When I Was a Child, Lillian Smith (excerpt from Killers of the Dream, 1949) 

Read for discussion and analysis an excerpt from Lillian Smiths 1949 book Killers of the Dream. Smith was a white woman growing up in rural Georgia at a time when racism, discrimination, and Jim Crow laws and customs were day-to-day realities. Those realities notwithstanding, she stood against these customs and spoke out against them regularly. Because of this, she received numerous death threats, and she often traveled with a gun in her car.

She became a lifelong advocate for racial equality, gender equality, and economic equality. Smith was widely hated throughout the South because of her efforts to help create a fairer society for all people, not just whites.

In the except from the first chapter of Killers of the DreamWhen I Was a Child she described how bewildered she was because her parents, whom she loved, would treat whites one way (in the name of Christianity) and would then treat Blacks with disdain and disrespect.

• In writing assignment, be sure to incorporate a quote (or quotations) to support the point(s) you are making.

• Please give your essay a title at the top of the pages (centered and in the same size font as the rest of the paper) that reflects the substance of what you have written. When I Was a Child and Killers of the Dream are not appropriate titles for your submissions. Also do not bold, underline, or write your titles in all capital letters.

Writing Prompt

Read the attached excerpt by Lillian Smith that responds to the following:

Discuss one or two of the instances of hurts and the troubles that Smith has referred to and

the effect they have had on individuals as well as society in general

Discuss an example other than race where a type of prejudice negatively affects society?