BY ERIC KOLENICH
Richmond Times-Dispatch
WILLIAMSBURGÂ â The College of William & Mary has renamed three buildings and a department that currently honor supporters of the Confederacy, the schoolâs latest move in a years-long process to shed references to men who supported the Confederacy, enslavement and racism.
Instead, the university will honor the schoolâs first Black student, a man who studied LGBTQ traditions and a descendent of a U.S. president.
âThe past is the past, but how we know it and how we tell it evolves as we learn more and as our community changes,â president Katherine Rowe said at Fridayâs board of visitors meeting. âWilliam & Mary must pursue truth telling.â
Photo - of - by staff | April 23, 2021
Following a consultative and thorough process established earlier this year, William & Mary’s Board of Visitors voted Friday to rename two campus buildings and name one campus structure to honor trailblazing alumni who helped open the door for marginalized people at both the university and beyond.
Morton Hall will become John E. Boswell Hall, named for an alumnus, recognized scholar and advocate for the LGBTQ+ community. The Arcade at Cary Field, the arched walkway at Zable Stadium that serves as its northern colonnade, will be named the Arthur W. Matsu Arcade after the university’s first known Asian-American student and William & Mary’s first “true gridiron hero.” Taliaferro Hall will become Hulon L. Willis Sr. Hall, named after the first African-American student to enroll at William & Mary.
Last summer, I had the opportunity to see the protests and painting of the Confederate statues in Richmond, Virginia. For me, this was the pinnacle of my own personal journey of reflection.
The protests gave witness to a long simmering struggle with race in our nation going back to the Civil War. For some, they want to bury and forget it.
While 165 years seem like a long time ago, recently a couple of events demonstrate how close it is. In May 2020, Irene Triplett passed away. She was the last person to receive a pension from the Civil War. She received $877.56 a year.
Some Reflections on Richmond and Confederate Statues wksu.org - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wksu.org Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
A nation at a crossroads gets a new beginning
Ted Anthony
Glenshaw, Pa. The enormous signs, selling for just $9.99, greet shoppers at the suburban supermarket’s entryway, carrying a holiday message that means something very different this year: “GATHER,” they shout, even as the state’s governor urges citizens to do precisely otherwise.
To come together or to stay apart: one of the countless, sometimes excruciating dilemmas that Americans find themselves caught between as a disheartening year is finally and enthusiastically shown the door.
They’re caught between presidents, one of whom is clear that he really doesn’t want to go away. They’re between a ragged year of pandemic and either a successful vaccine or another chapter of upheaval. They’re between people on one side who say the country’s crashing and burning and people on the other side who say the same thing.