I did not know him but have thought of him and his death in 1965 often over the years. I grieve for him and what our nation has become since 1865. I have now read James Baldwin, I was afraid to in 1965. Black lives matter.
Thanks Peter for your remembrance of Perry Washington. I knew him from Roosevelt Jr. High and Oakland High. He was a track star at both schools. The person responsible for Perry's death (was also a student at Roosevelt and Oakland High) had severe mental health issues, and contiuously expressed his regret, guilt and remorse for his acts. I especially appreciate your references to the systemic racism that exists in this country. I believe because OHS students of our era had the exposure to so many different cultures that we have an obligation to continue this dialogue..........and James Baldwin was ALWAYS a leader in that arena!
Yes I knew Perry, well he used to call me? Hey Tuck where you headed, I'd say nowhere? He said "me Too" later ! Yes I will take minute or two, and reflect . Thanks Jim Tucker
I had gym class with Perry and his murderer George. They were the BEST of friends. Until something Perry did that caused George to say in gym class ... "Perry, they're going to read about it in the papers."
I'll never forget that statment. No matter who a person might be to you like Perry & George ... somethings people say in earnest ... HEED their statement / warning!!! It just might save your life to be better prepared.
Perry's life mattered ... It wasn't taken in a race issue ... both were Black young men. I'm thankful & so appreciative looking back over my life growing up in Oakland and living in many areas of Oakland. It was pretty much race free era. Some name calling etc ... but nothing like many troubled areas of America. Looking back my Black mother wasn't a fan of MLK. 24 hr News wasn't what it is today. She was born in Alameda, as our family has been in Oakland more than 110 yr's.
There is no perfect peaceful place in the world. For America it's race, India class isues, Africa race & religion issues, China & Russia ideology. This is the saga of man's humanity on earth.
The High School student that killed Perry Washington's name was George. We called him crazy George. He was always begging for pennys, that seemed so silly but he was a great guy. He didn't kill Mr Washington on a whim. Mr Washington could be quite threatening at times. The reason i know this is because Mr Washingtons girlfriend was also a friend of mine. I can't say she had eyes for me but i know certainly that i had no eyes for her other than she was nice to me as were many people nice to me at school. One day she stopped to talk to me on the side of the inside steps by the door. Mr Perry came by and asked me what the fluke was i doing talking to his girlfriend, scared me half to death. He looked at me like he would kill me. You better believe i ran from his girlfriend after that and him also, lol. I could see how Mr Perry could have scared Mr George in the same way to the point that Mr George feared for his life, no one knows the facts. Mr George probably saw no way out except to stab Mr Perry. Even though Mr Washington was a great athlete i must admit i felt relieved when i found out he had died, i truly believed that my life was at stake. Ironically i live on the Oakland Berkeley border and Mr George lived right around the corner from me on Shattuck and Alcatraz for years after he was released from jail. I don't see him anymore so i assume he died. Mr George did not have a killers heart. Mr George was slightly autistic.
I respect everyone's point of view. I assume that both Perry and George were under a lot of pressure. Had Perry not been killed then, in a much better world, both young men could have been successful. Sadly the civil rights movement was brutally suppressed and we live in a far worse world.
Has anyone else watched the Amazon prime documentary I Am Not Your Negro?
