Lucretia F. Edlow
The novel, Children of Crisis, A Study of Courage and Fear by Robert Coles, M.D., will help students to understand ordinary children from the south who found themselves in a place and a time period in which they were forced, although many times by choice, to survive the desegregation of their schools and communities, along with all the struggles that made the new south possible. Dr. Coles, followed children in Louisiana, and Georgia for several school years. In addition, he was faced with strong segregationists who helped him to dispel his own misconceptions about the south and came to regard the region as that of quiet law abiding citizens so long as certain irritations or provocations were not present.
Dr. Coles tried to blend with the people of the sit-in movement. He made it clear, all the while he volunteered to work that he was not only involved in service to them, but a study as well. His aim was to find out how individual minds relate to contemporary change as future history is made. He realized that the people he studied had a destiny to fulfill. The children and parents who were the targets of his studies never realized before hand with what they would be faced in their roles of desegregating the schools. Many students found themselves as stumbling upon the movement, while others sought it out. Segregation as it existed, was a way of life for them and was intensely shared by entire towns and states.
Dr. Coles’ work in the south consisted of children attending desegregated schools. He studied students from three levels. He met with high school students of both races on a weekly basis. Additionally, he held weekly interviews with young children ranging in age from five to eleven, still of both races, and lastly he had periodic interviews with the parents and teachers of all of these children.
He was able to talk with the adolescent youths and their parents and teachers, however he found that the young children were often uninterested in conversation. They were more interested in being on the move and were at times seemingly bored with talking and the expectations of maintaining a conversation. Communication for them was more successfully exhibited through games, drawings, and finger paintings that demonstrated their energy and symbolism.
Ruby was the first southern child to put the crayons and paints to use. At the onset of the relationship with Dr. Coles, Ruby was six years old. Ruby was an example demonstrating Dr. Coles’ theory that a child’s life, his age, family, neighborhood, medical and psychological past, history and intelligence, influences the way in which he or she draws. Racial background additionally affects the way the children draw and emphasizes what that fact means at that time in history for them. It is also the drawings that helped Dr. Coles appreciate his clinical work with adults, as he recalls grown-up southerners of both races remember their experiences as a child. It is interesting to note that their old attitudes may be a difference between their memories and actual feelings they once had, or didn’t have but now claim to have had, years ago.
Dr. Coles and Ruby had to brave daily mobs to attend an almost empty school building. As a result of his long term study with her, he collected over two hundred drawings. Most of the drawings’ topics were chosen by Ruby, while others were specific suggestions or requests.
For as many as four months, Ruby never used brown or black except for the soil or ground and always a layer of green grass covered it. Her drawings always showed a particular pattern, and she always distinguished between white and black people. The white people that she drew were larger and more lifelike, while blacks were smaller with bodies that were more intact. When she drew a white girl that was known to be her own size, she drew her taller with all features present. On the other hand, when Ruby drew herself, she lacked an eye in one drawing and an ear in another. The hands and legs of the white girl were carefully drawn with correct number of toes and fingers. Her own limbs however, or any other black children drawn were without a thumb or a set of toes, or a forefinger would possibly be missing, and have shorter arms or no arms at all.
Other interesting features included the ears of black children which appeared larger than their white counterparts, and even when only one ear was drawn it was very large. At times Ruby’s drawing of blacks contained no mouth or a thin line was drawn. When a white child was drawn, she was more likely to have lips, open mouth and teeth showing. Many times a nose was not drawn for either race, but when drawn on a white child it was a thin orange line.
As regards hair color, and texture, white children were given blonde or yellow hair. Sometimes the hair appeared as the same color as the outline of the face. Many times no hair was drawn on either race.
The first major change in Ruby’s drawings came when she asked to draw her grandfather, her mother’s father. This was the first time her request to draw someone was outside of her home in New Orleans. Her grandfather owned a farm in the Mississippi Delta. She drew the picture of her grandfather with an enthusiasm that was never before exhibited. Ruby’s depiction of her grandfather was that of an enormous black man. As was not done in her previous drawings, his frame took up almost the entire sheet of paper. Not only was his outline brown, but all of his skin was made brown except for a thick black belt around his waist. He had large oval eyes and beautiful yellow colored teeth. His ears were of normal size. The arms were long with large hands and thick legs ended in heavy black boots, which was notably different from the worn shoes or bare feet that was usually drawn.
Ruby enthusiastically indicated that her grandfather owned his own farm and how he had come home tired but happy, to have his supper. Ruby’s father on the other hand was unemployed, and had been fired because his daughter was going to one particular school rather than another. He suffered a noticeable loss of appetite that was talked about by the entire family. When Ruby was asked why she drew her grandfather, she could not think of any specific reason. She did however, admit that she would love to live on a farm and that her daddy was the strongest man that could be found.
It was obvious that Ruby was ready to talk about her fears and her wish for escape. Dr. Coles and she had been working together for over two years at this point. She mentioned her impatience with the mobs and her tiredness of their persistence.
It took Ruby several more months to paint a black person that was not distorted. Dr. Coles was interested in finding out if the reason she drew the distorted figures was because she was intimidated by his presence as a white man, but later found that pictures she drew before desegregation showed the same pattern. He was convinced that the pictures she drew reflected a larger truth about her feelings
When Dr. Coles thought she was ready he made an observation about her drawings. He indicated that her drawings were more alive and the people were made more accurately shown. Ruby indicated that she was older and that she could see and draw better. Dr. Coles suggested that she was able to draw black people differently which was in contrast to the distortions noted in the drawings of her younger years. Ruby reflected on the question and told him that the troubles she faced going to school had enabled her to learn more about her people. She also said that she probably would have eventually come to the same place as she got older, since she surely would see herself and the white children and realize the differences that existed. Even though people would try to pretend the differences didn’t exist, she had to say to herself that black people were her own people and she should be proud rather than ashamed.
