Oral History Interview with Jill Edwards

Title: Oral History Interview with Jill Edwards
Interviewee: Jill Edwards
Interviewer: Collin Edwards
Description: Jill Edwards is a stay-at-home mom and the parent of 2 children. She is originally from Cocoa Beach, Florida but moved around a lot when she was younger as her father worked for NASA. She attended the University of Georgia and currently lives in Atlanta where she works as a yoga Instructor at Yonder Yoga.
Transcript: Connor Edwards (00:00):
All right. Are you ready, mom? Yes. Okay. This is Colin Edwards from Sewanee, the University of the South. It is February 9th, 10:45 on Friday. I am with

Jill Edwards (00:25):
Jill Edwards from Atlanta, Georgia.

Connor Edwards (00:28):
Thank you. Jill Edwards from Atlanta, Georgia. Thank you for being here. All right, Where are you originally from?

Jill Edwards (00:38):
So originally I was born in Cocoa Beach, Florida in 1970, moved to Pennsylvania when I was just about, no, actually, Connecticut when I was five years old, and then moved to Pennsylvania when I was going into third grade, and then Atlanta, Georgia when I was in eighth grade.

Connor Edwards (01:06):
How is where you currently live different from where you were raised?

Jill Edwards (01:11):
So Atlanta is much different than Cocoa Beach, Florida. So my dad worked for the space program, so we lived in a tiny little beach town near Cape Canaveral, and ultimately I ended up in Atlanta, which is a very big city with a lot of diversity. And so it's a lot different, moving from such a small city and living in a big cosmopolitan city.

Connor Edwards (01:41):
What is your occupation and what was your journey to this role?

Jill Edwards (01:47):
Well, I've had a lot of different roles and a lot of different jobs. So currently I am a stay home mom. but I worked, my first job was as a telemarketer when I was 13 years old, so that was actually illegal because I kind of had a job underneath the table to make income. I thought it was the coolest thing. But I worked all through high school, I worked in retail, I worked also as a waitress and a hostess. I worked in college. I worked again in waitressing, and also I was an aerobic instructor. My first job out of college was working for an advertising company in Atlanta, Georgia. So I worked in media, media sales. I worked in media buying and planning. And then after three different agencies that I worked for in Atlanta for about five years, I moved to New York City, and that was my first advertising sales job, which I loved. And I loved the opportunity to wear different hats and meet with different clients and think about solutions to the issues that they were having. And then I moved back to Atlanta. I stayed in sales. I had two children, continued to work for about at least maybe seven years after I moved back to Atlanta. And then I decided to be a stay home mom, and here I am.

Connor Edwards (03:17):
Lovely. What traveling have you done, or I guess what has been your favorite spot while traveling?

Jill Edwards (03:26):
Well, I would say the majority of my travel, my early years were work-related, so I traveled all over the country for my sales jobs, so that brought me over to the west coast. So I would travel to LA. I used to travel to Miami, Jacksonville, Florida, kind of all over, living in New York. And then I did have two international trips for work where I went to London twice. And then I was privileged and lucky enough to travel for just kind vacations as a stay at home mom with my family. So we did kind of a lot of domestic travel. I would say we've been overseas once where we got to travel to Spain for my daughter's soccer tournament. And then we took an extended stay through France, which is wonderful. But we've done a lot of traveling through the Caribbean, I would say beach trips over Christmas time. And so my favorite trip, but probably my favorite trip has been to Yellowstone, which was a national park, and the kids were about 10 and 13 maybe. And just I think being in the United States and seeing that vast country was probably my favorite trip.

Connor Edwards (04:47):
I would say that was one of my favorite trips as well. I had a lot of fun on that trip. What's your favorite type of food?

Jill Edwards (05:00):
Everything. I mean, I would say I love healthy food if I'm going to splurge. I love Thai food.

Connor Edwards (05:11):
Okay. Actually, I don't know if I knew that about you

Jill Edwards (05:13):
Well, I know you don't like Thai food, so we've never had Thai food together, but if you are open to trying it, I would

Connor Edwards (05:17):
Love to hear, you would say Thai food is your favorite.

