Date: Fri 05-Feb-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Quick Words:

Black-History-Month-Amistad

Full Text:

Connecticut Is Prepared For February: Black History Month

(with cuts)

African-American history remains very much in the forefront of attention these

days. Following last winter's release of the Steven Spielberg film Amistad ,

other major media releases have followed, including the new film Beloved ,

produced by and starring Oprah Winfrey, and the four-part PBS series "Africans

in America: America's Journey Through Slavery."

With Black History Month celebrated in February, continued interest in the

American-American experience carries over into travel choices as well. The

release of Amistad cast attention upon Connecticut and many of the historic

sites as the places where the Amistad story unfolded.

(The Amistad incident involved 53 Africans who were kidnapped from their

homeland in western Africa in 1839 and illegally sold into slavery in Havana.

The Africans revolted and took over control of their ship, the Amistad . They

were seized off the Connecticut coast, however, and charged with murder and

conspiracy.

The Africans and their leader, Cinque, pleaded the case that they were free

men before the US District Court at Hartford's Old State House. The court

ruled the Africans were free, but President Van Buren, who was concerned he

would lose support of pro-slavery forces in the upcoming election -- appealed

in the US Supreme Court. Former President John Quincy Adams came out of

retirement to argue on the Africans' behalf and won them their freedom.)

Ever-increasing numbers of visitors have been drawn to the state's 82-site

Connecticut Freedom Trail , an African-American heritage trail related in part

to the Amistad incident. That incident laid the groundwork for the abolition

of slavery and the modern Civil Rights movement.

The trail is a "living" trail of African-American heritage sites which is

expanded annually as research reveals potential additions. The trial includes

several sites in Farmington: the Farmington Historical Society ; First Church

of Christ Congregational , there the freed Africans worshipped while awaiting

transport back home; Union Hall , where abolitionists met in support of the

captives; Samuel Deming Store , the second floor of which was used to house

and educate the Africans; Austin F. Williams House & Carriage House , the

primary home for the Africans; and Foonie's Grave , in Riverside Cemetery, the

grave of an Amistad African who drowned in the nearby Farmington Canal.

Other sites include Hartford's Old State House , the location of the circuit

and district court trials (where 30-minute reenactments are presented every

Tuesday at 12:30, free of charge); and in New Haven, New Haven Colony

Historical Society , where Amistad items are permanently exhibited; The

Amistad Memorial; Battell Chapel at Yale Divinity School , with a display of

correspondence revealing the role of the school's faculty and students in

helping the Africans, and Grove Street Cemetery, the burial site of Roger

Sherman Baldwin. Mr Baldwin was the lawyer active in the defense of the

Amistad Africans.

One of the most famous sites on the Freedom Trail is the Prudence Crandall

House Museum (Routes 14 and 169, Canterbury; 860/546-9916), which served as

New England's first school for black women. The museum has just reopened

following its annual winter closing.

Tour guides enlighten visitors of the story of one of Connecticut's state

heroines, who defied authorities by continuing to operate her school. The

National Historic Landmark contains changing exhibits, period furnishings and

a research library. The museum is also one of a selected few sites on the

Freedom Trail while shows visitors a 30-minute orientation video of the entire

Connecticut Freedom Trail.

Two sites were added to the Freedom Trail in 1998 (another new site opens this

weekend; see "Events Around The State"). The new sites include the US Custom

House , on Bank Street in New London, where the Africans from the Amistad were

taken on August 23, 1839, by the US Coast Guard; and the United Church on the

Green , Temple Street in New Haven, whose past congregants included the lawyer

Roger Sherman Baldwin.

The Connecticut Historical Commission has published free Connecticut Freedom

Trail brochures showing itineraries and site locations. Contact the commission

at 39 South Prospect Street, Hartford, CT 06106; or call 860/566-3005.

