Seven New England Racists—What Should be Done With Their Legacies?
Wednesday, December 09, 2015
As schools and institutions around the country are facing increased calls to cut ties with former supporters whose racist views are being questioned, what does the landscape look like in New England?
Brown University, which in 2003 had its Committee on Slavery and and Justice issue a report and recommendations based on the university's historic ties to slavery, recently announced a $100 million diversity plan, twelve years later -- which members of both Brown and Rhode Island communities are saying is not enough.
SLIDES: New England Racist Controversies BELOW
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Rickman spoke to the controversy taking place at Princeton, where some are calling for Woodrow Wilson School of International Affairs to be renamed in light of the former President's racist actions including segregating the federal workforce, among others.
"His name should be removed -- he's had a free ride for forty years," said Rickman. "I understand that there are people for whom that it's too complicated. What does President Paxson think?"
Brown President Christina Paxson had served has the Dean of the Woodrow Wilson School prior to taking the Brown post - and Brown did not respond to request for comment from the President on the Wilson matter.
Tackling Issues
Now, figures from sports are being held to the same level of scrutiny, as evidenced by former Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey's legacy coming under fire.
"South Africa has done a better job than we have [addressing racism]," said Rickman. "I'm not saying they fixed it altogether. But they had a national five year discussion. They were where we were in the [1960s] -- except we didn't do anything then, we just proclaimed it over."
"We've started working towards it now. If it's ten steps, we've done 3. I go to these law firms around here, they're all white. I go places where the janitors are white," continued Rickman. "And you gasp that they haven't done better?"
Rickman acknowledged the argument that some of the individuals and institutions in the glare currently had lived in a "different time" than today.
"Some of this stuff is so bad, so blatant. Woodrow Wilson was strange, innovate, good guy, but racist. There are a lot of people like that. He's not abnormal. Remember most white males were racist and homophobic back then."
"But take the name off and put a new plaque up acknowledging the change. Something like, 'This was named after Woodrow Wilson, and the name was changed because by 2015 it was too much to bear.' I don't believe in erasing history. But naming a building is to honor someone, and you need to think about who you're honoring."
Princeton has said that it is considering the name change.
Jim Vincent with the Providence NAACP Branch acknowledged that past examples should be held to light and addressed, but not at the expense of other issues in the community.
"Is it important that people know that Tom Yawkey was racist? Absolutely," said Vincent. "I try personally to focus on the now, and on the future. I’m not trying to neglect the past, but I want to stay focused. I want us to be talking about jobs, housing, all those things that are important right now for our community."
"I’m not saying you don’t spend time looking back, it’s about marshaling resources. All of those things are important, but what type of attention is taking away from what we need to be talking about? I'm cognizant of the balance."
Related Slideshow: Legacy of Racism in New England
Institutions around the country are currently addressing whether to acknowledge -- or not -- individuals whose past racist views are now being subject to present political pressure, whether it's Woodrow Wilson Hall at Princeton University, renaming Byrd Stadium at the University of Maryland, to renaming Jefferson-Davis Highway in Virginia.
In New England, a number of once prominent figures in the region's history are causing members of the community to revisit how a racist history plays a part in having a role in today's society.
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