Confronting Racism’s Legacy, One Community at a Time

History hits harder when it’s local. As nationwide protests focus new attention on systemic racism in the United States, some activists are shining a light on the legacy of racism, discrimination, and anti-Semitism in local communities. They’re unearthing stories that have long been forgotten and even purposely buried. 

Join us for a conversation with three experts who will discuss local history initiatives in the U.S. and Germany that teach about the legacy of racism and people who were victimized by it. They’ll talk about how to use the lessons of the past—including the enduring legacies of white supremacy in the U.S. and anti-Semitism in Germany—to catalyze change, fight prejudice, and foster justice.

Panelists

Joseph McGill, founder of the Slave Dwelling Project, and history and culture coordinator of the Magnolia Plantation in Charleston, South Carolina. Since 2010, he has slept in and led tours of 150 slave dwellings still standing in the U.S. today. He frequently does presentations about the realities of slavery and the contributions of enslaved people. 

“Now that I have the attention of the public by sleeping in extant slave dwellings, it is time to wake up and deliver the message that the people who lived in these structures were not a footnote in American history,” he says.

Shelia Washington, executive director and founder, Scottsboro Boys Museum and Cultural Center in Scottsboro, Alabama. In 2009, she established the museum to tell the story of nine African American teenagers who were falsely accused of rape and convicted in a Scottsboro courthouse by an all-white jury in 1931.

The case drew national attention and resulted in landmark Supreme Court rulings on the right to adequate counsel and a diverse jury. But it was rarely talked about in Scottsboro until Ms. Washington worked tirelessly to start the museum. That has played an important role in helping the town confront its history while also educating visitors from throughout the U.S. and the world about the case.

Gabriele Hannah, storyteller and author who has kept alive the memory of German Jews in the Rhine-Hesse region whose communities were destroyed by the Nazis. Her goal is to educate about what happened during the Nazi era and the hundreds of years of vibrant Jewish culture that preceded it, and to use the power of narrative to fight bigotry and fear in current times. 

Working with her brother and his wife, she has written books and articles that tell compelling stories about the lives of individual Jews. A 2019 Obermayer Award winner, she is also actively engaged in building a network of other Germans doing remembrance work on local Jewish communities.

Moderator: Joel Obermayer, Executive Director, Widen the Circle

Event Date: November 17, 2020