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Page 8 The Skanner Black History Edition - February 24, 2016 Black History Project Aims to Mark Dozens of American Slave Trade Ports PHOTO BY BOB SELF/THE FLORIDA TIMES-UNION VIA AP “In the same way, people marked Plymouth, they marked Jamestown, they marked St. Augustine. Well, in each of those places, Africans were there too.” The project is rolling out as places around the country have been com- In this Jan. 23, 2014 photo Ann Chinn, left, who heads up the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers project, poses with her husband Charlie Cobb, who assists with the project, at their home in Jacksonville, Fla. The project has been working to place markers at 40 ports along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts where slaves arrived or where ships were sent to be used in the trade. MICHELLE R. SMITH, Associated Press PROVIDENCE, R.I.— A project aimed at memori- alizing America’s slave- trade ports is moving to Rhode Island, where some 1,000 slave-trading voyages were launched. The Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project has been working to place mark- ers at 40 ports along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts where slaves arrived or where ships were sent to be used in the trade. The Middle Passage refers to the forced migration across the Atlantic Ocean of more than 10 million Africans, many of whom died on the way. “We’re just simply saying mark the place where it began,” said Ann Chinn, who founded the Middle Passage project. “ there. Markers have also been placed in cities in Virginia, Georgia, Mary- land, New York, Florida, South Carolina and Lou- isiana. Each city works out the details on its own. Some markers contain just a few sentences. Others Virginia, means visitors are now learning a more complete history, Winter said. “You’re ignoring this huge chunk of popula- tion by not including them in the story,” she said. Around 60 percent of People from Brown University and other lo- cal groups plan to meet Friday to discuss how to move forward. Ray Rickman, who is deeply involved in local histor- ical endeavors, said he especially wants to see a marker in the tourist We’re just simply saying mark the place where it began. In the same way, people marked Plymouth, they marked James- town, they marked St. Augustine. Well, in each of those places, Africans were there too ing to grips with their roles in the slave trade, including the North, where the region’s his- tory of fighting against slavery is more widely known than its less noble roots of trading and prof- iting from slavery. It uses the Voyages Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database at Em- ory University and oth- er historical records to identify ports where slaves arrived or those that sent off ships used in the slave trade. Then, it works with local histori- cal groups, churches and others to gain support to erect markers that note a city’s role in the slave trade. In some cases, local groups were already working on something similar. In Portsmouth, New Hampshire, for ex- ample, a group called Chinn in October to say it had already erected a granite marker say- ing slaves were brought are several feet long and include maps and col- or illustrations. Mark- ers can cost as little as $1,000, or several thou- sand for something more detailed. One of the group’s ear- ly efforts was in 2013 in Yorktown, Virgin- ia, best known as the place where the British surrendered to George Washington, ending the Revolutionary War. At the time, there was little information about the history of slavery or Af- rican Americans at the site, even though it was a major slave trading port, said Lois Winter, who served at the time as chair of the Yorktown Historical Committee. “They didn’t include it as part of the tourist information, so people wouldn’t know,” she said. Installing the mark- er, which details how Yorktown served as the primary point of entry for Africans brought to all slave-trading voyag- es launched from North America came from Rhode Island, according to a Brown University report issued in 2006. Voyages left from Prov- idence, Newport, Bris- tol and Warren. More than 2,700 slaves were brought directly to Rhode Island, according to the Voyages database. In addition, the state’s economy was built on the trade, including ship- building, rum distilleries and other industries. Howard hub of Newport, where millions of people visit every year. According to the Brown University report, New- port’s streets were paved with money generated from a duty on slave im- ports. Rickman said the na- tion could begin to fix its racial problems if people knew more about its his- tory. “There are some real positive things that could come out of a very close look at this,” he said. cont’d from pg 6 tion stands against West- boro Baptist Church. “One of the dominant themes in Christianity is love,” Narcisse said. “So, at the end of the day, whether it be Christian- ity, Islam, Hinduism or Buddhism, this love or respect for humanity is at the center of the work that the chapel does. And this is really just a part of us affirming that.” Tyleah Hawkins, a se- nior broadcast journal- ism major, also objected to Westboro’s belief and its tactics. “I’m a Christian, but I’ve always been an advo- cate for gay rights,” Haw- kins said. “I don’t agree with preaching hate. I am a proud Christian. I love Jesus . . . and I feel like Jesus would be out here protesting with me.” In the end, the protest – both sides – was one chapter of the rich so- cial and political saga of the university, and there is undoubtedly more to follow,” said the Rev. Ber- nard Richardson, dean of the Andrew Rankin Me- morial Chapel. “This is Howard Uni- versity,” Richardson said. “Protests and all the other things are what happen here at Howard. It’s part of our legacy. It’s part of our history.” The James F. & Marion L. Miller Foundation
