Abstract
The interview with Mary Helen Washington focuses on her childhood and early life in Cleveland, Ohio, her education, and her experiences with segregation. She describes growing up in a working-class Black family, her parents' migration to Ohio, and the importance of neighborhood-based recreation due to limited formal opportunities for Black children at the time. She discusses attending Catholic schools, where she experienced a racial and social divide between her predominantly white academic environment and her Black social life. Washington reflects on her time at Camp Mueller, a summer camp run by the Phillis Wheatley Association, detailing her excitement, the types of activities available, and the social dynamics between different groups of campers. She describes her admiration for the camp's staff but also recounts her attempts to run away. The interview also touches on Cleveland’s racial segregation, particularly in education, employment, and recreation, as well as her family’s outdoor activities and experiences in parks.
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Interviewee
Washington, Mary Helen (interviewee)
Interviewer
Abdullah-Smith, Hazim (interviewer)
Project
Phillis Wheatley Association
Date
12-11-2024
Document Type
Oral History
Duration
34 minutes
Recommended Citation
"Mary Helen Washington interview, 11 December 2024" (2024). Cleveland Regional Oral History Collection. Interview 110010.
https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/crohc000/1363
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License.
