GDW EVENT ALERT: N. Va. Coalition to Protest Ongoing Desecration of Historic African-American Cemetery

 By Gloria DULAN-Wilson

Hello All:

 

Well, here we go again! SS/DD - the predatory mentality of the caucasoids are busy as usual.  This is reminscent of what we went through in NYC with the African Burial Grounds, with construction companies wanting to dig up sacred grounds to construct high rises over them.   

I just received this media advisory, and think that those in the DMV (DC, Maryland, Virginia) area might do well to take heed.  This affects you and your families, ancestors, and those coming in the near future.  So you might want to save the date of Saturday, April 23 to take a stand for your people.

 

 

  On Saturday, April 23, the Coalition to Save Historic Thoroughfare will hold a protest against the alleged ongoing desecration of African-American and Native American cemeteries in Thoroughfare, Va., that are the resting places of slaves, freed slaves, freedmen, freedwomen, and Indigenous people.   

 

[NOTE: This event is part of a nationwide effort by local communities seeking to protect historic Black and Native American cemeteries.] 

  

The protest will take place at the historic Scott Cemetery, now owned by The Farm Brewery at Broad Run. Protesters will hold a short rally, followed by a peaceful protest across from the brewery. 

 

WHAT: Protest Against Ongoing Desecration of Historic African-American Cemetery in Thoroughfare, Va. 

WHEN: Saturday, April 23, 3:30 p.m. 

WHERE: Across from The Farm Brewery at Broad Run, 16015 John Marshall Hwy, Broad Run, VA 20137 

CONTACT: Frank Washington, twfit2live@gmail.com, 702-812-4174; Sheila Hansen, shoooty@aol.com, 540-270-3742 

 

Thoroughfare, Va., is a small community comprised of people of Native American and African-American descent. Recently, the community has been struggling to reclaim three community cemeteries purchased by developers. 

 

Since The Farm Brewery at Broad Run purchased the Scott property, and despite several cease-and-desist orders from Prince William County, the brewery has repeatedly bulldozed, graded and landscaped the cemetery, and currently is trying to claim that the Scott Cemetery does not even exist.  (WTF???)

 

SEE: Historic Scott Cemetery in Thoroughfare in limbo 

https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/historic-scott-cemetery-in-thoroughfare-in-limbo/article_7aa3da16-a55d-11ec-93d4-dfd5b4151578.html 

 

In 1966, the Scott Cemetery was listed on a USGS map. In the late 1990s, the cemetery was listed by Prince William County as containing 75 to 100 graves.  

 

According to Frank Washington, representing the Thoroughfare Community, “Slaves, freed slaves, freedmen/freedwomen, and Native-Americans who worked and lived on the land of Thoroughfare, are under the threat of having their final sacred resting places decimated or completely removed by encroaching developers.” 

 

Virginia’s governor recently signed two bills introduced by local Del. Danica Roem designed to prevent future issues similar to those occurring at Thoroughfare. (Does this mean it won't save the burial grounds currently under siege?)

 

SEE: Youngkin signs several Prince William County-specific bills 

https://www.insidenova.com/headlines/youngkin-signs-several-prince-william-county-specific-bills/article_7f3a01ba-bc21-11ec-9b89-97f1161513c9.html  

 

BACKGROUNDER: 

 

Thoroughfare is an historic Native American and African American community with roots going back hundreds of years. Originally a Native American community, during the 1800s African-Americans began to settle there and a vibrant mixed-race community was established. Today, Thoroughfare is centered around Oakrum Baptist Church, and the descendants of the founders still call Thoroughfare home. 

 

When developers purchased land containing the three major Thoroughfare cemeteries and, early in 2021, destroyed the Scott Cemetery, blocked access to the Potters Field Cemetery, and threatened the Fields/Allen Cemetery with development, the Coalition to Save Historic Thoroughfare formed to protect the cemeteries and to preserve the history of Thoroughfare. 

 

Recently, The Prince William Board of County Supervisors agreed to purchase a two-acre parcel to preserve the heritage of the Thoroughfare community. 

 

SEE: Prince William Co. approves historic district land purchase for future park 

https://wtop.com/prince-william-county/2021/11/prince-william-co-oks-land-purchase-in-thoroughfare-historical-district/  

Video: Virginia Group Works to Save Historic African-American, Native American Cemeteries  

https://youtu.be/6sXpSl5birc 

  

The town of Thoroughfare was established and settled by freed African-American slaves and Native Americans. Homes and family cemeteries in this community date back to 1860 and earlier.   

