Sunday Interview with Robert Anderson: 'I always feel like where there are people there is progress'

Robert Anderson has worn many hats in the Chattahoochee Valley as an educator, bank executive and an advocate for the arts.

In his most recent role as chairman of the Liberty Theatre Cultural Center board of directors, he has fought for the future of the historically black theatre and the Liberty District, once a thriving black enclave in the heart of Columbus.

Anderson, a native of Russell County, moved to Columbus with his family when he was a small child. He arrived the day World War II ended, and he has considered the city his home ever since.

Anderson sat down with reporter Alva James-Johnson and reflected on his life growing up in Columbus, his years in the banking industry, and his work at the Liberty Theatre.

Here are excerpts from the interview, with the content and order of the questions edited slightly for length and clarity.

So tell me what it was like growing up in Columbus.

In the ’50s when I grew up in Columbus, it was a tough town, especially if you were a black person. But as a youngster, it really didn’t bother me. ... Of course, the schools were segregated. We never knew what the other side of the tracks looked like. ... Since I delivered the paper for the Ledger, my route was Cusseta Road. ...I could hardly ride my bike because there were no paved streets on either side, but there were a lot of interesting people that I met and a lot of interesting things all along the road.

What did your parents do?

My dad worked two jobs. He was an entrepreneur, a peddler. He sold vegetables from a cart, then he got a truck and eventually he got a store. My mom was a house mom. ... I kind of had everything that I probably wanted in life at that time. My mother was a master seamstress so she sewed all of our clothes.

You grew up in public housing, correct?

Yeah. Warren Williams, 100 D, right there on the ditch, on the creek. It was nice. It was better than where my contemporaries lived. I had an inside bathroom, had heat.

It wasn’t central heat, but there was a heater in the house and we didn’t have to start a fire. So living in the projects was pretty doggone good. I never complained about that.

How did the 1954 Supreme Court decision to integrate schools affect your life?

Not at all. The South didn’t recognize that until when I started teaching school in 1970. I was a teacher and I had done my student teaching in Columbus. I got a job offer from Muscogee County. I applied and they offered me a job. And they asked me what school did I want to go to. The superintendent of HR at the time ... said, “If you go to Spencer or Carver, the teachers with tenure are going to bump you out because we are going to integrate the schools this year starting in September and you are going to have to move from one school to another. So it might be to your benefit to go to Baker or Hardaway.”

Baker at that time had already been integrated. I think they started in ’69. I said, “Well, I’ll go to Baker and that way I won’t have to move.” I started my career at Baker High School. Every day there was a fight between the black kids and the white kids.

One of the thriving black areas was the Liberty District, right?

This was “the glittering strip,” they called it. It was the black mecca. It is where all the black businesses were — the restaurants, the insurance companies. We actually had a manufacturing plant here. One of my teachers made cosmetics. Shoe store, shoe repair, service stations, garages, clubs and pharmacies. ... You could turn that corner, come up here, and all the marquee lights from the theater would be out flashing, with a big sign with what would be playing that day. Of course, as you can see now, all of that has gone away.

Did you come to the Liberty Theatre as a child?

...My good buddy and I, Mr. John Byrd, would walk over to the Liberty. ...  It was never a direct route. The Royal Crown Plant ... had a tunnel that their trucks would come through. ... Of course, we went down through the tunnel. There were houses and they would have chickens and we’d get a few chicken eggs. We did a lot of stuff. I was young then, we had a lot of fun. Every Saturday I was in the theater; it was a good place to be.

How much did it cost to see the movie?

Well, initially it was nine cents. But then you could also get in with what they called a “capitola” ... a coin that actually came in a sack of flour. It was Capitol Flour and they would put a movie coin in it. Or if you were really good, the R.C. Company had a deal with the theater that you could get in with six bottle caps. ...

So how did you go from being a science teacher to being in the banking industry?

