Racial Justice

The current Harriet Tubman House at 566 Columbus Ave was built by the community members of South End Boston, brick by brick.  It was intended to provide social services for a diverse community, which it has done for decades. It is now closed for public access. New Boston Ventures has made a bid on the Harriet Tubman House with plans to demolish and rebuild it into a six story condo complex that will include one floor of "communal space," gallery space, 11 out of 66 "affordable living units," and a cafe. Although there are rumors that the sale has been finalized in order to discourage folks from continuing to fight, the sale CANNOT go through if the community does not want it to.  New Boston Venture's development team has crafted a proposal that may appeal to the current plight of displaced artists in Boston and reserves a small rental space for United South End Settlements to remain . Yet the proposal also appropriates the history of African American contributions to Boston and does not recognize what they are taking away from the community that labored for The Harriet Tubman House to exist. The sale of this building will displace and decentralize six non-profits that have provided programming for thousands of people. Our communal spaces -- spaces that have been used for organizing meetings, senior programming, community dinners, birthday celebrations, health services, GED programs, and more -- would effectively be reduced from a whole building to a mere corner of the first floor of a building. This downsizing of the true purpose of the building will limit public access and increase competition for space and programming within a community that already has limited meeting space. More important: the displacement of the six non-profits housed at the Harriet Tubman House -- in addition to the services they provide -- would cause the erosion of our community’s diversity and uniqueness, and it would contribute to the increasing homogenization of the neighborhood.  The Harriet Tubman House must be preserved in its present form as a memorial to a beloved leader, as a symbol for freedom and as a neighborhood space for cultural diversity, education, and public service.  It should remain in compliance with the requirements for buildings receiving public funds. We the undersigned support keeping the historic Harriet Tubman House at 566 Columbus Avenue as it has been outlined in the SouthEnd Urban Renewal Plan.  We implore USES’ Board, The Boston Planning and Development Agency, and the City of Boston to keep it as a much-needed community facility.

When Julius Jones was 19-years-old, he was convicted of a murder he says he did not commit. I need your help to save his life. Julius has lived on death row for almost 20 years, and is held in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day. He is allowed one hour of sunlight a day, and three showers a week. Every minute we wait to take action, Julius is suffering. Every second that goes by brings Julius closer to being executed for a crime he didn’t commit.  At the time of the crime for which he was convicted, Julius was a 19-year-old student athlete with a promising future, attending the University of Oklahoma on an academic scholarship. It is clear that Julius’ lawyer did not adequately defend him, and that explicit racial bias played a significant role in the process.. For example: Eyewitnesses place Mr. Jones at his parents’ home at the time of the murder, miles away from the crime scene.  Mr. Jones’ co-defendant admitted to being involved in the crime and is now free after testifying against Julius. He was heard bragging that he “set Julius up.” Mr. Jones’ co-defendant matches the only eyewitness description of the shooter based on the length of his hair. Newly-discovered evidence shows that at least one juror harbored racial prejudice that influenced his vote to convict and sentence Mr. Jones to death. One juror reported telling the judge about another juror who said the trial was a waste of time and “they should just take the n***** out and shoot him behind the jail.”  I learned about Julius’ story through Viola Davis’ docuseries “The Last Defense.” As a person of color and a person of faith, I knew that I couldn’t stand by while an innocent man was killed. I am an Oklahoma taxpayer and the idea that my money will be used to kill Julius makes me sick.  Every day an innocent man is forced to sit in solitary confinement, awaiting his death.  Recently, a grassroots movement successfully pressured Texas to stay the execution of Rodney Reed, another black man sentenced to death for a crime he says he didn’t commit. If we can save Rodney, then Julius has a chance. Please join me and demand justice for Julius.

Tennessee has a bust of Nathan Bedford Forrest, the KKK’s first Grand Wizard, featured prominently in our state Capitol building. Forrest was a slave trader who slaughtered many black soldiers. The state museum calls him a “terrorist. Add your email and join the call for Governor Lee and the State Capitol Commission to start the process to #MoveTheBust. 

Providence College has many racial and social-economic issues present within its community: 1. Low Diversity Levels both in students and faculty populations. Every classroom has a disproportionate level of white to POC ratio. We also lack students of under-represented backgrounds ex: low income, first-generation college students, immigrants, international students, etc. Demographic Data: https://www.forbes.com/colleges/providence-college/#24c5e3be6b56 Little Class Interaction Ranking (Princeton Review): https://www.forbes.com/colleges/providence-college/#24c5e3be6b56 2017 Article: https://www.golocalprov.com/news/pc-ranked-most-segregated-college-by-princeton-review 2. Ranked as the 3rd worst college in terms of race class interaction. White Students and Students of Color do not interact! The white students claim to have an "eye-opening experience" while at PC, yet the students of color only are opened to why their white peers see them as less. Social Events, Programs, opportunities at PC at either white or for students of color, there is no "community". 3. People of color at Providence College do not have a voice. There is no office that directly supports students of underrepresented backgrounds. 4. Racist or discriminatory incidents are not treated seriously.  5. Many faculty members are racist, known to be racist, and avoided by students because they are racists. 6. The Civ Program Reminds us of the discrimination that has happened throughout history, yet every seminar white students struggle to talk about racism and other forms of discrimination. People of Color feel out of place in Civ too.  7. White students automatically assume that surrounding neighborhoods are dangerous simply because they are predominantly black or Latino. For example Chad Brown.  8. Racial Biases Against Students Of Color by Residence Life, Student Affairs, Office Of Public Safety and their EMTs. 9. We had the opportunity to elect a President of Color for the first time in history who could address these issues, yet the board elected a white male to continue the tradition. Nothing against Fr. Sicard, he is great, but he will never know what it is like to be treated as the smaller race. He should have understood this before running for President. Electing a President of Color would have brought attention to these issues and empowered the POC population on campus as well.    Other Information/ Links: PC Coalition Against Racism says Providence College Elementary and Special Education department discriminates based on race, ethnicity and bi-lingual status   ( https://upriseri.com/2019-09-18-pc-car/  ) Providence College professor says diversity efforts are stifling the college's religious mission: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2016/11/09/providence-college-professor-says-diversity-efforts-are-stifling-colleges-religious Bottles Thrown at Black Students by White Students at Providence College, According to Reports -- 2016: https://www.golocalprov.com/news/bottles-thrown-at-black-students-by-white-students-at-providence-college-ac PC’s president: In the wake of racial bias incidents, college’s efforts insufficient (2017) : https://www.providencejournal.com/news/20171026/pcs-president-in-wake-of-racial-bias-incidents-colleges-efforts-insufficient Student Related Comments (Unigo) Read Through: https://www.unigo.com/colleges/providence-college/q-and-a/describe-the-students-at-your-school-6/5