Comments on: Voices From the Past http://www.vanderbilt.edu/magazines/arts-and-science/2008-11/voices-from-the-past/ a publication of Vanderbilt Peabody College Sat, 05 Sep 2009 07:05:32 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Howard Romaine http://www.vanderbilt.edu/magazines/arts-and-science/2008-11/voices-from-the-past/comment-page-1/#comment-75 Howard Romaine Fri, 05 Dec 2008 15:20:57 +0000 http://www.vanderbilt.edu/magazines/arts-and-science/?p=308#comment-75 As a person who met Penn Warren just after he finished the book, met his son, at Yale, and took the inscribed book,"to SSOC," back to Nashville, (now lost,unfortunately), where the Southern Student Organizing Committee was organized to work on 'predominantly and historically white campuses, on behalf of racial justice, understanding, etc.' I am glad for this effort by Vanderbilt. We all, (all whites, perhaps especially 'southerners'), share in the heritage of "white superiority and privilege'; some of us were fortunate enough to share in 'the movement's' experiences and insights about the changes which the black led struggle gradually 'led us to' as a region, people, country. Thus, Bob Moses' sending Ed Hamlett and me to talk to Warren during that year of '65 is a direct outcome of 'the movement,' but still the phrase "the risks he (Warren) took in Giving Black Americans a Voice" strikes me a bit off, even offensive. Black Americans had many voices in that time, and still do; perhaps the role of Warren in reconsidering his prior views, and taking some risks, in order to collect the 'diversity of black views' at this time, and make them more available, then and now,(with the help of these later astute and creative librarians, historians, etc.)is a role worth celebrating and holding up, now and in the future, as 'race'continues to be a problematic category for the culture and civilization itself, as DuBois predicted, a voice not heard across town when he was at FISK, and seldom heard in 'academia' over his long life, UNTIL RECENTLY. This is often a difficult task, facing the past, rebuilding the present for the future. I feel the effort should be endorsed, but not seen as a 'cover' for failure to continue to examine those issues which the diversity of voices Warren recorded 'lifted up' in print, and are now available 'in voice.' These issues are still with us, as the unprecedented death threats and rumble of racist voices meeting Obama's win must remind us all. HOWARD ROMAINE, chair SSOC '65 -'66 QUOTE from text..referred to..hr Rosanna Warren’s recollections put in context some of what her father experienced as he wrote Who Speaks for the Negro? and the risks he took in giving black Americans a voice during the early Civil Rights Era. Thanks to scholarship and technology, their voices—and his—are still being heard. They’re speaking for themselves after all these years, and anyone can listen and learn. As a person who met Penn Warren just after he finished the book, met his son, at Yale, and took the inscribed book,”to SSOC,” back to Nashville, (now lost,unfortunately), where the Southern Student Organizing Committee was organized to work on ‘predominantly and historically white campuses, on behalf of racial justice, understanding, etc.’ I am glad for this effort by Vanderbilt.

We all, (all whites, perhaps especially ’southerners’), share in the heritage of “white superiority and privilege’; some of us were fortunate enough to share in ‘the movement’s’ experiences and insights about the changes which the black led struggle gradually ‘led us to’ as a region, people, country.

Thus, Bob Moses’ sending Ed Hamlett and me to talk to Warren during that year of ‘65 is a direct outcome of ‘the movement,’ but still the phrase “the risks he (Warren) took in Giving Black Americans a Voice” strikes me a bit off, even offensive.

Black Americans had many voices in that time, and still do; perhaps the role of Warren in reconsidering his prior views, and taking some risks, in order to collect the ‘diversity of black views’ at this time, and make them more available, then and now,(with the help of these later astute and creative librarians, historians, etc.)is a role worth celebrating and holding up, now and in the future, as ‘race’continues to be a problematic category for the culture and civilization itself, as DuBois predicted, a voice not heard across town when he was at FISK, and seldom heard in ‘academia’ over his long life, UNTIL RECENTLY.

This is often a difficult task, facing the past, rebuilding the present for the future. I feel the effort should be endorsed, but
not seen as a ‘cover’ for failure to continue to examine those issues which the diversity of voices Warren recorded ‘lifted up’ in print, and are now available ‘in voice.’ These issues are still with us, as the unprecedented death threats and rumble of racist voices meeting Obama’s win must remind us all. HOWARD ROMAINE, chair SSOC ‘65 -’66

QUOTE from text..referred to..hr
Rosanna Warren’s recollections put in context some of what her father experienced as he wrote Who Speaks for the Negro? and the risks he took in giving black Americans a voice during the early Civil Rights Era. Thanks to scholarship and technology, their voices—and his—are still being heard. They’re speaking for themselves after all these years, and anyone can listen and learn.

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