Jill Edwards (05:20):
If I really want to have an amazing meal that I'm going to love. It would be Thai food. Yeah. Alright, so I would love if you wanted to join me next time,

Connor Edwards (05:27):
Well, maybe I will. Where have you found community as a child? That might be a tough question.

Jill Edwards (05:40):
That is a tough question. I mean, I think as a child, you don't really overthink what community means. So I would think I found community in all of the infrastructure of life, whether that was school or playing sports, church, all that kind of stuff. So I think you're kind of thrusted into just whatever it is, whether you're learning or whatever. I didn't overthink it, but that would be my answer.

Connor Edwards (06:16):
Who is someone that inspires you and what traits does this person have and why does he or she inspire you?

Jill Edwards (06:30):
Is it somebody just, it could be. Could be anyone from the past or the present,

Connor Edwards (06:34):
Anyone.

Jill Edwards (06:38):
I have a lot of people that inspire me. I'm going to just top of mind for some reason. Definitely Martin Luther King, because during Covid we hear about Martin Luther King and have celebrated Martin Luther King One of my favorite teachers of all time was this man named Mr. Richardson, who I think he was, my gosh, maybe my ninth grade teacher at Walden High School here in Atlanta. And he was so passionate about Martin Luther King. And so he played I had a dream recording of Martin Luther King, and I just will never forget not how the speech necessarily moved me, but watching this teacher that I loved be moved by the speech. And that will forever be an imprint in my mind. And then during Covid, I have a book, I think it's called The Strength of Love, but it's a compilation of Martin Luther King's writings.

Jill Edwards (07:50):
And I just, during Covid, you know we had this time to really slow down and really think about how we were feeling and what we were experiencing. And that book, I had just had this time to really sit with the book and read it. And it's not a really thick book, but it's so powerful and it's just, I just never understood really how deep his faith was and his love for Christ. And during that difficult time of covid, I really resonated with these writings that were just so beautiful. And it just really inspired me to live through that difficult time with so much strength and believe that everything was in be okay. So I would say

Connor Edwards (08:30):
So. Yeah, that's a great option. How do you yourself receive the news?

Jill Edwards (08:39):
Well, I don't listen and watch the news anymore. I do read some news. I used to be kind of a news junkie. And really, especially after September 11th, I was mesmerized by what was going on with current events and what was happening in the world. And I think with what's transpired over the last several years, I feel like the news is not inspiring and it's defeating and it doesn't make me feel good. So I read what I want to really know what's going on in the world, and I've made the conscious decision to not be that much involved with news. Okay.

Connor Edwards (09:26):
What has been your experience, would you say with social media?

Jill Edwards (09:30):
I think it's amazing and also amazing I probably, I started an Instagram account about five years ago.

Connor Edwards (09:42):
I would say that you've used Instagram more than you have in the last couple years, I would say. Would you agree with that

Jill Edwards (09:51):
Or well meaning it's been a new thing that I've been interested in. Yes. So I started teaching yoga about what, three years ago. And so that was when it was actually, I was encouraged to open an account and use social media as a way to advertise yoga, advertise our yoga studio. And I love that it connects me with so many of my students. It connects me with so many of the teachers that I love. And so I really feel like it's a great place to have a community. However, I do see the dangerous parts about it because it can be a platform for a lot of competitiveness. It can be a platform for feeling inadequate because you're comparing yourself to others. So it can be a dangerous thing, but it also can be a really powerful thing to connect yourself to community. So pros and cons.

Connor Edwards (10:45):
How did you first encounter with the Black Lives Matter movement?

Jill Edwards (10:53):
Well, I think it was being informed through the media what kind of was going on. And I don't know if it was even before Black Lives Matter, but personally, I started feeling a lot of uncomfortableness about what stories were being portrayed in the news about, in my understanding was victims that were being brutalized and terrorized or injured or even critically injured or killed by the police. And I remember calling my mom, your grandmother, and I just said, I don't know what's happening, but I'm not comfortable with what's going on. And my mother, her response was immediately to go through what these people did wrong, which somehow warranted that what was happening to them was okay. And, so I don't even know if it was coined Black Lives Matter, but I knew early on that I had a visceral reaction that something terribly wrong was happening in our society, that there was abuse happening and that the storyline was they deserved it. I think as we moved through many years, it became Black Lives Matter. I was passionate about the movement because Black Lives do matter. It doesn't mean to say I don't feel like all lives matter, but I think this was a point to be made and relevant. And I think when George Floyd was murdered on national television, our world will never be the same. There was no excuse for it. And I think that the media opened up a storyline that has been existent in our country forever.

