Anderson@Large

Unmarking African American History in Philadelphia

This year marks the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in colonial America. The first Africans arrived in Philadelphia circa 1639. Although the African American story cannot be told without Philadelphia, black history was largely excluded from public spaces. A chance conversation at a Kwanzaa celebration led me to sound the alarm about missing and damaged African American historical markers in Philadelphia. There is power in remembering the past. Lonnie Bunch, founding director of the National Museum of African American History & Culture, recently wrote:

You can tell a great deal about a country and a people by what they deem important enough to remember, to create moments for — what they put in their museum and what they celebrate. … Yet I would suggest that we learn even more about a country by what it chooses to forget — its mistakes, its disappointments, and its embarrassments. In some ways, African American History month is a clarion call to remember. Yet it is a call that is often unheeded.

In Philadelphia, we have heeded the call to ensure the ancestors are not forgotten. During Black History Month, we are checking on the status of African American historical markers.

In an essay published in PlanPhilly, I wrote about the unmarking of African American history:

Philadelphia’s streets are lined with history. The blue and gold signs issued by the Pennsylvania Historical Museum and Commission mark everything from the oldest medical library in the U.S. at Pennsylvania Hospital to 300-year-old Elfreth’s Alley.

But before 1990, there were only two markers associated with African American history installed in Philadelphia: First Protest Against Slavery (1983) and St. Thomas’ African Episcopal Church (1984). To fill the gaping hole in the American story, in 1990 Charles L. Blockson, founder and then-curator of Temple University’s Charles L. Blockson Afro-American Collection, launched the historical marker project. The project was funded by a grant from the William Penn Foundation. In the introduction to Philadelphia Guide: African-American State Historical Markers published in 1992, Bernard C. Watson, Ph.D., then-president and CEO of the foundation, wrote: “The Philadelphia African-American Pennsylvania State Marker Project is a modest first step toward correcting one of the most egregious problems in Philadelphia public history. Philadelphia, the birthplace of our independence, home of the Liberty Bell, the first capital city of these United States, is so rich in historical detail that the absence of signs and signposts to recognize and commemorate the nearly 300-year presence of Africans and then African-Americans, has been especially troublesome. They, too, were and are part of our history.”

Then as now, gentrification was unmarking black history. Dr. Blockson wrote this about the origin of the project: “When the project began, it became apparent that Philadelphia, like other American cities, was losing places of historical significance through gentrification and neglect. It is our hope that through the installation of the African-American historical markers, we can preserve the remaining sites and revive memories of past events and citizens who lived before us and made positive contributions to our nation.”

Jessie Redmon Fauset was among the first wave of markers dedicated in the 1990s. Her marker was installed in front of the North Philadelphia house in which she was living at the time of her death.

The February 18, 2017 issue of the New Yorker included an article by literary commentator Morgan Jerkins, “The Forgotten Work of Jessie Redmon Fauset.” The piece revived interest in Fauset’s literary work. However, the accomplished writer was never forgotten in Philadelphia. On its 150th anniversary in 1998, the Alumnae Association of the Philadelphia High School for Girls elected Fauset to their Distinguished Daughters Court of Honor. She was the first African American graduate of the prestigious public school.

Although former Sixer and NBA legend Charles Barkley played on a different court, he, too, honored Fauset by naming her a “Philadelphia Black History Month All Star” in February 2018. A few months later, Jacqueline Wiggins found an ugly patch on the sidewalk where Fauset’s historical marker used to be.

Read More

#JusticeForMichaelWhite Update

As supporters gathered for a rally for Michael White, a rumor spread that District Attorney Larry Krasner had dropped the first-degree murder charge against the Morgan State University student in the fatal stabbing of Sean Schellenger.

Fortunately, it was not fake news. At White’s court hearing, the DA’s office reduced the charge from first-degree murder to third-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter. The District Attorney said the video evidence did not support first-degree murder. Family and supporters say White stood his ground. It is a case of self-defense.

White’s attorney is Daniel Stevenson, Chief of the Homicide Unit of the Philadelphia Public Defender’s Office. He was interviewed on Wake Up With WURD.

