See You In The Field

 (c) 2020 Historian Frederick E. Walton I think for most of us,  the continued racial discord in this country is disturbing and frightening. I felt like we had made great strides from the 1970's to 1990's. What happened? We all know that slavery was abhorrent, in fact many people of my generation "experienced" the horrors of bondage and forced labour first hand . It wasn't meant to be cruel, and the "whip" was often employed sparingly, yet firmly to better educate us on the importance of following the established order and rules. I'm not talking about the plantation, I'm talking about American childhood in the 1950's and 1960's! Were our parents monsters? No! Were the rules of society different than today? You bet! In fact, if I misbehaved in public, I could count on a teacher or someone else's mother whupping my behind when they caught me in the act! If I described the cruel treatment upon my person by a stranger to my parents, I