create an all-white private academy for parents who didn't want their children to attend school with black kids.
Later on she became a Presbyterian but began wondering why they can send missionaries to Africa, but refused to serve blacks in their hometown. Oudia started teaching at an all black school, but nobody ever knew who she was. Until this day she will not admit what her father did was wrong, but she is fully aware of everyone being equal.
 

Essence Mercer
English 201a 10-12
02/19/2008


Reaction to Ewa Dobrzynska’s paper

I felt that Ewa did a wonderful job of explaining the article in whole. I enjoyed reading her paper and I feel that it hit all major points.
 

Carmen Truong
English 201
Sabir 10-12
Ouida (Wee-da) was born in Jackson, Mississippi on September 4, 1933. Ouida is the daughter of Ross Barnett who is a former Mississippi governor, and a segregation belief. When Ouida was four years old, Barnett tied Ouida left hand to the back, and was told not to use with the left hand because nothing was made out of left hand and teachers don’t know how to teach left handed people. Even though Ouida was told to do so, she would still pick up things with left hand.
Barnett believes in segregation so much that he doesn’t like his daughter being with black people. “Barnett made no attempt to conceal his opinion of black people, frequently calling them “niggers” and making them the butt of jokes.” He stated, “The negro is different because God made him different to punish him.” Ouida always supports her father. After she grew up and married at the age of 23, she had 5 children. Their marriage was bad, she later left him and he died in 1976. She then raised her 5 children alone. When she moved back to Jackson, she have a job, people found out who she was didn’t like her father because what he done. But they accept her.
She later met many friends and thought differently about everything. She is not happy living with the world surrounded by segregation. Because of Ouida’s father is a segregation beliefs, she doesn’t think her father is wrong and she doesn’t blame him at all. Barnett later died in 1987, “he refused to apologize for his past. I didn’t make any mistakes, I don’t think of a thing I’d have done different.” (pg.142) I think Ouida’s father is a really racist person and doesn’t seems to think he’s wrong.
 

Eng 201A 1-3

Ouida Barnett Atkins is the only daughter of former Mississippi governor Ross Barnett Sr. Ouida was born in part of the South’s silent majority so she enjoyed and accepted advantage of her life without questioning. “We never protested. We never questioned anything. We went along and did what we were supposed to do. We just took it for granted that segregation was the way it was supposed to be.” (131) As she said, when she was young she grew up with black playmates and she never had to brush her own hair. Also she wanted to go to school with black kids. She was just innocent kid.
But Ouida’s father [Ross Barnett Sr.] couldn’t eliminate background of white society and position of governor. He truly believed whites and blacks are meant to be segregated. He said “The Negro is different because God made him different to punish him. His forehead slants back, his nose is different. His lips are different. And his color is sure different.” (133) He was segregationist who sparked an armed insurrection against the federal government. He blocked the admission of James Meredith, a black man, to the University of Mississippi in 1962.
This ‘Ole Miss’ made her to open the eyes to the world. She cleared off her bad marriage and she traveled many countries to enrich her life and met many people and became open minded person. She earned a master’s in ancient world history. After her kids were all grown up she moved back to Jackson. “Today, Ouida teaches at an all-black inner-city public high school in one of the toughest sections of Jackson, Mississippi.” (132) This statement is so impressed to me. I think she is very brave woman even though she is a daughter of segregationist she is brave enough to live with what she realized and learned. She tried not to live in the past. She tried to look forward.
Until this day, she doesn’t believe her father was segregationist because she thinks her father lived like what normal white people lived back then and other then few incidents, her father treated black people fairly.
 

Sophia Andrews


Ouida Barnett Atkins was the daughter of a man who did not believe in the equality of blacks an whites. Her fathers name was Ross Barnett. Ouida was very much influenced by her fathers views, she says it was all she new. She grew up during segregation and never having to have to do things on her own such as brush her own hair. She grew up with black servants left and right, as well as a very pampered life of debutante balls and etc.

The views of her father only held her down for so long as Ouida grew older she began to find her own definition to life, and she began to develop her own beliefs, and segregation, and brutality towards blacks was not one of them. She “concluded that her fathers beliefs ere tying her down” (pg 131) and even when she decided to break away from her father and his morals, she till spent about six years after that trying to break free from what her parents wanted her to believe.

Ouida now teaches at an inner city all black public high school, so its more then obvious that she has found her own definition, and morality that was not lead by her father.
She spent enough of her younger years not asking questions and just going with the flow of how things were told to her to be. As she grew older
 

Javier Chavez
English 201B 1-3pm

Quida Barnett Atkins grew up with a father who was a segregationist, and she was also raised that way. Although she was surrounded by her fathers views of the world, it didn't stop her from being her own person. “But she eventually concluded that her father’s views were tying her down. She reputed his segregationist beliefs, even as old friends deserted her.”(p.131) Even when Quida was a child she wanted to go to school with black children but her father just said that she didn't know what she was talking about.

The turning point for Quida was the riots that her father Ross Barnett Sr. sparked. The riots happened because Barnett Sr. declined admission to James Meredith, who wanted to attend school at University of Mississippi. President Kennedy had to send the National Guard to the University where they were attacked by 2,000 white people.(p.133) The end result was two deaths and 188 injured. Quida was shocked from the riots, “‘I never thought any violence would happen at all’ she said.”(p.133)
Although Quida witnessed much racism and segregation, she had her own personal problems to face. She had a bad marriage, which she eventually separated from her husband and was left with five kids the raise.

Quida would eventually end up teaching a high school were the majority of the student body is black. It was also in one of the worst neighborhoods in jackson so that spoke a lot about Quida’s character. At that same school civil rights legend Bob Moses also teaches, which is ironic. Quida says that her family taught her to look to the future and not the past. Although her past and relationship with her family have been looked at racist by some, she still looks toward the future.(p.142)