There were a lot of potentially great Black atheletes from Oakland High that never got a chance because of adverse racism. Class of 65 John Kincaid was one of them. John should have been a wide reciever for a NFL team. He developed severe mental problems because he was never acclimated to White society and was found dead in a train box car. Over 75 percent of the African American males who graduated or didn't graduate from Oakland High never got a shot at anything. Black culture had been so isolated from White academic life starting from infancy. Unless you were absolutely lucky to have had a professional father and or mother a young Black Boy had several different types of obstacles preventing him from excelling intellectually period. Black mothers had there hands full trying to convince their childern to prepare for college. Black fathers were obselete in those days because many of them were stressed out from not being able to find solid income tand had to abandon their families. It became more about your mothers word verses that of your peers as to what to believe moving forward in society. Often times the peer pressure would win out. You could forget about landing a scholarship for athelitics or academics to any major college. You had a better chance of either going to prison on trumped up charges or becoming a janitor or security guard for some govermental agency. I was the only Black in my hang out group that made it to Cal Berkeley. The reason i made it to Cal had nothing to do with Oakland High. My talent is what allowed me to find my way. After High School i became a Black Hippy musician who lived and played in a all White Berkeley band that included world famous guitarist Steve Miller and musicians that formed the Country Joe and the Fish Band. I was thrust completely into a White world where as before i hung out with my Black friends on 13th ave in east Oakland. Being the only Black on a completely White scene taught me a awful lot. Some of the guys in the band were Berkeley students working on their masters degrees. After living in a house with my White band mates i figured hell if they could go to Cal maybe i could go too so i went to Merritt College for two years earning a 3.4 and then i transferred to Cal. I was the only one of my High School friends that accomplished this. Then something unheard of happened and i got a recording contract with CBS records in New York and dropped out of Cal with one quarter semester to go, with a 3.0. Of course things started slowly changing with the advent of the civil Rights movement. Society begin to change a lot for the good of us all. But that came too late for a lot of the black men i grew up with.
It was so unfortunate that I happened to be standing only approximately 20 feet away when the incident occurred. It has left an indelible imprint on my mind all these years. I use to have dialog with both George and Perry, I had just transferred from Washington HS in Los Ángeles.
Merry Christmas and a peaceful, joyful, healthy and prosperous New Year everyone. Blessings
Peter Parker
I did not know him but have thought of him and his death in 1965 often over the years. I grieve for him and what our nation has become since 1865. I have now read James Baldwin, I was afraid to in 1965. Black lives matter.
Gordon Baranco
Thanks Peter for your remembrance of Perry Washington. I knew him from Roosevelt Jr. High and Oakland High. He was a track star at both schools. The person responsible for Perry's death (was also a student at Roosevelt and Oakland High) had severe mental health issues, and contiuously expressed his regret, guilt and remorse for his acts. I especially appreciate your references to the systemic racism that exists in this country. I believe because OHS students of our era had the exposure to so many different cultures that we have an obligation to continue this dialogue..........and James Baldwin was ALWAYS a leader in that arena!
Peace,
Gordon Baranco
Class of 1965
Jim Tucker
Yes I knew Perry, well he used to call me? Hey Tuck where you headed, I'd say nowhere? He said "me Too" later ! Yes I will take minute or two, and reflect . Thanks Jim Tucker
Paul Merriwether
I had gym class with Perry and his murderer George. They were the BEST of friends. Until something Perry did that caused George to say in gym class ... "Perry, they're going to read about it in the papers."
I'll never forget that statment. No matter who a person might be to you like Perry & George ... somethings people say in earnest ... HEED their statement / warning!!! It just might save your life to be better prepared.
Perry's life mattered ... It wasn't taken in a race issue ... both were Black young men. I'm thankful & so appreciative looking back over my life growing up in Oakland and living in many areas of Oakland. It was pretty much race free era. Some name calling etc ... but nothing like many troubled areas of America. Looking back my Black mother wasn't a fan of MLK. 24 hr News wasn't what it is today. She was born in Alameda, as our family has been in Oakland more than 110 yr's.
There is no perfect peaceful place in the world. For America it's race, India class isues, Africa race & religion issues, China & Russia ideology. This is the saga of man's humanity on earth.
A blessed holdiday season to ALL!!!
