The Internet news headline earlier this week caught me
off-guard. It read:
”
Whites Only
”
Scholarship Offered.
The Internet news headline earlier this week caught me off-guard. It read: “Whites Only” Scholarship Offered.
February is Black History month, a time where we should be thinking about the progress this nation has made on the road to equality and freedom for all our citizens. We Americans, I thought, had left that goofy nonsense of racial preference decades ago — along with water fountains and bus seats favoring people of a specific genetic trait.
I felt a bit of disgust as I clicked my mouse to read the article. The scholarship, I discovered, is a $250 award offered by the College Republicans group at Roger Williams University in Bristol, R.I. Applicants must write an essay on “why you are proud of your white heritage.” A current photograph is also required to “confirm whiteness.”
“Evidence of bleaching will disqualify applicants,” says the application.
Reading further, I realized the award is not really a regression back to the days of Jim Crowe. It’s a publicity stunt designed to highlight the discrimination that comes with the notion of affirmative action.
Jason Mattera, 20, president of the College Republicans, said the scholarship is aimed at parodying minority scholarships.
“We think that if you want to treat someone according to character and how well they achieve academically, then skin color shouldn’t really be an option,” he said in the article.
The scholarship might not be exactly the most tactful way of highlighting the inherent weakness of affirmative action. But it did make me think about society’s double standards in regards to giving preferences to people depending on their race.
This being Black History month, I wondered what the ghost of Elizabeth Keckley would have thought about the stunt. Born into slavery, Keckley is one of the many unsung heroes of the pursuit of liberty and racial equality in America.
Her endeavors for liberty and justice were just as significant as that of Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and others who carried the freedom banner. Unfortunately, her contributions are virtually forgotten.
She was born on Jan. 15, 1818, to George and Agnes Pleasant, plantation slaves in Virginia. Her father lived on a farm 100 miles from Lizzie and was allowed to visit only at Easter and Christmas. At the age of 7 or 8 Lizzie never saw her father again because his master moved from the area, taking George.
Keckley learned seamstress skills from Agnes. She lived with her mother until her teenage years when Keckley was given away as a wedding gift.
As a young woman, she was repeatedly raped by a white man. Due to these assaults, she gave birth to a child. She named him George after her father.
She married a slave named James Keckley in 1852 but their marriage suffered problems caused primarily by James’s alcoholism. Through hard work, a fine character and an unwavering determination, she won the respect of white women in the city of St. Louis whom she sewed dresses for. One of these woman loaned her $1,200 to buy her freedom as well as that of her son George.
Keckley moved to Washington, D.C., set up her own business and quickly developed a reputation as the finest dressmaker in the city. She became the personal dressmaker for Mary Todd Lincoln, President Lincoln’s wife.
The inaugural ball dresses she made for Mary are now kept by the Smithsonian Institution.
It was the close friendship she developed with Mary that was critical to Keckley’s contribution in America’s journey toward liberty. As Mary’s best friend and confidante, she helped the Lincoln family through many trying times during the Civil War years.
She particularly aided the Lincoln’s in their grief from the death of their son Willie who died from an illness in the White House. She was the only person who tolerated Mary’s erratic temper outbursts and sharp tongue — certainly aiding the President to focus on his job of preserving the Union.
Keckley’s son George died fighting as a soldier for the Union cause. To help her deal with her own grief, she served as the president of the Black Contraband Relief Association which aided former slaves fleeing to Washington from the war-ravaged South. Mary helped her with this cause, and developed a compassion for the Black refugees.
The two women often discussed the emancipation of slaves, a controversial idea at the time which, due to personal and political reasons, President Lincoln was reluctant to support. But historians have said that Keckley’s kindness and human compassion in caring for the Lincoln family greatly influenced the President to eventually write and sign the Emancipation Proclamation.
She later would write about her life as a slave and as the Lincoln family’s friend in her memoir titled “Behind the Scenes.”
The story of Elizabeth’s Keckley’s behind-the-scenes contribution to the freeing of American slaves is a powerful one. It shows how one individual’s humanity and kindness can have as great an affect on the course of history as the battle decisions of generals or the great speeches of political leaders.
Regarding this week’s “Whites Only” scholarship offering at Roger Williams University, if her ghost happened to read the story on whatever Internet connection leads to the Great Beyond, perhaps Keckley would smile and shake her head at the publicity stunt. Perhaps she would turn to her friends Mary and Abe Lincoln and say, “America has come a long ways since our day. But the journey still continues.”
Marty Cheek is the author of ‘The Silicon Valley Handbook.’
