If you’re looking for a book to give somebody or yourself, I highly recommend The Crimson and Gold, Mark Clegg’s account of school (and football) integration in Athens, published by The University of Georgia Press. The book is in fact a short history of modern Athens, and, because Clegg interviewed so many people, it is rich in eyewitness recollections that convey the immediacy you get when you run into somebody downtown and start reconstructing memories.
Clegg, who spent four years growing up in Athens while his father was a high school football referee, enjoyed the Y and the creeks and woods that still surrounded the town, and he spent a lot of Friday nights hanging around Death Valley, watching the Athens High Trojans perform.
The integration of the two high schools—Burney-Harris and Athens High—had a high impact on the Black community and the white community that supported both. The Black community rightly suspected that their school would be subsumed into the white school. Burney-Harris, named for two legendary local Black educators, was the center of the Athens Black community, the scene of gatherings of all kinds during a time when other public spaces were not open to Black citizens. And the Burney-Harris football team, the Yellow Jackets, was the heavily supported pride of the Black community. Thus, the impending school merger encountered strong resistance among Black students and the Black community at large, exacerbated by a racist football coach while two groups of boys tried to figure out how to play as a team.
The Crimson and Gold (reflecting the uniform colors of the combined teams—crimson from Athens High and gold from Burney Harris) is a masterful depiction of Athens and its two high schools and two communities as they existed in 1970, and the focus on football humanizes what could have been a dry sociological treatise. The book is both highly readable and meticulously documented. Because he spotted me as a source who was around at the time, I know how obsessively Clegg chased down details and how constantly he checked back to verify information. His acknowledgements read like a who’s who full of the names of people we all know or have heard a lot about—athletes, coaches, educators, students, politicians, business people—all caught up in a pivotal time with repercussions still resonating today.
American at Long Last
For those who haven’t already heard the news, we are proud to announce that Hans-Peter Dietrich became an American citizen on Dec. 9 after 37 years of trying. Who is Hans-Peter, you may ask, and why did it take him so long?
If you lived in Athens during the latter part of the 20th century and the earlier part of the 21st, you would know Hans-Peter. He came here from Germany in 1987 as a graduate student and instructor at the university, and was quickly drawn into Athens, especially the music scene, which he loved. When a friend of his developed mental problems, Hans-Peter sought a way to help her, and he organized the Mental Health Benefit, which under his gentle but persistent guidance grew into an annual outpouring of music and art that raised real money for mental health, and that experience made him a natural to be instrumental in the founding of Nuçi’s Space.
Meanwhile, Hans-Peter’s efforts to obtain a work permit were sidetracked by bad advice from his lawyer. He was forced to return to Germany but eventually was able to return because of a job in Atlanta, where he has lived and married and continued trying to earn citizenship, only to be derailed again by a change in German law that has finally been rectified.
We all used to scratch our heads and bemoan the fact that someone as well qualified and committed to our country as Hans-Peter should be denied citizenship. His persistence and determination that have always characterized Hans-Peter have finally paid off for him and for us and for our country. He was in Athens last week taking a grinning victory lap, displaying his hard-earned, well deserved certificate of naturalization. It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy!
Like what you just read? Support Flagpole by making a donation today. Every dollar you give helps fund our ongoing mission to provide Athens with quality, independent journalism.
