oohrp's video: Donna Gabriel: Oklahoma Activism in Education in the Civil Rights Movement

Interview Date: 01/31/2020 Interviewer: Autumn Brown Interview Location: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Donna Gabriel talks about her experiences growing up in a segregated African American community in Oklahoma City and attending all-Black schools until forced busing and desegregation of schools in 1973. Gabriel fondly recalls her time at Douglass High School and other all-Black schools and notes the positive experiences and leadership positions available to her. She explains how students continued to self-segregate after integration and how her grades and participation were affected by the difficult merge, but she recognizes that her time at Northwest Classen High School did help prepare her for college and life. Gabriel also discusses the differences in the schools she attended and how integration changed the community dynamic she’d grown up with, and stresses the importance of always remembering those who came before her. This interview was conducted as part of the Oklahoma Activism in Education in the Civil Rights Movement Collection at the OSU Library. For more information on this interview or to view the transcript, visit https://cdm17279.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/activism/id/11/rec/4. To learn more about the collection or the Oklahoma Oral History Research Program, visit http://library.okstate.edu/history/ © Oklahoma State University This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. No permission is required from the Oklahoma State University Library for educational (or classroom) uses. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses, including any form of commercial publication, you need to obtain permission from the Oklahoma State University Library. For more information contact liboh@okstate.edu. Don't forget to like this video and subscribe to our channel!