Tent City Mini-Session
February 19, 2022
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Fayette County Public Schools Central Administration Building (CAB) is proud to be the host of the annual Tent City exhibit. On February 19, 2022, the Tent City Mini-Session was held at CAB.
Robert Hamburger, author of the 1973 book “Our Portion Of Hell: Fayette County, Tennessee; An Oral History Of The Struggle For Civil Rights” was a guest speaker over Zoom from his home in New York. The book chronicles the plight of oppressed African American citizens living in Fayette County, TN during the 1960's Civil Rights Movement in their own words and shows parallels to struggles that still exist today such as voter registration.
Voter registration was the cornerstone of the existence of Tent City. Tent City was erected due to the eviction of African Americans from land they were sharecroppers on in retaliation for registering to vote. They were then in essence blacklisted and many members of the Fayette County community refused to sell groceries and other basic goods to the black registered voters.
The 2022 children’s book “Evicted! The Struggle for the Right to Vote” by Alice Faye Duncan allows middle school students to examine the history of Tent City. It features a local resident, James Jamerson, and his reflections as a youth on the active participation of his parents in the Civil Rights movement. A fifth grade student, Leah Tate, read the book aloud to the audience. The reading of this book from a current student was a strong reminder that the past and the future are forever intertwined.
Sharon Puryear reflected on stories she was told by her father-in-law about issues he and his family encountered during Tent City and the struggle for Civil Rights. These real, heartfelt memories were a touching reminder of the past.
Tent City remains an important part of the history of Fayette County. We would like to thank the many sponsors of Tent City for their commitment to keeping the exhibit alive: Leadership Fayette, the Town of Somerville, The Bank of Fayette County, Lofties Funeral Home, Somerville Auto Sales, Fayette County Public Schools, and Daphne R. McFerren from The Benjamin L. Hooks Institute of Social Change. If you would be interested in sponsoring the Tent City exhibit next year, please contact Wendell Wainwright at wendell.wainwright@fcsk12.net.
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