Jill Edwards (12:58):
And finally, it's come to light and I want justice, and I think Black Lives matter tremendously.

Connor Edwards (13:07):
So what would be your opinion on the Black Lives Matter movement?

Jill Edwards (13:12):
That it's necessary that black lives do matter? I know that it can be used. The pendulum swings both ways in some regards, but that's always the case when justice comes to light, that the pendulum can swing the other way. But this is a conversation that needs to happen and reform needs to happen in our justice system and our police and, yeah I'm passionate about it.

Connor Edwards (13:47):
What would you say is or has been your community's reaction to the Black Lives Matter movement? And would you say if your community disagrees, you can feel free to.

Jill Edwards (14:01):
Yeah, I think I have to say, you know I think I'm in a new community now than I was maybe during the initial stages of Black Lives Matter, I was going through divorce, but my community was very much for some reason, it just seemed that every time I would talk about these shocking stories that were happening in the news, it was everything, When I would share the story with a friend or how upset I was about what was happening, it seemed to be that it was their fault that if somebody was killed, whatever, there's so many stories, but whatever happened, whatever news happened, it seemed like my community would say, And I think these are sound bites from media, but that they deserved it. That, oh, did you hear what they did? Well, they stole this or they did this. And I was like, that's kind of all a mood point, because I don't care what they did. It doesn't justify being murdered. It doesn't justify being abused. And so I feel like I was kind of a lone ranger in the way I felt in my community, and I'm not in that community anymore.

Connor Edwards (15:13):
Well said. Which generation would you say has mostly been affected by the Black Lives Matter movement? Would you say it's been mine or yours or in between?

Jill Edwards (15:29):
And can you say that question one more time?

Connor Edwards (15:31):
What generation?

Jill Edwards (15:32):
Generation?

Connor Edwards (15:36):
It could be future.

Jill Edwards (15:37):
I mean, I think every generation, okay, I'm going to say this. I don't know that that's really,

Jill Edwards (15:53):
I think that every generation has been impacted. I think it's which individuals are more enlightened to see that this has been something that has been buried and hidden from society because we haven't had an opportunity until now because of media and social media and being able to share stories and let it you know, share this voice. So I don't think it's a generation, I think it is on an individual basis. Are you ready to see what's going on? What's been going on? Are you ready to accept it? And are you ready to be a change agent for a better future?

Connor Edwards (16:35):
You may have already touched on this, but how would you say the Black Lives Matter movement has impacted your life?

Jill Edwards (17:00):
That's a really hard question. I just feel like it's enabled me to see humans in a way of the way people respond. The way I see what has happened is just bringing such suffering to light. And you know I think when you really talk to African-Americans that live in this country, it's nothing new for them. It's been what's going on for so long, their entire lives, and then their storytelling through their generations. But now it's a story that is so brought to the forefront that it's no longer just African-Americans talking about their situation. It's collectively now Americans. I think for me, what I've experienced is that people that are so willing to live in denial to say that it doesn't exist or it didn't exist or they deserved it. And so I just have seen it as more of just where we are with some people are ready to be authentic and truthful, and some people are not.

Connor Edwards (18:24):
How has this movement, would you say, affected how you talk with family or friends?

Jill Edwards (18:37):
I think I'm a person who doesn't know how to not be my authentic self, which has gotten me into trouble. And I've realized that I'm never going to be afraid to speak my truth. And I've also realized that I can hold that truth for myself, and I don't have to be so angry about it and persuade anybody either. And I think where that has brought me is finally to a community of people that I feel very safe with, happy to be myself. And I think that's the biggest gift that maybe this has given me, is you find your people. And I always was willing to speak my voice, but now I'm in a place where I feel really comfortable speaking my voice.