The preliminary hearing was continued until October 30. Bail was set at $150,000. White will be under house arrest once bail is posted. Two advocacy groups – Philadelphia Community Bail Fund and Philadelphia Bail Fund – posted the $15,000 cash bail.

As of this writing, White is still locked up. White was released from the Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility on Monday, August 6. He is home with his parents.

A community picnic for the young poet will be held on August 18.

For more info and updates, join Michael White (Freedom) Facebook group.

#JusticeForMichaelWhite

On July 12, Michael White was on his job as a bicycle deliveryman when an altercation took place that left Sean Schellenger fatally stabbed in the back. Those facts are not in dispute. What is in dispute is what led to the confrontation between the then-20-year-old courier and 37-year-old Schellenger who was riding in a Mercedes Benz with two other white men.

Parenthetically, Schellenger competed as a quarterback in his junior and senior year in high school. He also was an elite wrestler who was scheduled to be inducted into the Coatesville Area Senior High School Hall of Fame in October.

With the support of Philadelphia Peaceful Surrender, White turned himself in to the police less than 24 hours later. He was charged with one count of murder and one count of possession of an instrument of crime. The Morgan State University student was denied bail. He remains in custody at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility, where he spent his 21st birthday.

In an interview with radio talk show host Solomon Jones, District Attorney Larry Krasner said all homicides in the state are classified as “murder generally.” He said there are five levels of homicide, ranging from first-degree murder to voluntary and involuntary manslaughter, the last of which is usually applied in cases of self-defense. Krasner added, “Once a suspect is charged and the evidentiary collection period begins, that person, unless he or she is charged with first-degree murder, is usually eligible for bail.”

Family and friends say White acted in self-defense. Given the racial dynamics, some question whether that’s a viable defense for a black man accused of killing a white man. Philadelphia magazine columnist Ernest Owens writes:

Black boys don’t ever get to be helpless, vulnerable, or in desperation. They’re always a threat, whether they choose to be or not.

[…]

When I saw the mugshot of 20-year-old college student Michael White, who is now charged for murder in the high-profile stabbing death of Philadelphia real estate developer Sean Schellenger, I felt numb.

Because his killer could have been me or any other young Black boy who’s encountered a similar confrontation.

On the eve of White’s first court appearance, supporters will hold a rally outside the office of the District Attorney. They want the murder charge dismissed or downgraded, and White released on bail pending trial.

#WaitingWhileBlack at Starbucks

The Philadelphia Police Department has released the audio recording of the Starbucks manager's 911 call and police report.

The now former manager of the Starbucks located 1801 Spruce Street said the non-ordering customers were “two gentlemen.” The Philadelphia police dispatcher described them as a “group of males refusing to leave.” The police description sounds more threatening than two gentlemen.

The Philadelphia did not deescalate the situation. They actually escalated the incident. If these were two white gentlemen, there is no doubt the police would have politely escorted them out of the establishment. Instead, two black gentlemen were arrested for the unforgivable offense of Waiting While Black at Starbucks.

Starbucks has since announced that the 8,000 company-owned stores will close on the afternoon of May 29 “to conduct racial-bias education geared toward preventing discrimination in our stores.” CEO Kevin Johnson said in a statement:

I’ve spent the last few days in Philadelphia with my leadership team listening to the community, learning what we did wrong and the steps we need to take to fix it. While this is not limited to Starbucks, we’re committed to being a part of the solution. Closing our stores for racial bias training is just one step in a journey that requires dedication from every level of our company and partnerships in our local communities.

Meanwhile in the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection, “heartbroken” Mayor Jim Kenney is standing by Police Commissioner Richard Ross who said his “officers did absolutely nothing wrong.” The Philadelphia Inquirer editorialized:

Ross defended his officers, saying the men arrested were asked three times “politely to leave the location … because they were trespassing” and that the officers “had “a legal obligation to carry out their duties. And they did just that.”

What Ross leaves out is that officers do have some discretion in carrying out their duties. Consider when the Eagles won the Super Bowl and only four arrests were made after drunken, celebrating fans flipped a car, dismantled light poles, smashed a Macy’s window, and crumpled an awning at the Ritz-Carlton.

