By Barbara Morris
In the Feb. 7 issue of this newspaper, reporter Adam Kramer wrote a very interesting article entitled “Black history needed in all other months.” I agree.
Having been a pre-World War II student at PS 156 in Laurelton, I remember being haunted by pictures we were shown of black slave traders, whips in hand, sometimes dragging young, dark-skinned women, men and children (some in chains) and putting them on the auction blocks. They had been captured, mostly, in tribal wars from African jungles.
I wondered whether they had been underfed all their lives, or if their starving appearance had manifested itself only after their capture. Another thing that worried me a lot was that some had only scant clothing, and some seemed to have none at all, not even shoes.
With no concern for his tribal captives, the slave trader greedily sold as many of those poor souls as possible to the representative of their new master. The ships on which they were to make their journey to the New World was another horror. Many were already sick and starving, and the sickness spread rapidly in overcrowded and overworked conditions on board the ships. Many died, even before reaching these shores. Once here, many rich, white landowners felt that, since they had paid for the slaves, fed, clothed and housed them, they had a right to work them as hard as possible. They were, in fact, considered property.
Most unfortunately, laws were very different in those days, and slavery in the colonies was a continuation of the awful but, at that time, legal practice of enslaving people of different races that existed from the earliest recorded times among the Assyrians, the Babylonians, Chinese, Egyptians and all ancient people.
Slavery still exists today in some parts of Africa.
At the February meeting of Rosedale Civic Association, Roy Fox, caretaker of King Manor Museum, spoke to us about the former owner of that interesting home, Rufus King, one of the framers of the Constitution of the United States. This gentleman was a respected colleague of Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Hamilton and Franklin. He served this country in various capacities besides being a delegate to the Constitutional Convention.
He was, in fact, so much against slavery that he became the architect of the Northwest Ordinance, which prevented slavery in the new territories, and became known as the Senate’s leading opponent of the extension of slavery known as the Missouri Compromise.
Although some imply today that all whites were slave owners in those days, that, of course, is not true. Many white families took opposing sides in the Civil War that was fought to free the slaves. Many members of families killed the kin they loved because they believed so strongly, as Rufus King did, that freedom for one must be freedom for all.
Everyone should be as grateful to people like him as I am. Yet, there are those who are proclaiming all whites racists and declaring that whites and the U.S. government owe every descendent of blacks “big time.” City Councilman Charles Baron complains, “They even gave us the shortest, coldest month of the year for Black History Month.”
Used, as he often does, “they” seems to equate to me how he would feel if someone said to a gathering in which he was taking part, “you people.” As Adam Kramer’s article states, “The celebration that highlights black influence on the growth and development of the United States and the world began with Carter G. Woodson, a historian interested in education.” After many years of hard work, he finally saw his dream of establishing a “Negro History Week” come true in 1926 when he “chose the second week in February because two people he thought influenced and affected the lives of blacks — Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass — were born in February.”
Fifty years later, the article stated, Woodson’s organization — now named the Association for the Study of Afro-American Life and History — succeeded in turning the weeklong celebration into Black History Month.
Incidentally, Mr. Woodson was black. As someone who worked hard for civil rights and equality, it is discouraging to hear some who claim to speak for the black community profiling all whites as past and present racists when most have made every effort possible to be happily supportive of the well-deserved progress, wealth and success now experienced by hard working African-Americans. I’m pleased that the majority of the latter (at least in my acquaintance) judge even whites by the quality of their character.
For information about tours of King Manor Museum, please call 206-0545.
Reach columnist Barbara Morris by e-mail at TimesLedger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 140.
