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Xernona Clayton interview

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@ Atlanta History Center

Merritt, Carole

Description

In this interview, Xernona Clayton discusses her upbringing in Muskogee, Oklahoma; the influence her father had on her perception of being black; and her school teachers as important parts of her growth. She discusses her work in Atlanta, Georgia, during the Civil Rights Movement and her relationship with the Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon in Atlanta, which is her hallmark for directly confronting bigotry and racism. Clayton ends the interview describing how she drove Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to the airport for his flight to Memphis, Tennessee.Xernona Clayton was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, and attended college at Tennessee State in Nashville, Tennessee. She moved to Atlanta, Georgia in 1960 and worked for a federally funded program called the Model Cities Program.
Type:
Video
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This material is protected by copyright law. (Title 17, U.S. Code) Permission for use must be cleared through The Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center. Licensing agreement may be required.
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Record Contributed By

Atlanta History Center

Record Harvested From

Digital Library of Georgia