Philadelphia police were praised for showing discretion during the protest-deluged Democratic National Convention two years ago, when they made only 11 arrests over four days while issuing more than 100 citations. Where was that restraint when police responded to the 911 call from Starbucks?

Commissioner Ross has apologized to Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson, the “two gentlemen” who were waiting while black at Starbucks for only two minutes when the manager called the police.

Mayor Jim Kenney applauded Ross for his “courage”:

Sometimes courage is as simple as a willingness to evaluate your own words and actions, and to account for them. Today we saw such courage with the words of Police Commissioner Richard Ross. I applaud his ability to reflect on this very difficult week, and to articulate his changed perspective. It’s that courage and self-reflection that makes the Commissioner such an effective leader. The current realities of race relations and bias in 2018 warrant ongoing re-evaluations by each and every one of us.

The current reality is that the audio of the 911 call and Rashon Nelson’s and Donte Robinson’s calm demeanor on “Good Morning America” rendered the police commissioner’s statement untenable. The 911 call and Nelson and Robinson’s interview demolished Ross’ claim that his “officers did absolutely nothing wrong.”

Ross and the Philadelphia Police Department must be held accountable. So pour a second cup of non-Starbucks coffee because POWER, Philadelphians Organized to Witness, Empower and Rebuild, is not letting this slide.

Waiting While Black at Starbucks

During the Jim Crow era, Louis Armstrong asked, “What did I do to be so black and blue?”

In 2018, men in blue uniforms arrested two African Americans whose only sin is in their skin. Their offense – waiting while black at Starbucks.

@Starbucks The police were called because these men hadn’t ordered anything. They were waiting for a friend to show up, who did as they were taken out in handcuffs for doing nothing. All the other white ppl are wondering why it’s never happened to us when we do the same thing. pic.twitter.com/0U4Pzs55Ci

— Melissa DePino (@missydepino) April 12, 2018

While implicit bias led to the 911 call, Police Commissioner Richard Ross is complicit in the criminalization of black men. In a video posted on Facebook, Ross said:

They did a service that they were called to do. And if you think about it logically, that if a business calls and they say that someone is here that I no longer wish to be in my business, [police officers] now have a legal obligation to carry out their duties.

There is nothing logical about implicit bias.

In an open letter, Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson said the arrest was “reprehensible”:

By now, you may be aware of a disheartening situation in one of our Philadelphia-area stores this past Thursday, that led to a reprehensible outcome.

I’m writing this evening to convey three things:

First, to once again express our deepest apologies to the two men who were arrested with a goal of doing whatever we can to make things right. Second, to let you know of our plans to investigate the pertinent facts and make any necessary changes to our practices that would help prevent such an occurrence from ever happening again. And third, to reassure you that Starbucks stands firmly against discrimination or racial profiling.

In the coming days, I will be joining our regional vice president, Camille Hymes—who is on the ground in Philadelphia—to speak with partners, customers and community leaders as well as law enforcement. Most importantly, I hope to meet personally with the two men who were arrested to offer a face-to-face apology.

Meanwhile, Mayor Jim Kenney is “heartbroken”:

I am heartbroken to see Philadelphia in the headlines for an incident that -- at least based on what we know at this point -- appears to exemplify what racial discrimination looks like in 2018.

However, Kenney is not “heartbroken” enough to launch an independent investigation of the incident. Instead, the Philadelphia Police Department is investigating itself. A fact noted by the Washington Post:

Kenney said little about the response of his police force beyond mentioning an ongoing review from Police Commissioner Richard Ross.

In his Facebook monologue, Ross said the police department sends all new recruits to the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum because “we want them to know about the atrocities that were, in fact, committed by policing around the world.”

The Commissioner encouraged us to “make our own value judgment.” So here’s mine -- Negro, please! Did you send new recruits to visit the African American Museum in Philadelphia’s exhibit, “Arresting Patterns: Perspectives on Race, Criminal Justice, Artistic Expression, and Community?” The museum is located one block from police headquarters.

Ross declared his “officers did absolutely nothing wrong” in arresting two black men whose only offense is the color of their skin. But he will not have the last word.