Connor Edwards (19:33):
Thats when I remember when you had had a little argument with Sammy that one time about the Black Lives Matter movement. I just remember that being a

Jill Edwards (19:45):
Well, I said, and I remember that too. And so for anyone listening to this, Sammy is one of my daughter's very best friends, and she was probably 13 at the time. And just talking about sound soundbites of the families that she was growing up with in a very kind of right wing family, lovely, lovely family. We didn't see eye to eye in politics, but we started talking about Black Lives Matter, and I started asking her, she was saying things to me that sounded very racist, and I was uncomfortable with it, but I started just asking her questions like, well, Sammy, why do you feel this way? Or What made you think that? Or, tell me about this. And it got a little bit maybe defensive. And I said, listen, Sammy, I said in this house, you can say anything that you want, but I just want you to tell me why you feel that way. And I love that girl more than anything, but anyone can say if something's offensive, you can say it. Just you got to explain to why you're saying it and why. And so

Connor Edwards (20:53):
How do you think the Black Lives Matter movement has succeeded in society?

Jill Edwards (20:59):
I don't know that I can say. I think it has, I'll leave it at that, at least in the area where I live in Atlanta, I think, I hope it has. Maybe I am going to answer the question I didn't answer, where it was like, what generation do you think has benefited most or whatever. I have a niece who brings to light that there's a passion for a younger generation to be a lot more careful about sensitivity and compassion and really open-mindedness, which I don't, as a 53-year-old woman maybe see in my age group. I think just seeing the suffering that African-Americans have endured, hopefully that's what's happened, and there's compassion there. Where I live I dont, I just still see a polarization in our country and mindset, which I don't like, but hopefully that will change.

Connor Edwards (22:10):
Well, that's where, if you don't believe that it's succeeded, how would you say it's failed?

Jill Edwards (22:18):
So divided as a country, I think there's a resistance to really see the suffering and acknowledgement of what African-Americans have endured. And I think there's, in my age group, it's just very quick to say, well, they just need to get over it. They have equal opportunities. They've had opportunities to take positions in the workforce or in education that a white male have not been able to get. So there's this, but I think at the root of it, it's really about leaving where you are today in terms of your pocketbook and your privileges and this or that, or going to Lennox Mall, where we live, and the hip hop culture. I think it's just truly seeing the compassion of generational situations where they've suffered so tremendously. And I don't know that acknowledgement is really there.

Connor Edwards (23:31):
What would you say is the state currently of race relations in the United States?

Jill Edwards (23:41):
Well, I just live in a microcosm of the us. So I live in Atlanta, Georgia. We're a very, very diverse city. So there's a lot of black influence in our city. so It's interesting. So I think there's a lot of admiration for the black culture because it's very sexy and glamorized in Atlanta. So we see that. But I also see the discrimination too. So the question was about where we are as a country in terms of

Connor Edwards (24:25):
yeah, Like race relations. And it doesn't have to just be here. It could be

Jill Edwards (24:28):
Anywhere. I think that's a really hard question to answer. I think it can be good. I think it can be bad. I think it could be, it just depends on your socioeconomic status. I think it depends on where you are living in the country overall. I think there's tension.

Connor Edwards (24:50):
I would agree

Jill Edwards (24:50):
I think there always has been tension. I just think there's just, it's more shed more light on it. Maybe

Connor Edwards (25:00):
This is a final question I have for you. What do you think the future is of the Black Lives Matter movement? And this can be a difficult question to answer.

Jill Edwards (25:15):
Well, my hope is that I think as the world, as we broaden our perspective of global needs and the world in front of us, that wouldn't it be amazing if this was the seed that was planted for us to transcend all the horribleness that's happened in our country, that quite frankly, I think we do need to accept and admit and heal as a country. And then to realize that there's so many bigger things that we do need to focus on, global warming and food security. Just so many more issues that are important. And I think my hope would be that something that has been really uncomfortable for our country to go through Black Lives Matter is the one thing that maybe transforms our country to healing. Realizing we are one amazing country, that we have so much more strength together than separate, and that we are then united to tackle bigger things that are more pressing and are going to help our children as we move forward.

Connor Edwards (26:38):
Well said. Well, thank you so much for doing this interview. I love you very much, and I'm very glad we were able to do this.

Jill Edwards (26:46):
Thank you so much, Colin Edwards. I'm so proud of you, and it's my pleasure to be here with you this evening.

Part of Jill Edwards