Author Series: Dr. Helen Benjamin

Dr. Helen Benjamin leads a discussion about How We Got Over Growing up in the Segregated South: A Collection of Narratives by Dr. Benjamin and Jean Nash Johnson. This program is intended for school age children and families.

About the book

Through 24 narratives, How We Got Over captures Black life in compelling accounts of the writers from childhood and teen years, as they prepare to enter the next phase of their lives in a world for which their upbringing may or may not have prepared them.

Born Black and in the middle of the 20th century, they share raw and unfiltered stories, recounting typical racial, social, and economic inequities, injustices, and challenges of the time that Blacks all over the South faced. The storytellers share how they dealt with the challenges. The narratives collectively cover a wide range of childhood stories of despair and triumph, ranging from the resulting fear and trauma of witnessing as young grade schoolers a lynched body hanging from a tree at the nearby community center to discovering, by joining the school band, one’s propensity for music.Further, the damage to self-esteem is seen throughout the narratives from being scoffed for unknowingly sitting in the wrong seat on the city bus to the abhorrence of knowingly having to settle for outdated textbooks from the white school.

Despite the disappointments and struggles, contributors also share how they survived and, in some cases, thrived in the environment. The stories consistently convey the joy and love that contributed to their successes at the time and later in life. They remain hopeful to this day. Their narratives are universal and reflect the human condition.

About Dr. Helen Benjamin

Dr. Benjamin holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Bishop College, and master’s (education) and doctoral degrees (English with a concentration in rhetoric) from Texas Woman’s University, which recognized her as Distinguished Alumna in 2017. In 2019, the American Association of Community Colleges honored her with its Leadership Award in recognition of her contributions to the community college field. Her publications include Harvest from the Vineyard: Lessons Learned from the Vineyard Symposiums (co-author) and The Chocolate Truth: An Anthology of Perspectives from Community College CEOs (co-editor and contributor).

*The first 10 participants will receive a free copy of the book On My Own: A Vision Board Guidebook for Young People by Patrick M. Oliver*

More information on How We Got Over Growing Up in the Segregated South: https://www.howwegotover.org/

More information about Patrick Oliver: https://www.speakloudly.com/patrick-oliver/