Documenting the American South: Oral Histories of the American South

Collections >> Oral Histories of the American South >> Interview >> Excerpt

Excerpt from

Oral History Interview with Tawana Belinda Wilson-Allen, May 11, 2006. Interview U-0098. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

See Entire Interview >>

Necessity of empowering people to self-advocate

Wilson-Allen articulates the importance of empowering people to control their own issues without an outside group's interference.

About this Excerpt • Citing this Excerpt • Full Text of the Excerpt

About this Excerpt

Interviewer	Elizabeth Gritter
Interviewee	Tawana Belinda Wilson-Allen
Excerpt Length	0:00:46
Start Time	00:29:18
Stop Time	00:30:04
Subjects	Piedmont Industrialization > UNIONS AND WORKPLACE ADVOCACY > Non-Union Advocacy: Group Piedmont Industrialization > WORKING PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES > Culture of Working People Race and Civil Rights > SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVEMENTS > Community Empowerment

Citing this Excerpt

Oral History Interview with Tawana Belinda Wilson-Allen, May 11, 2006. Interview U-0098. 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

ELIZABETH GRITTER:: Did you feel that you were able to make like an impact on elevating their economic status at all?
TAWANA BELINDA WILSON-ALLEN:: I would say as organizers what we do, as direct action organizers we are actually given the tools working with them to give them the tools to work through the system as opposed to an advocacy group. You know what I mean. Just get allservice group that's actually giving them--
ELIZABETH GRITTER:: Right, because you were saying the technical assistance is what you can.
TAWANA BELINDA WILSON-ALLEN:: So if they can run their own issues, issue campaigns and work through the system, knowing who makes the decisions, who holds the power, that kind of thing.