POWER, a coalition of clergy leaders representing more than 50 interfaith congregations in Southeastern and Central Pennsylvania, will hold a march and sit-in on Monday, April 16. Protesters will gather at 3:30pm at The Philadelphia Ethical Society, 1906 Rittenhouse Square. From there, they will march and occupy the Starbucks located at 1801 Spruce Street from 4-6pm.

Commissioner Ross, just so you know, they will not make any purchases. So get your paddy rollers ready.

Harlem on My Mind

Gentrification is displacing longtime residents in historically African American neighborhoods from Bedford-Stuyvesant in Brooklyn to Baldwin Hills in Los Angeles.

I grew up in Bed-Stuy and went to college in Harlem where an iconic mural, the “Spirit of Harlem,” was covered up by Footaction, a sneaker and apparel company.

Langston Hughes famously asked, “What happens to a dream deferred?”

We know what happens if we don’t fight the collateral damage of gentrification. African American cultural heritage and presence will be erased from public memory. So Harlem activists are organizing to give the boot to Footaction.

For me, it’s déjà vu all over again. In 2015, Pennrose Properties demolished the “Tribute to John Coltrane” mural in the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood in North Philadelphia.

But rather than simply lament its destruction, I made some noise in my capacity as director of All That Philly Jazz. Fast forward two years, Pennrose Chairman and CEO Richard K. Barnhart thanked me for my activism. Barnhart told me that in raising awareness of the importance of cultural heritage preservation I “made him a better person.”

On September 24, 2017, the “Why We Love Coltrane” mural was dedicated.

The mural was funded by Pennrose Properties and the City of Philadelphia, in partnership with All That Philly Jazz, Strawberry Mansion Neighborhood Action Committee and Fairmount Park Conservancy.

Footaction is owned by retail giant Foot Locker. Together, we can make Footaction a better corporate citizen. Let’s make some noise.

UPDATE: After making some noise on Twitter, I received a DM from Footaction.

True to its word, restoration of the “Spirit of Harlem” mural is in progress.

Advocacy works!

Boycott Denver's ink! Coffee

In cities across the country, gentrification is displacing African Americans. In the District of Columbia, for instance, a new study found that for the first time in nearly 60 years, the city’s black population dipped below 50 percent. Historically black neighborhoods are being transformed into "gilded ghettos" for white millennials.

At the same time, gentrification is erasing African American cultural heritage from public memory. In Philadelphia, the Royal Theater, once considered “American’s Finest Colored Photoplay House,” has been reduced to a façade.

To raise money to pay for the sins -- and crimes -- of its priests, the Archdiocese wants to sell St. Peter Claver Catholic Church, the Mother Church of Philadelphia’s black Catholics.

The historic church is listed on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places. So prospective buyers should take note there will be hell to pay if they try to demolish the historic properties.

In Denver, gentrifiers are moving into Five Points, once known as the Harlem of the West. As gentrifiers move in, longtime African American residents are displaced. To rub salt in the wound, a local coffee chain, ink! Coffee, celebrates gentrifying the neighborhood.

The chain’s founder, Keith Herbert, said it was a “joke.” Well, the joke is on him. The in-your-face sign of white privilege garnered negative headlines from coast-to-coast (here, here and here). In a Facebook post, Herbert apologized for the “joke”:

I have been following the comments on social media and listening to our customers, and I want you to know that I hear you. I have used the last 24 hours to listen to your perspectives, and to better educate myself on gentrification. I am embarrassed to say that I did not fully appreciate the very real and troubling issue of gentrification, and I want to sincerely apologize to those who understand firsthand the hardship and cultural consequences that gentrification has caused in the Five Points neighborhood, throughout the City and County of Denver and in communities throughout our state.

Hebert said he will “educate” himself about the issue. If he had not closed the Five Points location on Saturday, the hundreds of protesters would have schooled him that gentrification is no laughing matter to those who are pushed out.

Community leaders and activists have called for a boycott of ink! If you have family or friends in the Denver area, please help spread the word: #DontDrinkInk.

I’m a coffee drinker but I would rather drink muddy water than a drop of the white privilege ink! is brewing.

UPDATE: The creative “genius” behind the ink! Coffee sandwich-board sign, Cultivator Advertising & Design, Inc., has taken its website offline.

Now that’s funny.