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Below is a summary of “Telling Our Stories: Local Residents Recall the Great Migration” — at American International College (AIC). Please add your own comments for those who attended.
We arrived right at 7:30PM and everything was set to begin. The Griswold Theater was a very large room making the turnout look very low. The audience was about 80 people with about 8 of us from the class. We took our seats on the dais and Gary Jones, Assistant Professor of History at AIC introduced me and I open things up by introducing our panel’s most senior member, the honorable Ruth B. Loving. She recalled knowing people from the South, particularly her brother-in-law, who moved here in the north seeking better opportunities than those available to him in the South. She also stressed the need for African Americans to exercise their right to vote as a safeguard against the kind of oppression that compelled millions of Afro-descendant people to move from states like Georgia to Massachusetts.
Dr. Kamal Hassan Ali, professor of Ethnic & Gender Studies at Westfield State University and alum of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst doctoral studies program in the Center for International Education, spoke next of his having been born in Springfield and how his grandfather arrived in the city fleeing persecution and injustice below the Mason-Dixon line.
Wayne Phaneuf, editor of The Springfield Republican, shared many interesting historical allusions, especially from the 19th century, as a foundation to a discussion of the 20th century Great Migration period. He noted that his publisher is offering his forthcoming book, The Struggle for Freedom: The History of African Americans in Western Massachusetts for $10 off the normal price. The book ships November 15th.
The venerable James “J.B.” Bradley was on the program but was unable to be on the panel. Click his name to go to a video of a great interview with by Janine Fondon.
Tony Bass and AIC taped the program. I will provide a link to it as soon as it is uploaded and I hear about it.
Create a Chronology of Black Springfield, 1650-1950
1. Think in terms of centuries and decades
2. Think about major events and historical figures
3. What themes emerge from the timeline?
Work on this timeline during first hour of class. Use the texts I’ve provided you with and other resources on the internet. Research/identify any media (photos, audio, video) that explain or inform about elements in or themes that arise from the chronology. Here are some good models:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/aaworld/timeline/early_01.html
Bring laptops, ipads, etc. with which to do this research in class. Let class meet in rool 309 in New Africa House (where we were last week).
This upcoming class meeting we will discuss history articles and introduce the team-based learning projects:
1. Accessing and interpreting demographic data on Black Springfield
2. Learning the fundamentals of Africanapedia work
http://websites.umass.edu/shabazz/africanapedia
Which of the items in the list below do not have entries in wikipedia? Which ones do you want to do an entry for?
A
Adams, Anna Jones, 8. | Addison, Adele, 21. | All – Pine Camp, 17.
B
Baptist, Eli, 5, 6, 15. | Bethel A.M.E. Church, 12, 13, 16. | Booth, Gustaves, 7. | Bowens, Dr. Bruce T., 19, 20. | Brown, Dr. Anthony L., 20. | Brown, Charlotte (Davis), 8-9, 20. | Brown, Emerson, 8-9, 20.
C
Camp Atwater, 17. | Carver Automobile Club, 16. | Clark, Ed, 21. | Clarkson, J. Clifford. 9, 21, 27-28. | Clarkson, John H . 9. | Clay, Henry, 9.
D
DeBerry, Rev. Dr. William N., 11, 17, 19, 26. | Dorsey, Isaac, 7. | Drew, Howard, 22-23. | Dunbar Community Center, 16, 19, 27. | Dunbar Community League, 17, 19. | Dupree, Rev. Silas L., 13, 17.
E
Elks Lodge, 15. | English, Dr. Walter, 22.
F
Frances E.W. Harper Club, 16. | Frazier, George, 16. | Frazier, Dr. O.L.K., 21. | Free Church (or St. John’s Congregational Church), 4-5, 6, 9, 11, 12-13, 31 | Fullilove, Rev. Paul, 13.
G
Garnes Carlton, 24. | Garnes, William, 24. | Garrett, Helen S., 21-22. | Gauntt, William, 11. | Golden Chain Lodge of Odd Fellows, 15. | Gordon, Dr. Miles R., 20.
