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Reflection: Whose Story Do We See?

In the discussion board, you selected three primary sources from the DigitalNC collection “Jim Crow South: Life in North Carolina, 1930s–1950s” and used them to explore everyday life during the Jim Crow era. For this reflection, you will step back and consider whose experiences we can see in these sources and what they cannot tell us. Primary sources give historians valuable evidence about the past, but every source has limitations. Historians must consider who created a source, whose experiences it represents, and what information may be missing.

Your Task

• Return to the three primary sources you selected for the discussion board.
• Write a reflection of approximately 400–500 words that addresses all three parts below.

PART 1: What Do Your Sources Reveal? — 10 points

Briefly discuss what your three sources reveal about everyday life during the Jim Crow era.

• What do these sources help us understand about the experiences of Black North Carolinians during the 1930s–1950s?

Use specific examples from your three sources.

PART 2: Whose Story Do We See? — 10 points

Think about the perspectives represented in your sources and answer the following question: 

• Whose experiences or perspectives are represented in your sources, and whose perspectives might be missing?

Consider who created the sources, who appears in them, and whose voices may not be included. Explain why this matters when historians study the past.

PART 3: Your Historian's Reflection — 10 points

Finish your reflection by answering:

• What is one important lesson you learned about using primary sources to understand Jim Crow?

Consider both what primary sources can teach us and their limitations. Use your three sources to support your response.

Remember: Your goal is to think like a historian. Pay attention not only to what the sources tell us, but also to whose stories they tell and what they leave out.