A four-cassette Auto Tour Tapes set of the Freedom Trail is available from

Mystic Seaport Museum Store, 75 Greenman Avenue, Mystic, CT 06335; telephone

800/331-2665; or email bookstore@mysticseaport.org. The set is $19.95 plus

$4.95 shipping and handling, plus Connecticut sales tax.

Also available is a new video tape produced by Karyl Evans for Connecticut

Public Television. African-Americans in Connecticut: From the Colonial Era to

the Civil War is available from the Connecticut Humanities Council, 955 South

Main Street, Middletown, CT 06457; 860/685-2260. The set is $19.95, plus $3.50

shipping, with state sales tax.

The Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation also has a new item in honor

of February, a poster-sized map called "Historic Sites in the Settlement of

African-Americans in Connecticut." The map includes photos of

African-Americans from the late 19th to early 20th Century from diverse walks

of life. It details towns, churches and neighborhoods important in

African-American history in Connecticut. The routes of The Underground

Railroad, actual and probable, show the patterns of travel for escaping

slaves.

The poster/map is available from the trust by writing to 940 Whitney Avenue,

Hamden, CT 06517; telephone 562-6312. Cost is $16, which includes all packing,

postage and sales tax. Special rates are available for non-profit groups.

A number of locations in Connecticut are featuring exhibits relating to the

African-American experience and the Amistad incident. Last fall, The Amistad

Foundation opened two exhibitions at Wadsworth Atheneum (600 Main Street,

Hartford; telephone 860/278-2670).

Continuing through the end of this month are "Mapping The Caribbean: The

Atlantic Slave Trade" and "Frederick Douglass in Black and White." Pictorial

highlights explore the life of one of the country's most honored

African-American orator, statesman and diplomat (1818-1895). The shows utilize

art and artifacts from the foundation's African-American collection, most of

which date to the 19th Century.

The Connecticut Historical Society (1 Elizabeth Street, Hartford;

860/236-5621) is offering an important exhibit, called " Amistad: A True Story

of Freedom." Scheduled to continue through 2001, the exhibition comprises

2,000 square feet of interactive devices, ambient sound, a multi-media gallery

and period artifacts which chronicle the saga.

The Walsh Art Gallery at Fairfield University (North Benson Road; 254-4000

x2969) is presenting an exhibition entitled "Interludes" through February 25.

The multi-media exhibition offers a look at the works of the 20th Century

African-African artists Romare Bearden, Richard Mayhew, Faith Ringgold, Benny

Andrews and Barkley Hendricks. "Interludes" focuses on the sights and sounds

of jazz, the blues and Caribbean landscapes. Hours are Tuesday through

Saturday, 11 am to 5 pm, and Sunday noon to 4.

Events Around The State

In addition to continuing exhibitions and demonstrations, a number of

organizations have planned special Black History Month-related events across

the state. While the following is by no means meant to represent a complete

list of every special event, it should help anyone interested in uncovering

some of the history that has gone into the development of our country.

The permanent exhibit of the Connecticut Freedom Trail Quilt opens to the

public at the Museum of American History (Connecticut State Library, 231

Capitol Avenue, Hartford; 860/566-3056) this weekend. The quilt, which is the

result of the work of 186 quilters, contains squares depicting historic

moments on the Freedom Trail.

The squares were transported from 78 sites along the Freedom Trail by cyclists

on September 20, 1998, and were assembled the following week by quilters in

Hartford. The finished quilt will be become a permanent Freedom trail site.

Western Conn State University in Danbury has a Festival of African Films

scheduled throughout the month. Free screenings will be presented in White

Hall, Room 25. The film series is open to the public as well as the

university's students.

Scheduled films are as follows: February 5, Africa, I Will Fleece You , 7:30

pm; February 10, When the Stars Meet the Sea , 1 pm; February 12, When the

Stars Meet the Sea , 7:30 pm; February 17, Skirt Power , 1 pm; February 18,

Skirt Power , 7:30 pm; February 20, Skirt Power , 2 pm; February 24, Scrap

Heap , 1 pm; February 26, Scrap Heap , 7:30 pm.