I was teaching school and during the summer they had a program in Columbus called CYO, Columbus Youth Opportunity, and I applied for one of the jobs. ... I worked with Mr. Edgar Lester and Mr. Ralph Robinson. We were the people out there in charge, and we worked at Cooper Creek Park. We put in the parking lot and the walking trails. ... And how the program actually worked is that the federal government had given money to the states, and the states in turn gave it to the cities, and the businesses in the area such as the banks matched it. And so, at the end of the second summer that I was working, the bankers came out on a bus to see what we were doing. I don’t believe in serendipity, but I was in charge and it probably was my duty to get on the bus to tell them what was happening. So I held up three straws. I said, “Mr. Edgar, pull a straw. Mr. Robinson, pull a straw,” and I ended up with one the longest so I ended up getting on the bus and did what I do best — I talked. Jim Blanchard was on the bus. ... The next morning, a Saturday, I got a call from a lady who knew my former wife at the time and she said, “We want you to come work at the bank.” I said I wasn’t going to work for a damn bank. I didn’t know anything about banking. ... She said, “Well, you need to come listen to them and talk with them.” I said, “Well, maybe I will.”

... It was Columbus Bank and Trust, but in reality, I forgot what bank it was and I went to First National Bank. ... What was happening at that time was things were evolving. It was 1971 and the schools had integrated and I guess the businesses thought they might want to start thinking that way and bring on some management with people of color. I took an application, but then I went back home and said, “Gosh, I went to the wrong place.” So I went back the next day, and I went to CB&T ... and they basically asked me when I wanted to start. I told them that I had already signed a contract with the school system. They said, “Don’t worry about it. We got it.” Businesses, I don’t think they do that now.

What was it like working in the banking industry at that time?

At that time, banking was about relationships. I told you my dad worked as a peddler in the streets, and he knew everybody and they knew Mr. Anderson’s son. So I got to know a lot of people and a lot of people got to know me. That made my career blossom a bit. Oh, I had troubles. I went to lunch by myself for the first five or six years every day and I never got into the groups until later on in my career when they started hiring a few more younger folks who really didn’t give a hoot about what color I was. That really made a difference. I could go to their houses. They could come to my house. We’d play cards together, took trips together, that kind of thing. But early on in my  banking career, it was pretty tough. But I’ve never been upset about my time at CB&T. It was wonderful. It couldn’t have been any better.

So you retired in 2007 as senior vice president of Governmental Banking?

That’s correct.

And then after that you took a position with a minority-owned bank, correct?

...I was only retired for a couple of years when I realized I probably needed to do something. So, actually I took a job with Citizens Trust Bank. ... I worked there for two and a half years as local city president at Citizens Trust Bank, which was also very rewarding.

How did you get involved in the work you are doing here at the theater?

...What had happened is the Liberty had closed. It was neglected. Integration basically destroyed the black area. I hate to say that, but it basically did. The theater was left here in ruins. It didn’t even have a roof on it. It was in terrible shape. A group of folks got together — the Golden Owlettes — Charolotte Frazier and her group and others that I don’t even know. They had gotten with Congressman Sanford Bishop. ... He was able to get some funds, along with some other funds that were acquired through Historic Columbus and other places to put a roof on it and to stabilize it so it would stay where it was. And Calvin Smyre was involved. He and I were friends. He had gotten into the legislature through us helping him get elected, so Calvin asked me to get on the board, so I did. And by getting on the board, I became the co-construction manager down here.

The Bradley Foundation decided to have a challenge grant that they were going to offer. ... And they would put up $50 million if the community put up $50 million. So they had some folks in charge of raising $50 million in the community. And they did it — like, bam! — almost overnight. ... And that’s where this money came from for this building we’re in now. ...

When I came down here, Gayle Daniels was running the theater, and she was struggling. We couldn’t pay her and she eventually got a job, and I wound up then being down here by myself. ...

Of course, my daughter (Shae) now works down here as executive director. She’s a Ph.D from Georgia State in rhetoric and composition. She’s a good grant writer. Now we’re getting grants and she’s sending out for additional grants to keep the theater going. We’ve got some great supporters in Columbus that are helping us every way they can — from Georgia Power to Aflac to TSYS. ...

I have to ask. Do you think some people might see it as a conflict of interest that you are the chair and your daughter is executive director?

Absolutely, they think we own this darn thing. We don’t own it. But let me say this to you: I would be proud to own it if I had the opportunity.

But what about the concern about there potentially being a conflict of interest?

I’m not sure why they would worry about a conflict when they don’t come down here to see what’s going on here. You know, if they would come down and say, “Mr. Anderson, your daughter ought not to be working down here,” I might listen to them. But when I call them and say, “The Liberty needs your support,” I don’t get any support from them. But nobody seems to have a problem with it going forward. The people who support us don’t have a problem with it. They may not know who my daughter is but they know who I am. ...

