There was a great story in the Calvert Recorder last week
about Joyce Freeland, local past President of the NAACP. It outlines her life growing up poor on a
farm in Calvert County, attending segregated schools, seeking treatment in a
segregated hospital, leaving for a while, then returning to her home
community. http://bit.ly/2EJ95ra Joyce Freeland is active in the Closing the
Gap Coalition and is also a frequent substitute teacher for us. We sure appreciate her continued service to
the schools.
The month of February is Black History Month - designated as
a time to recognize the contributions of African Americans to American History. The organization which would became known as
the Association for the Study of African-American Life and History inaugurated
the first formal acknowledgement of African-Americans' place in U.S. history by
designating the week that included February 12 as "Negro History
Week" in 1926. It was first acknowledged at the national
level by President Gerald Ford.
President Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan followed suit and in 1986
Congress passed legislation declaring February as Black History month and
called for a Presidential Proclamation in support.
It is also important to note that Canada also celebrates in
February. The United Kingdom and The
Netherlands have the similar events in October.
As I stand here in my office in a building that was once the
Brooks School – the high school for African American students in Calvert County,
I’m reflecting on the stories that have been shared to me by those with whom I
have had the pleasure of working over the years. Especially those that were a part of the
transition to integrated schools. The
last segregated class of the William Sampson Brooks High School was 1966. The community where we live managed to keep
children separated and educated by color a full 12 years after the U.S. Supreme
Court declared it unconstitutional. Why
did it take so long? I need to hear more
stories from those who went to school here.
Kevin Howard, Supervisor of Human Resources and a transplant
like me, just shared with me a book titled African
Americans of Calvert County by William Poe.
I’ve ordered my own copy, but the initial description of the book indicates
that Calvert County is home to one of the oldest African American communities in
the United States - since back in the 17th Century. At one time, 60% of the county population was
African American. Seems like it should be required reading for
someone like me.
I look forward to reading more of this planned series in the
Calvert Recorder. All of us as humans
are walking story books. I want to hear
their stories. I want to better
understand my adopted home.