Ruby’s teacher had to write comments on her report card and pondered what she would say. Even though she always told her students that things would eventually get back to normal, she knew things would never be the same. She realized that her pupil had gone through a great deal and had emerged with an understanding and worldliness, that is probably rare in elementary school children, especially those in such sheltered situations.
Another case study revolved around Jimmie, a classmate of Ruby. Jimmie, one of only three children in the class, was a lively white child with freckles and blonde hair that tended to fall over his forehead. Ruby had drawn several pictures of him that certainly did not ignore his hair and eyes. She was troubled by his behavior as she referred to him as a good boy at times.
He was at times, generous and attentive, but could in a flash turn on her, specifically, when he remembered that she was black. He could be bad when he wanted his way but his badness was different when he realized what color Ruby was. He would alternate between saying bad things, being scared of her and threatening to leave and not return, although he always did. Then he would forget for a period and remember again.
Jimmie’s parents were not able to establish a clear-cut set of attitudes toward black people. If there were riots and they thought going to school would be dangerous, they kept Jimmie at home. Unlike other parents who secretly sent their children through rear doors or side doors, Jimmies’ parents sent him to school when they thought it was safe, in an openly manner. Dr. Coles first thought of Jimmie as Ruby’s hope since his parents sent him to school in spite of Ruby, wanting him to not waste time by learning nothing. He later learned that Jimmie was instructed by his mother to stay away from Ruby, which he tried to do. He would remember his instructions, then seconds later ask her to join him in a game.
Jimmie’s drawings made his feeling about blacks clear. He either thought they were related to animals or because of the color of their skin were dirty human beings, and dangerous as well. Dr. Coles didn’t think that Ruby realized the amount of fear she inspired in Jimmie nor did Jimmie know how much Ruby tried to portray herself with his features and coloring, so as not to be afraid of him. Jimmie was asked to draw his school before Ruby attended and the result was quite striking. There was quite a bit of detail, including stucco bricks, nice green grass, no chimneys, and flowers were in abundance. Subsequent pictures were just as nice which showed a fondness for landscapes.
When Jimmie was asked to draw a picture of Ruby, he was obviously dismayed and said that he couldn’t. His reason was as simple as he said that he didn’t know what she looked like since he never looked at her closely if he could help it. He further indicated that when he did look at her, it was by accident. He did however say he had had a few glimpses of her and would try to draw her. In contrast to his drawings with distinct landscapes, Jimmie drew Ruby in a midst of a stretch of grass, where he placed her with no feet on a barren, sandy piece of land. She was made small though her arms were larger than he normally drew. She had a thin mouth and pinpoint eyes. Her hair was frizzy black and inappropriately long. She was brown-black, unlike Ruby’s medium complexion.
When asked what she was doing in the picture, Jimmie thought and indicated she was drinking a coke and eating candy or something. He said that his mother said this was what blacks did all day and was the reason they had rotting teeth. Jimmie continued to draw her as a speck of brown or caricature. It was obvious that he had trouble picturing her, he revealed that he didn’t know what she looked like, that she was funny.
Additionally Jimmie made a distinction between classroom and the school playground. As was the custom in New Orleans for generations, children of all races were allowed to play together on the playground in and around the city, but the classroom was different and Ruby was usually placed on the playground outside of the school in his drawings.
In time Jimmie drew pictures locating Ruby inside the building and eventually she became an individual. She began to look more human, rather than a rodent or fallen leaf. After a year, Jimmie would even give credence to the pretty clothes he gave to others girls.
His parents were changing also, from referring to Ruby as a “nigger” to calling her “nigra”. At first, they wanted no mention of her name. This changed as they began asking about her schoolwork and overall behavior.
Jimmie began to see her as an individual but no matter how much he tried to ignore her or pretend she didn’t exist, he never overlooked the differences her presence made to his school. When drawing her house, although it was in very close proximity to his own he made sure hers was distinctively different. He put forth a lot of effort in drawing his house while hers was some lines hastily sketched and perpendicular to one another. He furnished his house and those of his neighbors, but not Ruby’s and furthermore he denied them the sun and grass.
One day he began a drawing with a store that he said Ruby visited daily. In his conversation with Dr. Coles, he noted that Ruby had gone to the store the previous day and bought potato chips which she shared with the class. After completing the store, he moved to the house, where he used red instead of brown, and painted with slow broad strokes, rather than the hasty lines previously used. In comparing the new picture with the bridge being drawn by Dr. Coles, Jimmie indicated that he wanted to make the house as strong as the bridge so that it would not fall and no one would be hurt.
The pictures that both Ruby and Jimmie drew or painted reflected the lives each of them lived. In following two-score children like them over a period of four years, Dr. Coles was certain that there were certain patterns that existed in the drawings of children, such as style, proportions and preoccupations from year to year.
The issue of skin color affects children at a very young age, usually before school attendance begins. Even if the children are unable to talk about it their drawings indicate that the subject is definitely on their minds. The racial crisis, witnessed by Ruby and Jimmie served to draw them together by giving them common experiences and a sharing of difficult times together.
Black children of elementary school age don’t reflect on why they are black, or what that fact means for their future. They will often try to deny this fact or exuberantly accept it, indicating their confusion and troubled thoughts.
Whether discussing Ruby or Jimmie or Johnny or any other children in the book, it is the job of the teacher to inspire students to have racial pride and self worth. The students in this book shared in difficult struggles and common experiences to rise up against tremendous odds with courage and fear, and realize the privileges afforded them through all the suffering of children unlike themselves, and the psychological adaptations they accomplished as a result.
