Last week Aviva Kempner travelled to the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill for a screening of Rosenwald and to deliver a talk on the film. Her remarks were an installment in the Sylvia and Irving Margolis Lecture on the Jewish Experience in the American South. The event was hosted by the Carolina Center for Jewish Studies, a sub department within UNC Chapel Hill that seeks to “unite the general public, students and faculty from various academic disciplines who share a common passion for a deeper understanding of Jewish history, culture and thought.” (CCJS Mission Statement)
On November, 15th Southern Vermont College will welcome Rosenwald director Aviva Kempner for a screening and talk following the film. As well as giving her talk, Kempner will also be discussing the film and related topics with Southern Vermont College Humanities students and Bennington’s Temple Beth El.
You may not have thought that in watching the 2016 US Election coverage you could glimpse Julius Rosenwald’s influence, but time and time again his campaign of equality and education in the the early 20th century shines on through, even in present day. When Tim Kaine quoted Langston Hughes following Hillary Clinton’s defeat to Donald Trump, he not only referenced one of the greatest African American writers of all time but also a two time recipient of Rosenwald Grants for Creative Writing, one in 1931 and one 10 years later in 1941.
Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow. Dreams
~Langston Hughes, 1951
Carl Johnson, the last of Tuskegee Airman to graduate, still vividly remembers the challenges against segregation and bigotry the Tuskegee airmen from World War II had to overcome. The Tuskegee Institute, the historically black university founded by Booker T. Washington provided the airmen with rooms, food, hangars and flight instructors. It wasn’t until 2007 that Carl Johnson and other Tuskegee Airmen were collectively awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. Colin Powell, who served as the first black chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, “You showed America that there was nothing a black person couldn’t do.” The nation’s new National Museum of African American History and Culture features their plane, the Spirit of Tuskegee. We salute them for their service!
The Julius Rosenwald Fund financed the building of Moton Field, the primary flight facility for the training of the African American pilots at Tuskegee Institute. The Rosenwald film closes with a segment about the airmen and includes footage of Eleanor Roosevelt (a board member of the Rosenwald fund) visiting and praising them. The upcoming release of the Rosenwald DVD and Extras will also feature a segment about the Tuskegee Institute and its mission.
The Cleveland County Training School #2, N.C. was damaged by a fire September 15. The building was a historic Rosenwald School and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s owned by Christ Temple Apostolic Family Worship Center Inc and was being used to store the church’s clothing closet and food pantry for the homeless, both of which perished during the fire. The damage was too extensive to determine the cause of the fire.
Ted Alexander, of Preservation North Carolina said, “It was the last Rosenwald related school in Cleveland County.” More than 5,000 Rosenwald Schools were established by Julius Rosenwald and were built across 15 southern states during the early 20th century and primarily used for the education of African-American children. “Those are nationally important so it’s sad that it burned.” Elder Mark McDowell, a Christ Temple board member says that despite the damage, they would still like the building redeveloped and renovated so its history can be preserved and be open to the community.
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