Black History Month

All month the K County public library system here has had events, presentations, exhibits and even workshops for Black History Month. This year the theme was on the history of the Civil Rights Movements, the one before 1955-1968, that one, and then the continuing struggles afterwards. The emphasis, as usual, was on local figures and histories.

Though I have criticized the area as being more segregated than anywhere else I've ever lived, yet, I must be fair, and add that I've never lived anywhere else where I see such a sustained sincere effort on the part of the 'progressive' members of the communities, whether of color or not, to educate each other and change that. From what I can tell, by digging into the local newspaper archives and other publications, this has been going on in the reform communities that emerged in the 1840's, after the Civil War during Jim Crow, and more lately in the mid-20th century with progressives and liberals. In each era there were radicals. Some of them got ridden out of town on a rail, tarred and feathered, other got broken out of the local jail and protected by the community. These events have been well attended. They have also been part of the month's calendar at the College and other institutions around the County.

This, when one wouldn't even know it has been Black History Month anywhere else, it seems.

One way and another the struggle has continued here, with many very good people of color and not, never letting go of their determination to achieve justice and democracy for all the members of the community.

While others, of course, in the eternal struggle, labor on behalf of evil's abyss.  As it was then (in today's Disunion column, "A Capital Under Slavery's Shadow," by Adam Goodheart), as it is returning today ("Prison Labor to Close Budget Gaps").