Life through Another Lens

Words by Sean Saldana Photo by Ryan Runcie

The Negro Motorist Green Book, more commonly referred to as The Green Book, was an annual guidebook that was first published in 1936. It provided lists of businesses that were willing to serve Black Americans during the Segregation Era.

In a period of American history when racial discrimination was legal and socially acceptable, The Green Book was a vital resource for Black Americans traveling across the country. Though publication ceased in 1966, a few years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, The Green Book continues to loom large in the American cultural consciousness. Not only was the publication a prime example of structural racism’s pervasiveness, it also displayed the fortitude and resilience of Black Americans.

One section in the introduction of the inaugural edition reads, “There will be sometime in the near future when this guide will not have to be published… But until that time comes, we shall continue to publish this information for your convenience each year.”

In 2019, Austin came into a “Green Book” of its own when Vonnye Rice Gardner, a former Austin Community College professor, donated her father’s personal green book to the Austin History Center. Her father, Friendly R. Rice, was a towering figure in Austin’s education system for much of the 20th century. A graduate of Columbia University, Rice served in leadership roles in Austin schools for more than four decades, though he’s most remembered for his tenure as principal of Blackshear Elementary.

One of Rice’s biggest contributions to Blackshear was establishing what many consider to be the first library at a Black school in the American South. He also started a program that served hot lunches to students, an idea that eventually became standard throughout the school district. Rice is also credited with providing dental and nursing services to students, starting up a school clothing bank, and strongly advocating for parental involvement in the lives of his students.

Unlike The Green Book as many know it, Rice’s version is less of a directory with contact information and directions and more a collection of his thoughts as he navigated the world. On one page, Rice calculates his trip expenses. On another, he scribbles down some ideas for a new school program. The book contains the names of people he met and the places he met them. The Rice “Green Book” provides us with a unique and intimate look into the mind of someone who fiercely advocated for their community.

Today Rice’s legacy is most visible at the school to which he dedicated his life. In the spring of 2019, Blackshear Elementary unveiled a mural on the east wing of the school’s building. On one half of the mural, viewers see kids at play in a garden as well as an acknowledgment to Rice’s role in bringing a library to Blackshear. On the other half is a portrait of Friendly R. Rice himself.