Week 7: Fountain Pens

I met with Mr. John O’Neal again to discuss the arrangement of his papers at Amistad. O’Neal identified several documents in his collection for processing, including transcripts of interviews for his book proposal. While working with the Free Southern Theater, O’Neal wrote and directed several plays, and in his free time, O’Neal collected a variety of materials for his book, including personal interviews of civil rights advocates.  O’Neal also mentioned he worked with the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) to establish the Free Southern Theater.

During our meeting, I learned one unique and valuable lesson about fountain pens: never use another writer’s fountain pen.  O’Neal showed me his new fountain pen his wife bought him for his birthday and declared that using a fountain pen plays an important part in defining a writer’s experience.

I wonder if this little life lesson compares to using a painter’s paintbrush or borrowing an archivist’s stainless steel archival spatula. 

But I digress…

Week 6: Black Resistance in the Age of Revolution Conference

I attended the Black Resistance in the Age of Revolution Conference held on the campus of Tulane University. The conference was a symposium commemorating the bicentennial of the 1811 slave uprising in territorial Louisiana, the largest slave rebellion in the history of North America and the United States.

During the opening session, keynote speaker, Professor Maurice Jackson of Georgetown University, presented a paper titled, Haiti, Louisiana and Beyond: The Importance of Slave Rebellion in African American History.  Jackson described slave rebellions among enslaved Africans in the Americas and examined the 1811 slave uprising within the context of Louisiana, Southern, and Caribbean history. He discussed the success of the Haitian Revolution and various eras of revolutionary change that received great attention in popular history, including the revolts of well known slave revolutionaries Gabriel Prosser, Denmark Vesey, and Nat Turner.

Other scholars at the conference presented papers and discussed topics pertaining to the slave rebellion in the 1790s Caribbean; women, gender, and slave rebellion; the regional impact of the Haitian Revolution; and the slave rebels in history and memory.

In addition, the staff of the Amistad Research Center held a special reception for the event, hosting scholars and historians from Tulane University and other academic institutions across the country.

Week 5: Freedom Schools, Ritual Murder, and Black Resistance...

During week five, I continued to arrange O’Neal’s civil rights organizations series and I found another interesting document – a memorandum from the Mississippi Freedom Summer Project Staff that was sent to the Mississippi Freedom School Teachers. The memorandum describes an overview and purpose of the Freedom Schools, which was to provide an educational experience for African American students in Mississippi and the South and foster social and political participation in the Civil Rights Movement.

This week, I attended a play, titled Ritual Murder, at the Ashé Cultural Arts Center. The one-act play centers on an investigation of a murder of a young black man by his best friend in a black bar on a Saturday night in New Orleans. Written more than 30 years ago by Tom Dent, the play is still relevant today in the discussion of seemingly senseless murders. (Note: The Amistad Research Center is the repository for the Tom Dent papers).

Next, I plan to attend the Black Resistance in the Age of Revolution Conference. This symposium commemorates the bicentennial of the 1811 Slave Uprising in Territorial Louisiana. I read the book, American Uprising: The Untold Story of America’s Largest Slave Revolt by Daniel Rasmussen and I am extremely excited to learn more about this subject from other scholars at the symposium.  The conference will be held at Tulane University.

Check back next week for a conference update…

Week 4: Processing O’Neal’s Papers

I finished sorting the John O’Neal papers and began processing his civil rights organizations series. These files encompass reports, correspondence and meeting notes of O’Neal’s involvement with several civil rights organizations.  O’Neal graduated from Southern Illinois University and became a Field Secretary of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) in Georgia and Mississippi. O’Neal also contributed extensively to voter rights registration efforts with his participation in the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).

Of note is a certificate of attendance awarded to John O’Neal in recognition of his participation in the SCLC’s Citizenship School Training Program from August 19 to August 23, 1963.  Citizenship Schools focused on teaching adults to read so they could pass voter registration and other literacy tests…

In my free time, I stroll along the 1.7 mile jogging and bike path through Audubon Park. The park is located directly across from Tulane and Loyola University and was used as a temporary helicopter port and camp for National Guard troops and relief workers after Hurricane Katrina.

Week 3: Meeting History

Week three was AWESOME! I had the honor of meeting Mr. John M. O’Neal and his wife when they stopped by to visit the Amistad Research Center. He was very enthusiastic about the archival processing of his papers. I also participated in the HistoryMakers’ Back-to-School program, where I met blues, rhythm and blues and rock and roll musician, singer, and bandleader, Deacon John Moore, better known as Deacon John. He is a local favorite on the New Orleans music scene. At the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA), Deacon John talked to sixty high school freshmen students about the importance of education and followed his presentation with two crowd-pleasing songs. It was an extraordinary performance of high acclaim!

Week 2: Historical Treasures

As I undertake the mission of surveying the John M. O’Neal papers for processing, I discovered some interesting historical treasures. The John M. O’Neal papers consist of 30 linear feet and document O’Neal’s artistic style and vision as an actor, director, playwright, community and civil rights activist. One finding is the working notes for the development of the Free Southern Theater, which includes the general plan for the theater group, project planning and other writings related to theater productions. O’Neal founded the Free Southern Theater in 1965 as the cultural and educational arm of the Southern Civil Rights Movement. His philosophy is that politics and art are complementary, not opposing terms, and his work has taken him to perform for audiences throughout North America and Europe.

Another discovery is a signed letter from Coretta Scott King and Yolanda King inviting O’Neal to join the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Center’s Institute on Cultural Affairs (ICA) through membership on the Advisory Committee. ICA was one of the ten institutes of the King Center, which sought to use the power of the arts to advance the teachings and methods of Dr. King for nonviolent social change throughout the world community. Mrs. King asked O’Neal to serve as a national and international advocate for the ICA. Members of the committee included artist from a variety of disciplines as well as supporters of the arts. The letter is dated December 17, 1982.

Week 1: Welcome to Amistad!

Flying to New Orleans in the midst of Tropical Storm Lee was extremely frightening. But, after a turbulent voyage and a weekend of heavy rainfall and gusting winds, I began my first day at the Amistad Research Center (ARC) with welcoming smiles.  I received a friendly welcome from the Executive Director of Amistad, Lee Hampton, Director of Processing, Laura Thomson, Director of Library and Reference Services, Christopher Harter, and the Center’s entire staff. After a brief staff meeting, I toured the repository with Laura.

 

My first week at ARC has been educational. There is a lot of valuable material at ARC and researchers can certainly take advantage of over 600 manuscript collections and 200,000 books documenting Africana and ethnic history.  For me, the biggest thing right now is familiarizing myself with the institutional holdings and focusing on my individual projects, including processing the papers of playwright and community activist, John M. O’Neal. 

 

In addition, I appraised two small collections, developed appraisal reports, created container lists and accessioned the records in Archon database management system. One of the collections I appraised provides an extensive view into the life of an African American classical musician.

 

It is interesting work…