Paul Tillman Smith
The High School student that killed Perry Washington's name was George. We called him crazy George. He was always begging for pennys, that seemed so silly but he was a great guy. He didn't kill Mr Washington on a whim. Mr Washington could be quite threatening at times. The reason i know this is because Mr Washingtons girlfriend was also a friend of mine. I can't say she had eyes for me but i know certainly that i had no eyes for her other than she was nice to me as were many people nice to me at school. One day she stopped to talk to me on the side of the inside steps by the door. Mr Perry came by and asked me what the fluke was i doing talking to his girlfriend, scared me half to death. He looked at me like he would kill me. You better believe i ran from his girlfriend after that and him also, lol. I could see how Mr Perry could have scared Mr George in the same way to the point that Mr George feared for his life, no one knows the facts. Mr George probably saw no way out except to stab Mr Perry. Even though Mr Washington was a great athlete i must admit i felt relieved when i found out he had died, i truly believed that my life was at stake. Ironically i live on the Oakland Berkeley border and Mr George lived right around the corner from me on Shattuck and Alcatraz for years after he was released from jail. I don't see him anymore so i assume he died. Mr George did not have a killers heart. Mr George was slightly autistic.
Arcille Olena Barnes (Woods)
R.I.H. PERRY!!!
Peter Parker
Thank you for telling me what happened.
I respect everyone's point of view. I assume that both Perry and George were under a lot of pressure. Had Perry not been killed then, in a much better world, both young men could have been successful. Sadly the civil rights movement was brutally suppressed and we live in a far worse world.
Has anyone else watched the Amazon prime documentary I Am Not Your Negro?
Gordon Baranco
"I Am Not Your Negro" says it all. I first saw it at the Grand Lake Theater. It has also been shown on a few other cable TV channels.
Paul Tillman Smith
There were a lot of potentially great Black atheletes from Oakland High that never got a chance because of adverse racism. Class of 65 John Kincaid was one of them. John should have been a wide reciever for a NFL team. He developed severe mental problems because he was never acclimated to White society and was found dead in a train box car. Over 75 percent of the African American males who graduated or didn't graduate from Oakland High never got a shot at anything. Black culture had been so isolated from White academic life starting from infancy. Unless you were absolutely lucky to have had a professional father and or mother a young Black Boy had several different types of obstacles preventing him from excelling intellectually period. Black mothers had there hands full trying to convince their childern to prepare for college. Black fathers were obselete in those days because many of them were stressed out from not being able to find solid income tand had to abandon their families. It became more about your mothers word verses that of your peers as to what to believe moving forward in society. Often times the peer pressure would win out. You could forget about landing a scholarship for athelitics or academics to any major college. You had a better chance of either going to prison on trumped up charges or becoming a janitor or security guard for some govermental agency. I was the only Black in my hang out group that made it to Cal Berkeley. The reason i made it to Cal had nothing to do with Oakland High. My talent is what allowed me to find my way. After High School i became a Black Hippy musician who lived and played in a all White Berkeley band that included world famous guitarist Steve Miller and musicians that formed the Country Joe and the Fish Band. I was thrust completely into a White world where as before i hung out with my Black friends on 13th ave in east Oakland. Being the only Black on a completely White scene taught me a awful lot. Some of the guys in the band were Berkeley students working on their masters degrees. After living in a house with my White band mates i figured hell if they could go to Cal maybe i could go too so i went to Merritt College for two years earning a 3.4 and then i transferred to Cal. I was the only one of my High School friends that accomplished this. Then something unheard of happened and i got a recording contract with CBS records in New York and dropped out of Cal with one quarter semester to go, with a 3.0. Of course things started slowly changing with the advent of the civil Rights movement. Society begin to change a lot for the good of us all. But that came too late for a lot of the black men i grew up with.
Gregory Paul Anthony Jourdan
It was so unfortunate that I happened to be standing only approximately 20 feet away when the incident occurred. It has left an indelible imprint on my mind all these years. I use to have dialog with both George and Perry, I had just transferred from Washington HS in Los Ángeles.
Merry Christmas and a peaceful, joyful, healthy and prosperous New Year everyone. Blessings
Gregj😎🙏🏾❤️