Also at WestConn, State Rep Lew Wallace (D-109) will visit the campus to speak

on issues regarding African-Americans. Rep Wallace will be in White Hall Room

25, on White Street, on Monday, February 8, at 5:25 pm. For details on this

program, call Scott Benjamin, 354-2661, extension 127.

The Stamford Center for the Arts has created "Celebrating the Black

Experience," events scheduled to honor Black History Month. The month opens

Saturday, February 6, with Urban Rhythms , at Rich Forum (307 Atlantic Street,

Stamford; 325-4466). The celebration will be co-hosted by SCA executive

director George E. Moredock and Ilysah Shabazz, daughter of Malcolm X and

Betty Shabazz. The evening will begin at 7:30 and include music by

Satisfaction, Lonnie Youngblood, Mabu's Ark Band, and others, as well as a

gala reception with food by Warren's Kitchen. Tickets are $10.

The Urban Bush Women Dance Company , an ensemble dedicated to creating and

producing multi-disciplinary works rooted in popular African-American cultural

traditions, will perform Saturday, February 20, at 8 pm, at the Palace Theatre

(61 Atlantic Street, Stamford; 325-4466). Tickets are $15 and $25.

Call the Stamford Center for the Arts for a full schedule of its "Celebrating

the Black Experience," which includes a forum at the end of the month and an

exhibition of the photography of Max Waldman among its offerings.

The Yale Art Gallery lecture hall (Chapel and York Streets, New Haven;

432-0621) will present "I Dream A World: Readings from Harlem Renaissance

Literature" on Sunday, February 7, beginning at 3 pm. The program will feature

lively African-American poetry accompanied by music and images. There is no

charge to attend the 90-minute event, which will include a 1920s-style

reception in the gallery's sculpture hall. The event was created in

conjunction with the gallery's current exhibit, "Portraiture and The Harlem

Renaissance: The Photographs of James Latimer Allen."

"Celebrating Black History" is the focus of the February 14 Sunday

Celebration, 2-5 pm, at The Discovery Museum (4450 Park Avenue, Bridgeport;

372-3521). The afternoon will begin with a performance by the ensemble No

World Improvisations, with musicians from China, Korea and Africa performing

on native instruments. At 3 pm Nigerian artist and teacher Omaa

Chukwurah-Orezabo will share stories of her native Igbo people and

recollections of her African childhood.

Ms Chumkwurah-Orezabo's pen and ink drawings of the Igbo are on exhibit in the

museum's Balcony Gallery, and can be viewed during the afternoon as well. A

reception for the artist will be held at 4 pm.

Borders Books (110 Federal Road, Danbury; 798-1100) has created a program to

coincide with the historic theme of this month. One of the characters in the

popular American Girls book series is Addy, a proud and courageous girl who,

along with her mother, escapes slavery in 1864 for a new life in Philadelphia.

On February 16 at 7 pm, children are invited to the store for a program called

"American Girls Learn About Addy: A Celebration for Black History Month. "

Girls are invited to bring their own American Girl dolls. There is no charge

to attend.

The Friends of Bethel Library (189 Greenwood Avenue, Bethel; 794-8756) will

present a special poetry reading and concert on Tuesday, February 23. At 2 pm,

BrendaLee Handberry, a very melodic poet from Bethel, will read a selection of

her poems written from her life experiences. Her work reflects the love and

pride that was instilled upon her in her youth. The musician Ophelia, who also

happens to be Mrs Handberry's daughter, will accompany with eclectic and

original music that was inspired and written specifically for BrendaLee's

work.

Danbury Public Library has created some special Internet links on its home

page to honor the memories of such renowned citizens as Marian Anderson and

Martin Luther King, Jr. Visit www.danbury.org/library/bhistory.htm.