  

Descendants of freed slaves and Native-Americans still live in Thoroughfare.   

  

Slaves, freed slaves, freedmen/freedwomen, and Native-Americans who worked and lived on the land of Thoroughfare, Va., are under the threat of having their final sacred resting places decimated or completely removed by encroaching developers. Family members are also being denied access to many of these graves.   

  

Historic freed slave homes, land and structures are under the same threat of destruction and at risk of being lost.   

  

FOR MORE INFORMATION: 

 

Video: Coalition to Save Historic Thoroughfare - A Town Under Siege   

https://www.facebook.com/104115108438832/videos/762944897756999   

Video: Community Fights to Save Historic Cemeteries from Development (NBC4)   

https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/northern-virginia/community-fights-to-save-historic-cemeteries-from-development/2635800/   

A small Virginia town fights to save historic cemeteries of former slaves (WTOP)   

https://wtop.com/prince-william-county/2021/04/a-small-virginia-town-fights-to-save-historic-cemeteries-of-former-slaves/   

‘Even in death, they have to fight for a name' (Prince William Times)   

https://www.princewilliamtimes.com/news/even-in-death-they-have-to-fight-for-a-name/article_d827f3b4-9bf1-11eb-a3b3-6f86358a9834.html   

Coalition tries to preserve historic western Prince William cemeteries   

https://www.insidenova.com/headlines/coalition-tries-to-preserve-historic-western-prince-william-cemeteries/article_f2a7a026-a3f4-11eb-ac7b-8713b141f658.html   

In Virginia, a historic Black neighborhood grapples with development (Washington Post)   

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-prince-william-settlement-development/2021/07/18/5bb2ff34-e41e-11eb-a41e-c8442c213fa8_story.html    

The race to save African-American cemeteries from being 'erased' (Reuters)    

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-landrights-race-trfn/the-race-to-save-african-american-cemeteries-from-being-erased-idUSKCN2DW01A   

 

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IMO:  This is tragic and INSIDIOUS!

It calls for more measures than protesting in front of a brewery.  It really calls for declaring the  properties themselves national landmarks through State legislation, to be given to the community in perpetuity - 

 

I would be interested to know who the brewery purchased the burial grounds from, in the first place, since it was part of the community - Who had the "authority" to sell it in the first place?

 

Who is their lawyer?  Who can make sure the brewery gets a refund and leaves - cease & desist immediately, if not sooner?  

 

This has become yet another in the game book of the caucasoids - one we should all be mindful of going forward.  

 

In the meantime, it would be great if those in the area could be there to show moral support; and if our civil rights organizations could lend support in the efforts to save our history. None of these attacks on us as Black people are isolated.  They are coming at us from all sides.  The rise in racist attacks against Black people can be traced directly back to the previous ersatz president who has not-so-quietly declared open season on Black people through his fostering of blatant redneckism.  This is not saying that it started with him, but it most definitely been exacerbated by his actions, rhetoric, rallies, and playing to a base of depraved, demented degenerates - who have taken it as a carte blanche to go on the attack against what we value.  Prayers alone won't stop it; neither will demonstrations - legal means must be exercised to prevent any further incursion.  Would be wonderful if the state would send them along with the newly passed bill to stop the madness.  

 

It took bringing it to national attention to save the African Burial Ground in New York City, and walking over a few heads as well.  We pray that the people of Thoroughfare are victorious in getting their Ancestral resting places back before any additional incursion happens.  

NOW THAT YOU KNOW

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?

Stay Blessed &

ECLECTICALLY BLACK 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gloria DULAN-Wilson

 

 

 

Missing Miss Lena: :Lena Horne Makes Her Transition

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

This was originally going to be an Event Alert article about a break-through theatrical production of “LENA: THE LIFE OF LENA HORNE”, which is set to preview on Sunday, May 16th, at the Lafayette Grill and Bar, in downtown Manhattan.**

But sadly, the thrust of my article has changed drastically. For you see, our dear Sister Lena Horne has made her transition. That wonderful, beautiful standard of Afrocentricity, and Black womanhood, who reigned from the early 40’s through the 21st Century, never losing one iota of her beauty, charm, grace, wit, poise, and clarity, has now joined her two peer-divas, Dr. Dorothy Height and Evelyn Cunningham.

Interestingly enough, each of those ladies were in their 90’s, and managed to retain their beauty, energy and enthusiasm. Each, was an activist; and each made their own contribution to Black people and the world in their own way. Each had made their mark. And neither of them will be forgotten.