So now let us talk about the Liberty District and that whole situation of a couple of years ago, because you were one of those that were in favor of the Columbus Housing Authority’s plan to build apartments near the theater. There also was strong opposition from some in the black community who didn’t like that idea. Can you explain why you thought that would help revitalize the area?

Well, I always feel like where there are people there is progress, and if you don’t have folk near you, then it is kind of difficult to garner any support. Not only that, you put 100 units here, you put 500 people in 100 units, McDonald’s might say, “Hey, we might want to put a restaurant right down that way.” Or Burger King might want to do the same thing. If McDonald’s comes, Burger King might want to come. And then who knows what goes on after that?

This area has not had anything happen to it in over 30 years, maybe 40. ... So I felt if they brought people in here — I know what the Housing Authority had done with Arbor Pointe and the other development they had, and how they screened the people a little bit better — so I was hoping that this would bring a really good quality of people. Remember, I’m a projects boy. I came out of the projects, so I’m not afraid of that. So I wanted that type of environment to come down here and be around this theater and I thought it could be a good idea on that basis.

Why do you think they were in strong opposition against that?

...I think a lot of folks thought the city was going to build storefronts or something that all they would have to do is move their stuff in it and open up. And that’s not what the city was going to do. They were looking for maybe a developer to come in and say, “Here’s what I’ll do in the Liberty District, would you approve this?” But no developer came forward. One gentleman came forward but I think he withdrew it and it was not feasible for what the situation was.

All the land around the Liberty Theater, the city owns it, to the bricks of the theater. I’ve been trying to get the city to take down the building next door. ... I talked with the city manager and he’s going to bring it up to council, and hopefully they will go ahead and put a big “D” on it and take it down. Any movement like that could create some activity down here and let people see they’re getting ready to do some things.

So it must be really difficult trying to run a theater in a situation like this, with so many abandoned buildings and such a rundown area.

People are afraid to come down here, but at night when they have activities down here we have security all the time. We don’t have any activity down here without security. We rent out the annex pretty much every weekend for some activity. We’re putting our money now in the annex. We put in a new floor. We’ve had the roof fixed. We’ve painted. We’ve tried to upgrade the kitchen and the bathrooms. ... For that reason, we’ve been able to rent it readily at a good rental price. We had a tremendous wedding down here this past Saturday.

And what about the theater side? What is going on there?

We rent the theater when we can. I had a call the other day from somebody from Atlanta that will wanna rent it. We try to put on one or two plays, but we lose money on a play every time we put on one here at the theater, unless we could get them underwritten by corporations. But the best we could do is let them help us with operations and to keep the doors open.

There’s a cultural arts community here. It meets once a month. They have a grant program that we get a quarter percent from the hotel motel tax, and they disperse this money out based on your application for a program. And we’re going to do a program this Christmas, “Black Nativity,” and it’s a play that Langston Hughes wrote. ... And we’ll do that. But the theater holds 300 people, and  over the two weeks that we produce it on a Friday, Saturday and Sunday, if we get 350-400 folks over all six performances we’d be happy.

So you are not getting even the attendance?

We’re not getting attendance. We put on some tremendous plays down here, but our folks won’t come to the plays that we put on. We have to figure out a way to get the folks back down here.

I’ve formed a TAD committee and we’re going to make the Liberty area a TAD district. ...

Why do you think it’s so important to keep the Liberty Theatre and preserve it?

We don’t put on “Guys and Dolls” and “Oklahoma.” We put on “The Wiz,” “Flyin’ West.” We put on shows that we can use some of our people to be in the cast. There are a lot of students all around in this area. Columbus State has moved their entire operation down to this part of the world. And the young folks, they need another venue to be able to show their skills, and hopefully the Liberty Theatre can be that venue.

Bio

Name: Robert Anderson

Age: 72

Birthplace: Russell County, Ala.

Hometown: Columbus

Position: Chairman of the Liberty Theatre board of directors

Employment: Substitute teacher with the Muscogee County School District

Previous employment: Senior vice president of governmental banking, CB&T; local president of Citizens Trust Bank.

Education: 1960 graduate of Spencer High School; 1970 graduate of Fort Valley State University, bachelor’s of science in education with a concentration in the sciences.

Military service: Four years in the U.S. Air Force.

Family: Wife, Louise; four daughters, Yolanda, Veronica Lewis, Tawana and Shae; and two grandchildren.

This story was originally published August 29, 2015 at 10:33 PM with the headline "Sunday Interview with Robert Anderson: 'I always feel like where there are people there is progress'."