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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 24, 2016)
Page 10 The Skanner Black History Edition - February 24, 2016 Black History The Architecture of White Supremacy Still Evokes Pain Historians struggle with questions of how to preserve, present previously segregated institutions “ In this Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016 photo, a woman stands in the doorway of the new Historic Colored Entrance at the Lyric Theatre, in Birmingham, Ala. Preservationists had to decide whether to keep reminders of The Lyric’s discarded color line before they unveiled an $11 million restoration of the 102-year-old theater, which had been closed for decades. In this case, they chose to highlight the history, installing a glass door with the etched words “Historic Colored Entrance” in the lobby wall so patrons can peer into the past. how the Deep South has changed since the courts ended discriminatory Jim Crow laws. Preservationists had to $11 million restoration of the 102-year-old theater, which had been closed for decades. In this case, they chose to highlight AP PHOTO/JAY REEVES BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— Growing up in the 1950s, William Bell had to enter Birmingham’s segregat- ed Lyric Theatre though a side entrance, marked “COLORED,” that was walled-off from the ele- gant lobby. He climbed a dimly lit stairwell to watch movies from the steep balcony where black patrons had to sit for generations. Now the mayor of Bir- mingham, Bell recalls the Lyric’s beauty, but also the way it isolated Black people. The inequity built into The Lyric Theatre’s very architecture is a painful reminder of the city’s ugly past as one of the AP PHOTO/BRYNN ANDERSON By Jay Reeves Associated Press This photo taken Monday, Jan. 18, 2016 shows a wreath decorating a grave in the black section of once-segregated Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta. Opened in the 1850s as the city’s main burial ground, the cemetery wasn’t desegregated legally until the 1960s. Today, tours and educational materials highlight the vestiges of Jim Crow still visible in the cemetery. by wall, so that patrons can peer into the past. Across the South, peo- ple are struggling with similar questions: What does a changing region do with the vestiges of It has become more complicated today because people are more willing to think about the preservation of the architecture of White supremacy. Initially, no one wanted to save these things most segregated places in America. But it also serves as a living histo- ry lesson, a symbol of decide whether to keep reminders of The Lyr- ic’s discarded color line before they unveiled an the history, installing a glass door etched with the words “Historic Col- ored Entrance” in the lob- Join the RR Donnelley Team! RR Donnelley is one of the foremost printing and information management companies in the world. We are looking for people who will provide the best quality product and service to our customers. 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But the issue has be- come particularly acute in the South, where mil- lions still remember liv- ing through segregation. More so than in the past, many older people and younger generations feel a need now to discuss the legacy of Jim Crow, said Robert Weyeneth, a Uni- versity of South Carolina history professor who specializes in preserva- tion. “It has become more complicated today be- cause people are more willing to think about the preservation of the architecture of White supremacy,” Weyeneth said. “Initially, no one wanted to save these things.” It makes some people uncomfortable to be re- minded of segregation at the Lyric, but the mayor believes people must see history as it really was, even if that means glanc- ing up at the segregated balcony where he sat as a young boy. The ornate theater was beautiful, he recalls, but Blacks up there could never mingle with the White patrons far below. “The best seats were on the front row of the bal- cony because you could flick popcorn or peanuts down and it would land in their hair,” said Bell, now 66, grinning at the memory. “We should not shield ourselves from our past,” he added. Some other places where communities have had to come to terms with the physical reminders of segregation: See ARCHITECTURE on page 15
