Black parents work low-wage jobs Davis discusses his parents'
employment, which was consistent with many interviewees'
descriptions of African Americans' job status in the segregated
South. His mother stayed at home to raise Davis and his siblings
and worked as a maid, and his father worked as a janitor at the
Varsity Theater and a court custodian at the Chapel Hill Tennis
Club. His father's work at the movie theater allowed him and his
siblings a privilege not afforded to most black children: they
could watch movies there. Citing this Excerpt Oral History
Interview with Nate Davis, February 6, 2001. Interview K-0538.
Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007) in the Southern
Oral History Program Collection, Southern Historical Collection,
Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Full Text of the Excerpt RG: What did your mom and dad do for a
living? ND: Well my mom, with that many kids it’s kind of hard
to get away from the house and work a lot, so my mom kind of,
you know, stayed a