| Forgotten sculpture memorializes
African-American struggle
by Diana Kohn |
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Tucked away behind the houses on Whittier Street NW between 4 th Street and 5 th Street is an unusual piece of sculpture - a metal rendition of a raised hand, standing in an open space at the center of the block used by the neighbors as a garden. The dark-colored, strongly contoured sculpture left in this hidden location is a story that helps explain the need for Black History Month.
| Photo: Julie Wiatt |  | | This dramatic sculpture is a startling sight, hidden away down an alley in Takoma DC. |
The sculpture dates back to 1968, as part of the massive effort to organize the weeks-long Poor People's Campaign on the Mall in Washington, DC.
The man responsible for commissioning the sculpture was Vincent deForest, a leader in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). He intended it to be the centerpiece of a historical mural celebrating the African American struggle for civil rights. As envisioned by Mr. deForest, the hand would be displayed against a curved background of panels, each capturing an aspect of that struggle. Then it would become a traveling exhibit - there were even plans to take it to the Democratic Convention.
Although the mural was erected on the Mall as part of "Resurrection City," the hand sculpture was not yet in place when the police tore down the entire encamp-ment. The sculpture remained in the deForest yard for 30 years, until the family moved away. Left behind, the statute now occupyies the open green space across from the old house.
Few people, even the nearest neighbors, remember why it is there.
When Martin Luther King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, SCLC and others were faced with continuing the Poor People's Campaign that King had launched the previous summer.
Mr. deForest wanted to use art to tell the story of African American history. "Artists are always the visionaries in social movements, and this was a way for them to contribute what they do best." he explains.
Working on the campaign prompted him to move his family to DC. He quickly narrowed his house search to Takoma DC. Why? "It had the diversity I was looking for and I fit in." He attributes much of that sense to the efforts of Neighbors Inc., a homeowners group organized a decade earlier to stop the racial fearmongering of block-busting.
Desegregation in the 1950s prompted DC whites to desert the city. Marvin Caplan formed Neighbors Inc, east of Rock Creek Park to battle "real estate interests, city officials, and the ambivalence of our own natures in an attempt to create a genuinely integrated community." It served as a counterpoint to the existing neighborhood associations which refused to admit black residents.
Mr. deForest believes it "created a network of residents who rallied behind their particular interest of bringing together diversity and deliberately fostered the kind a diverse community." Or, as he spells it, "comm-unity."
The first protestors from the Poor People's Campaign arrived in DC on May 11. Over the summer, as many as 7,000 protestors camped on the National Mall trying to force economic concessions. Then on June 19, the police moved in and tore down Resurrection City, carting everything away, including the mural.
Knowing the historic value of the exhibit, Mr. deForest took a truck to Ft. Belvoir military base where all the debris had been hauled and managed to rescue the pieces of the display. He still has them in safekeeping and dreams of someday resurrecting the exhibit.
This is part of Mr. deForest's bigger dream of establishing a national network of landmarks and other historically significant sites and exhibits that memorialize the African American history.
| Photo Courtesy of the Banneker Institute |  | | Vincent deForest (right) talks with actor Bill Grimette at a Banneker Society historical reenactment in 2003. |
In the 1970s, when the nation began focusing on the Bicentennial, Mr. DeForest saw an opportunity to raise awareness of black history.
Historic places, persons and events were identified, but Mr. deForest remembers, "African American landmarks were not part of the inventory. They were not recognized by the country as being important." Of the 1500 sites identified for national recognition, only four had significance to African Americans.
He countered with the African American Bicentennial. Among other things, it began the tradition of re-enacting Frederick Douglas' Fourth of July speech (given on the Fifth of July). Over the years, many leading actors, including James Earl Jones, stood in for Douglas.
Joining the National Park Service, Mr. deForest spearheaded a concerted effort to preserve African American landmarks such as the Frederick Douglas home and the school building connected with Brown v. Board of Education. Now retired and living in St. Louis with his wife Catherine, his current focus is the Underground Railroad. "It brings together both African American and Native American heritage."
Along the way he has worked with the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, based at Howard University. He served as narrator for the segment of their documentary, Freedom's Song , describing the Poor People's Campaign.
"The issues of poverty are still with us today. Look at Katrina. History recycles itself. But it doesn't mean anything to the generations behind us, unless we find effective and creative ways to put history in context," he says.
And once again he ponders the possibilities for the metal sculpture of a hand that remains on the open space behind Whittier and Fourth in Takoma DC. Perhaps it could be moved to a more prominent location or end up as a Smithsonian exhibit.
Diana Kohn is Education Chair of Historic Takoma, Inc., dedicated to helping preserve the heritage of Takoma Park, MD and Takoma, DC. Historic Takoma is currently renovating a building at Takoma Junction to serve as the new home for its archives. More information, including how to join, can be found at www.historictakoma.org
The Association for the Study of African-American Life and History, is based at Howard University. Freedom's Song, the DVD mentioned above, is available for free by contacting www.asalh.org. Additional materials including an educational guide and timeline accompany the DVD. ASALH also has an extensive collection of Black History Month materials that can be ordered from the same website.
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