Somewhere in the back of my psyche, as I remember each of these ladies, I silently think: I want to be like each of them when I grow up. (So I guess I’d better get started now.)

Ms. Lena Horne was a legend in my life from a very young age. When I was a kid growing up in a still-segregated Oklahoma City, OK, my parents would take us to either the Aldrich, the East Side or the Jewel Theater -- all Black-owned motion picture theaters -- in our communities. We would sit and watch Lena Horne , dressed in the most elegant gowns, singing Stormy Weather (with Katherine Duhnam dancing in the background); or Cabin In The Sky with Paul Robeson and Todd Duncan. These wonderful Black cinema classics still hold their own today.

{Note: The great thing about Black owned theaters in Oklahoma City was that they would continuously show old and new Black movies, as well as contemporary white movies. So as kids we’d see old Black movies from the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s, alongside whatever else was current -- Duke Ellington’s “Black and Tan Fantasy”, Oscar Michaeaux’s “Bronze Buckaroo,” etc., Anna Lucasta, and others spring to mind.}

I remember watching Ms. Lena with Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, and some of the other Black artists, and thinking how beautiful she was. She had an energy about her and a sparkle in her eyes, that was still there when she played Glenda the Good Witch of the West in the movie production of “The Wiz”, starring Diana Ross.

She had that exact same sparkle in her eyes when I met her in the 90’s at the premiere of “And Then I’ll Be Free To Travel Home”, where she hosted Eric Tait’s documentary of the African Burial Ground, held at the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC).

And, as I watched her speak, interact with Eric, Noel Pointer, Lillian Smith, and others, knowing that at that time she was in her 80’s, I thought, “How does she do it? She looks fabulous!” She moved about with the grace and ease of a woman half her age -- not a bulge, not a limp, no trace of age or illness.

But what impressed me even more than her appearance, was her dedication and devotion to promoting and supporting Eric Tait’s work in documenting the recovery of our ancestral remains, as well as her wealth of knowledge of things African and Black history.

Ms. Horne was not just beauty, she was also brains as well. She was so well informed, it was clear that the information could not have come from a mere preliminary briefing. She was totally tuned in. Her dedication to the African Burial Ground was recently re-iterated during a recent re-release of Eric Tait’s documentary in 2010, where she gave the introduction of the DVD.

I am in awe of Ms. Horne’s activisim. It truly spoke volumes about her love for her people, her gentility; her genuine dedication. She could have easily rested on her laurels as a Black beauty, heralded by the European world, but she refused to be relegated to a status that denied her dignity as a Black woman.

That courage of conviction and feisty spirit is no less resonant in her daughter Gail Lumet Buckley, whose love of history and research was wholeheartedly supported and heralded by her famous mother.

Ms. Horne had the wonderful quality of making you feel totally comfortable in her presence. She was approachable. She listened. She responded. She was genteel and joyful. You could not help but smile when you were around her.

And I know that they’re smiling even more in heaven, because now they have added another to the pantheon. I’m just wondering, though, can they stand to have three Black female activists there at the same time? Wow! That’s really going to be something.

My even earlier memories of Ms. Lena was when a friend of mine had completed a TV Production Training program sponsored by Chanel 13. They were holding a graduation ceremony and I was an invited to the screening of her graduation documentary.

The room was dark to accommodate the movie screen, so you could not see who was in the room. I remember being sent to a table where there were already several other people seated. When the lights came up I realized I was seated at a table with Lena Horne, Cicely Tyson, and a few other celebrities.

Ms. Horne and Ms. Tyson were both down to earth, jovial, and gracious. I was stunned. But I remember saying silently “Thank you, God!” I felt as though I was in such a privileged space, sitting with these two Divas.

They talked about everyday occurrences, their next projects; the importance of Black television programming. I just listened and soaked it up. My friend said that it was the first time she had ever seen me rendered speechless. I was totally awestruck. I have absolutely no idea what I said. I remember thinking if these two ladies are trying to out compliment each other, it’s an impossibility because they’re both so great.

Just that brief interaction with Ms. Horne taught me an important lesson about the facts of life and living in New York City: practically everyone in New York is a celebrity of one sort or another. For that reason, no one gawks at anyone. In New York, generally, we don’t have mobs running after a celebrity; we give them their respect and their privacy.

The memory I took away from the event and still hold to this day is that Ms. Horne and Ms. Tyson were two fantastic, down to earth women who were just as involved in what was happening in their community as they were being on the big screen.

