Emma V. Milburn Hall (1927 - )
And, every Sunday, we go to church. So, you could go one--no, five, four seats from the front, anywhere after that you could sit. And then, one Sunday, they had a rope. They had a little yellow rope come all the way across, and I didn't, you know, I didn't know. I said,--.
Bea, you know, she was saying, "No, Emma. Come back. Come back. Come back here."
I said, "Why? Why?"
"Come on. Come on. Come on. Come back. Sit back there."
So, we got out of church and she said, "No. That's for the White people."
I said, "What?"
She said, "Yeah."
I said, "Well, okay. Well," I said, "I don't have to go back there no more in that church. If that's for the White people, that's their church. Then, why you all going there? What don't you all go, whatyoucall'em?" I said, "I should have stayed Methodist." I said, "Because we had our own church."
She said, "No, but that don't make no difference." She said, "Just sit. Sit. Sit."
I said, "Okay."
And, I sat. And so, next, whatyoucall'em, Sunday, go back. Same thing--we sat and I just kept going.
So, my daughter, Glenda, Glenda, yeah. I guess she was about 12. Yeah, she was about 12 years old. So, we go to the church and she said, "Mamma." She said, "That's not fair. Why can't we sit in church anywhere we want to?"
I said, "Well, you know, they say you can't sit down."--same thing.
She said, "Umm."
So, we went on in church. She didn't come in right [away]--[I] turned around and looked for her. [chuckle] She sat up in the front seat!
And, whatyacall'em said, my sister-in-law said to me, she said, "Emma, that's something you would have done."
I said, "Yeah. I would have done that." I said, "I would have done that."
But I didn't want her--I didn't want her to see that I would, you know. She wouldn't [inaudible] anything.
I say, "I would have probably done that!"
That's something I would have done. And, she sat there and she sat there and they come in and got behind her.
She said, "Momma, you know what?"
I said, "What?"
"I wouldn't turn around 'cause I know you had your eye on my the whole time!" And, indeed I did! ...
Every Sunday she went. And then, her other sisters started sitting there. They went on. . . . I guess must have been in the 60's. Somebody moved that string. I don't know who took it down, but maybe the priest did.