LEXINGTON, Ky. — Former students and educators from two of Lexington’s all-Black high schools are taking a trip through time to break down the realities of segregation and more for students at Frederick Douglass High School.
The leaders who were students before Fayette County Public Schools desegregated are now the alumni walking students through what it was like to have to fight for inclusive education and environment. The historic Douglass alumni association’s Virgil M. Covington Jr. is helping bring the efforts together.
“What they're reading in the history books, that we have individuals and the five individuals on stage have experienced it. it’s not something far away, something that they can ask him questions about and find out.” Virgil M. Covington Jr. said about their stories.
Each of the former alumni shared a piece of what it was like for them before and during the transition to integrated schools.
For some, like Helen Case Wade who would be one of the first Black students at Lafayette High School in Lexington, it was more than difficult. She and the group described moments that changed how they viewed their journey. Wade explained an incident in college in which she was the only person of color in a room of over 200 others and was verbally discriminated against for being Black. It's something that stuck with her to this day.
Wade's longtime neighbor and classmate at Douglass, Beverly Benton, said she also felt the pressure of the times before entering college.
Benton said often they felt they were at a disadvantage. Although their teachers were qualified and trained in advanced studies, their schools lacked access to needed materials, class availability and more.
“But the teachers made the difference and so many of us went home to college, and that would not have happened,” Benton explained. It's why she says teachers need to be recognized for their support for students and that she's grateful for their help during a time of separation.
“Had it not been for the teachers there at Douglass High School — so that little segregated school on price road, it was invaluable,” Benton said.
Now that they are a part of Lexington history and as pioneers of integration, the alumni hope to shine a light on the impact of a darker time that might prevent it from repeating itself.