H
Harper, Harvey J., 26. | Harrell, James, 26. | Harris, Rev. Spencer, 13. | Harrison B. Wright Post, 16. | Heacock, Rev. Roland T., 29. | Henderson, James, 26. | Higgins, James H., 19, 28. | Holt, Richard, 24. | Hughes. Alexander, 10-11, 24. | Hughes, William, 9.
I
Ifill, Rev. Dr. O. Urcille Sr., 13. | Ireland, Charles, 9.
J
Jackson, William C., 17. | Jenny, 2. | Johnson. Hobart, 22. | Johnson, James Weldon, 17. | Johnson, Margaret. 27. | Johnson, Mary (Davis), 9. | Johnson. Peter, 7. | Johnson, Rebecca, 22. | Johnson, Thornton. 9, 24. | Johnson. W.W., 9. 24. | Jones, Kathryn, 24. | Jones, Dr. William B. Sr., 19, 21.
K
Kennedy, Dr. Howard P., 20-21. | Knights of Pythias, 8, 15. | Ku Klux Klan, 26.
L
Lancaster, Alfreda, 2l. | Laws, Florence H. 16, 21, 24. | “Little Hayti”, 6. | Ruth B. Loving | | Lyons, Timothy, 9.
M
Mapp, Alexander B., 19. | Martin, William H. 21. | Mason, Primus, 6. | McLean, Rev. Fletcher R., 13. | McLean, Dr. Mary, 22. | Mt. Calvary Baptist Church, 8, 13, 16. | Mt. Calvary Community Association, 17. | Mullins, Albert, 9.
N
N.A.A.C.P .• Springfield Branch, 17-19,27, 29. | Negro Business and Professional Women’s Club, 16. | Negro Civic League, 2:7. | Negro Political Union, 27. | New World, 26.
O
Oliver, William, 7. | Olivet Community Center. See Dunbar Community Center. | Oneal, Rev. Gordon C. Jr., 13.
P
Picken, Adele, 22. | Pynchon Street Church, 4-5.
Q
Quincy Street Mission, 12-13.
R
Rainey, Olive A. 22. | Randolph. Edna. 16-17. | Roberts, Abby Ritter, 22.
S
St. John’s Congregational Church, 5, 13, 16, 17, 23.
Page #s are from Jeanette G. Davis-Harris, (1978) Springfield’s Ethnic Heritage: The Black Community–An Interpretation of the Black History of Springfield, Massachusetts from the mid-1600?s through 1940.
Vans will leave New Africa House at 6PM and 6:30PM. If you cannot leave at one of these times please contact me immediately. We hope to return you to campus by 9PM.
Dr. Ruth Loving will be ready to begin at 7PM. Mr. J. B. Bradley may be with us as well.
Our conversation will be videotaped (45-60 minutes).
Read up on Dr. Loving and Mr. Bradley by going to the links below:
See masslive’s photo gallery and feature story:
http://topics.masslive.com/tag/james-j.b.-bradley/photos.html
http://www.masslive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2013/02/springfield_photographer_captu.html
On Dr. Loving:
http://www.americancenturies.mass.edu/centapp/oh/story.do?shortName=loving1945
http://www.americancenturies.mass.edu/activities/oralhistory/loving/bio.html
www.masslive.com/living/index.ssf/2012/02/ruth_loving_at_97_springfields_mother_of_civil_rights.html
The video below is courtesy of Mr. Tony Bass:
And the course begins like this….
We begin by reading part 1 of Imani Kazini’s “Black Springfield: A Historical Study,” published in Contributions in Black Studies, online at http://scholarworks.umass.edu/cibs/vol1/iss1/2 or
http://scholarworks.umass.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=cibs
This is the work of an Africana Studies major in the Du Bois Department during its first decade under the direction of faculty like John Bracey. We read it with the objective of studying the relevant historical studies (historiography) of the African American presence in Springfield, MA; which is the starting point of New African urban studies. Simultaneously, we engage the here and now of Black Springfield: look, taste, feel, hear, smell, witness, and all of these together with a purpose (Nia).
Dig this by DJ Scope, “Welcome Back 2 Springfield Shitty”
http://www.datpiff.com/TOX-welcome-Back-2-Springfield-Shitty-mixtape.158584.html