Hey Chuze family, this is Corey McCloskey your DEI Coordinator! I am excited to present to you my grandfather Jim Lipscomb who allowed me to interview him and get his perspective on some of his life experiences during the civil rights movement (1955-1968) that was led by Dr. Martin Luther King.

How old were you during the peak of the civil rights movement and what did it mean to you?

The peak of the civil rights movement was between 1955-1968 and when it really affected me on all aspects of my life, I was between the ages of 28-32 in the Marine Corps. Seeing and hearing the news, I truly believe Dr. King as well as many other brave black men and women are the reason the civil rights bill passed in 1964 (Civil Rights Act of 1964). Being my age and understanding exactly what I meant or looked like to society was hard to go through. What made it even harder was being in the Marine Corps at that time and not having the ability to talk about the movement by Dr. King or voice my opinion. When Dr. King was assassinated. It was extremely difficult to digest because he was a role model for not only the black community but all people of color.

How did you express yourself as a black man in the Marine Corps during the civil rights movement?

In 1964 when the civil rights bill passed, it opened opportunities for me in the Marine Corps because they had finally integrated. Knowing that Dr. King worked so hard to make this a possibility, I felt that I needed to continue working hard and strengthening my education. I always knew that “Knowledge is power.” Reading and educating myself led to my first career opportunity within the Marine Corps that changed my life. Due to my test scores, my variety of vocabulary and my linguistic skills, I was able to become the first black man in my division to break the color barrier and be in the Interrogation Translation Team (ITT). It’s funny now that I think of it because originally I did not want to do it and planned to station myself in Japan. It was very hard because many men within my field told me I didn’t belong and were upset at my success. I was talked down to, misrepresented and at times shunned away but yet I still outscored everyone in the unit. I was 1/44 who passed the language test with a very high score. As I mentioned before, being part of the ITT completely changed my life and was the best decision I could make for my career. 

How did you continue to stay level headed towards the end of your career while the civil rights movement was present?

After spending nearly 20 years in the Marine Corps, I learned a lot of debating skills so I could express my thoughts and feelings on the movement with confidence. When you have those skills, your vocabulary and perspective is credible and valid which helps you stand on the side of being provable. When I transitioned into the civilian life and community, being a part of the Chamber of Oceanside, I had a friend (who was also on the Chamber of Oceanside representing Camp Pendleton)  by the name of Byron Nordburg who was my outlet to talk about civil rights, the movement and where we were as people. I truly feel that if he wasn’t there for me to be my sound board, it would have been extremely difficult for me transitioning to civilian duty and staying level headed.

What advice would you give to the world today in regards to your life experiences and Dr. Martin Luther King’s approach to civil rights?

I believe Dr. King deserves and needs to get all the credit. He paved the way for non-violence protests which kept our states from going into a storm of chaos, pain and extreme violence. If he didnt start this movement, the black community would have never gotten the opportunities it presented at that time because we still would have been segregated. Unfortunately, with all the work that Dr. King has done, we are still faced with a lot of turmoil to this day. So, if I had any advice to give, I would say educate yourself on the true history of Dr. King’s efforts and finally, never look beyond or down on any person because we are all human and deserve to be treated with respect regardless of what we look like.