Black 1

Not many white people have lived in an American black world. I have, twice.

The first time was as an enlisted man in the Army, in Virginia, during Jim Crow.

There were three unusual aspects of life among the black soldiers.

First, whenever I travelled, by car, with a black soldier and his family, we confronted the nightmare of never finding a bathroom for the kids.... other than military bases.

Second, there was a very extensive borrowing and lending service among the black soldiers that began a few days after  payday. Nearly everyone spent their money (often on booze and gambling) and borrowed  from someone else until the next payday.

Third, the entire base operated on a hidden exchange system run by black soldiers. If my company wanted two large turkeys for Thanksgiving, we traded two Jeep tires to another company.

I love the scene.  I also ran the projector on Friday nights when the all black crowd watched black and white porn.