Author Archives: William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Unknown's avatar

About William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Award-winning poet, playwright, and essayist. Author of three books of poetry, "Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass: Remembrance of Things Past and Present"; "Sometimes Blue Knights Wear Black Hats"; "The Black Feminine Mystique," and a novel, "Streets of Rage," written under his pen name Easy Waters. All four books are available on Amazon.com. Waters has over 25 years of experience in the criminal legal system. He is a change agent for a just society and a catalyst for change.

This day in history — April 11, 1913 — President Wilson Permits Segregation Within Federal Government

Posted on April 11, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On April 11, 1913, recently inaugurated President Woodrow Wilson received Postmaster General Albert Burleson’s plan to segregate the Railway Mail Service. Burleson reported that he found it “intolerable” that white and black employees had to work together and share drinking … Continue reading →

Posted in Lest We Forget, Politics, race, Slavery | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The DNA of Story and Song

Posted on April 10, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

I am sitting in an affluent white church which, quite frankly, smells like old money.  A middle-aged white woman walks down the aisle like a bride at a wedding and stands near the row I’m sitting in and asks if … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 9, 1865 – Lee Surrenders to Grant at Appomattox Court House

Posted on April 9, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On April 9, 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his approximately 28,000 troops to Union General Ulysses S. Grant in the front parlor of Wilmer McLean’s home in Appomattox Court House, Virginia, effectively ending the Civil War. Less than … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, Lest We Forget, Patriotism, race, Slavery, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 8, 1911 — Mine Explosion near Birmingham, Alabama, Kills 128 State Prisoners

Posted on April 8, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

By 1910, the State of Alabama had become the sixth largest coal producer in the United States. Between 1875 and 1900, Alabama’s coal production grew from 67,000 tons to 8.4 million tons. This growth was driven in large part by … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 7, 1712 — Enslaved People Revolt in New York City

Posted on April 7, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

In 1712, New York City had a large enslaved population and the city’s whites feared the threat of rebellion. Enslaved people in New York City suffered many of the same brutal punishments and methods of control faced by their counterparts … Continue reading →

Posted in Black Shadows and Through the White Looking Glass, race, raising black boys, Slavery, Urban Impact | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 6, 1958 — Execution of Wrongfully Convicted Black Teen Jeremiah Reeves Sparks Protest in Montgomery

Posted on April 6, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

On November 10, 1952, Jeremiah Reeves, a 16-year-old black high school student and jazz drummer, was arrested in Montgomery, Alabama, and interrogated about the rape of Mabel Ann Crowder the previous July. Ms. Crowder, a white woman, had claimed rape … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 5, 1921– Georgia: White Landowner Faces Trial in Murder of Eleven Black Sharecroppers

Posted on April 5, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Although slavery was officially abolished in 1865, African Americans continued to be held as de facto slaves in systems of peonage, a form of debt bondage. “Peons” or indentured servants owed money to their “masters” and were forced to work … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 4, 1968 — Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Assassinated

Posted on April 4, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Thirteen hundred African American sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee, went on strike on February 12, 1968, to protest low pay and poor treatment. When city leaders largely ignored the strike and refused to negotiate, the workers sought assistance from civil … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 3, 1851 — Thomas Sims, Escaped Slave, Captured in Boston

Posted on April 3, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Thomas Sims, Escaped Slave, Captured in Boston In 1850, the U.S. Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Act, which sought to force Northern officials to apprehend alleged runaway slaves and ensure their return to slavery in the South. Any official who … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

This day in history — April 2, 1933 — Reuben Micou Lynched in Winston County, Mississippi

Posted on April 2, 2018 by William Eric Waters, aka Easy Waters

Reuben Micou Lynched in Winston County, Mississippi On April 2, 1933, a mob of white men broke into the Winston County, Mississippi jail in Louisville, Mississippi to lynch a 65-year-old black man named Reuben Micou. Mr. Micou had been arrested … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 3 Comments