My condolences to her family, and to the rest of us. But not to mourn the loss, but to celebrate the gain. We have been blessed with having Ms. Lena Horne among us for these 92 years, and we have been the beneficiary of her love, largess, creativity, activism. Each of us should definitely take a bit of Lena Horne with us and replicate what this wonderful woman started.

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson

**Lena: The Life of Lena Horne, Written and Directd by Nickolas Long III, starring Mia Davis, Andrea Womack, Kwasi Osei, Tangie Quinn, Cherisse Brandley, James F. Barrett IV, J. Lyn, at the Lafayette Grill and Bar, 54 Franklin Street (between B’way and Lafayette) call 212-732-4449 for info and times.

THEN I'LL BE FREE TO TRAVEL HOME: Documentary Guru Eric Tait Celebrates 40 Years of Telling Our Stories

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

I received an invitation by NYABJ (New York Association of Black Journalists)from several sources to attend a screening of "THEN I'LL BE FREE TO TRAVEL HOME". I first saw it 15 years ago, when my friend Eric Tait, one of the finest documentarians on the planet, first premiered it. He had left his position with ABC News to focus on completing the documentary -- a move most friends thought was either foolish or genius, depending on which side of the line they were standing.

Eric is currently celebrating 40 years in the realm of telling our stories.

They may or may not have remembered that I was there for the premiere of this fine production. What a day that was! It was there that I met the great Ms. Lena Horne and her daughter, a historian in her own right, Gail Lumet Buckley -- who had just penned her book "The Hornes." Ms. Horne was absolutely gorgeous at 80!!!

Interestingly enough, it that screening of the film which introduced me to the genius that is Eric Tait some 15 years ago, as well as the musical genius, Noel Pointer, who volunteered his time and talent to the preservation of those ancestral remains and the hallowed ground that had been desecrated by steam shovels and cranes. Noel is no longer with us on the physical plane, but his inspirational music lingers on.

Eric first premiered "THEN I'LL BE FREE TO TRAVEL HOME" at Borough of Manhattan Community College. The thoroughness, love, detail, and diligence with which he put this monumental piece together was and is absolutely awe-inspiring! Noel played his "magic" violin; his mother's chorale sang several Black (Negro) Spirituals

Eric Tait is a brother driven by perfection; by love of his people, by the need to know and the necessity to debunk distortions cover ups by a government and individuals whose interests are other than the well being and respect of a group of people who have long suffered under unorthodox reporting methods by the so-called 4th estate.

I absolutely love this film!! THEN I'LL BE FREE TO TRAVEL HOME is definitely not a sound bite. It goes into forensic detail about the people who were buried in those graves at the tip end of Manhattan. It introduces you to your brothers and sisters who would not sit idly by and allow them to sweep those remains under the proverbial rug. This was the precursor to the African Burial Ground memorial and commemoration.

It shows by graphic example what happens when you take a stand. Had it not been for the principled stand taken by David Paterson, who went against all the big wigs, all the investors, and stood for those bones, slapping an injunction on the construction company, and effectively preventing them from any further incursions on their last resting place, it would have been little more than an interesting headline.

When it was later showcased in Harlem at the Schomburg Library, it was well received by a relatively small audience - not the turn out one would expect in a predominantly Black community.

However, after that it seemed to have dropped off the map, out of sight until very recently. I kept looking for it on PBS, or the History Channel or (dare I hope, BET). So I am so glad to see that it's getting the attention and buzz it deserves.

This is a treasure that must be seen by adults, children, educators, students, elected officials -- nationally, IntraAfriCaribiNationally(just made that title up; it's another way of saying Eclectically Black. Try it on and see if it fits). There should be no one Black that has not seen this documentary and understands, chapter and verse exactly what the dynamics were surrounding the excavation and preservation of our ancestors. It should be required in schools - especially those with a majority of Black students.

I also absolutly treasure Eric Tait. Not only is he a fine Black man, he is a brain. He is a brain that whites try to say do not exist among us. He is the news man most mainstream media won't hire because he is dedicated to telling the truth. We all know how much they hate having all those lies debunked -- especially if it's one of our own who's doing it.

So for the first part of your Friday, before you go to hang out for the evening, strongly suggest that you go to Harlem Gateway at 135th and Amsterdam Avenue on the campus of City College (CCNY) and catch THEN I'LL BE FREE TO TRAVEL HOME. It's an eye opening masterpiece.

The age of Black re-awakening and enlightenment are slowly dawning; the light of truth is being shed, and it is up to us to avail ourselves of the opportunity.

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria Dulan-Wilson