Oral history with Mr. Amzie Moore, Black civil rights worker

              Oral history with Mr. Amzie Moore, Black civil rights worker
This oral history is provided through a cooperative project of University of Southern Mississippi Libraries and USM's Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage.
Funding provided by a National Leadership Grant for Libraries from the Institute for Museum and Library Services
The transcript is presented here for reference purposes only. Interviews in this collection are protected by copyright. PERMISSION TO PUBLISH MUST BE REQUESTED from the Center for Oral History and Cultural Heritage. Please call ( 601) 266- 4574 for more information.
Biography
Mr. Amzie Moore was born September 23rd, 1911, in rural Mississippi, on the county line of Carroll and Grenada Counties. He recalls that " grandfather died at 104. He'd been a slave, and was a very interesting character - couldn't read or write, yet he accumulated more than a section of land and had in the neighborhood of. . . twenty thousand dollars. . . saved when he died."
Mr. Moore's young life was one of poverty, in spite of hard work, accompanied by a driving desire to gain an education. When his mother died in 1925, the parents were separated " so my father came and picked up the two smaller children, and at about fourteen I was on my own."
Even when his family was together he recalls " we were always in trouble with our economy. I think that was the biggest problem because a lot of times we couldn't eat." Educational opportunities were very limited for black children in those days but Amzie Moore successfully completed high school. Although he did not realize his dream of gaining a college education, he was successful in making himself a self- educated man.
In 1935, Mr. Moore took a job with the United States Post Office and served there until his retirement in 1968 - with three years, six months and eighteen days out to serve the country in the military during World War Two. Mr. Moore became an active worker for black civil rights, and concentrated his efforts on the right to vote for Negroes. His major goal has been to create a situation where black people can be economically self- sufficient and have decent lives. But he does not advocate separatism. He believes that if the American society is to survive, and avoid the fate suffered by such old civilizations as the ancient Roman Empire, all people should cooperate regardless of their race or creed.
Mr. Moore lives in retirement in Cleveland, Mississippi, which has been his home for a half century. He is married and the father of several children.
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