Reflections of Dallas Past: Growing up in a divided city

(Special to The Dallas Examiner) – I grew up in Dallas – a “tale of two cities.”& At 7 years old, I was stricken with paralytic polio. I was sent home from the hospital without care. It took my mother’s White employer to insist that I be seen, diagnosed and treated. This was my introduction to the world beyond South Dallas. There would be a number of years that my mother had to navigate a not-so-friendly system to advocate the best possible care for me. While doing this, she also made sure that I didn’t fall behind academically. I can remember being excited to go to the Majestic Theatre to see Gone with the Wind. Of course, we had to sit in the balcony. I also remember being downtown on a hot day. My older sister carried me to the basement at H. L. Greens to get a drink of water from the “colored” fountain. The fountain was broken. My sister looked at me, then at the White salesperson. She walked me to the “White” fountain and said, “Drink.” We both boldly drank from the fountain and left. Like civil rights heroine Rosa Parks, we experienced sitting at the back...