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unRedact to Action - Call to Action 2021

To sign the letter, click here.

June 6, 2021: Read the letter sent to the National Trust for Historic Preservation with the signed Call to Action, click here.

Feb 24, 2021: Read the latest response from the National Trust, click here.

Feb 20, 2021: Read the latest letter to the National Trust for Historic Preservation, click here.

 

Hi, hello, how’s it going?

When I lived in Seattle, I saw and heard messages on the Light Rail, "If you see something, say something." Well, one year ago today, June 6, 2020, I saw national historic preservation institutions and local ones use the passive voice to describe US chattel slavery. Some, like the National Trust and state and local preservation organizations, used these narratives in their statements of support of Black Lives Matter. The National Park Services’  National Center for Preservation Technology and Training used the passive voice to describe their research efforts on cabins where enslaved Black people lived. In all instances, these statements of solidarity failed to communicate a history of accountability for what White people have done to Black people throughout our existence in the US.

I am a person with the lived experience of a Black woman, who works in the professional realm of architecture and historic preservation. Similar to the "talk" that Black people receive about our conduct in the presence of police officers, many of us receive a "talk" about our conduct in the workplace. To protect my financial well-being, this talk included silencing myself instead of "seeing something, saying something' about discriminatory behavior, lest I add to my otherness. Yet, by not saying something, I have come to the realization that it affects my mental, physical, and emotional health. On June 6, 2020, I saw something, incomplete history in the name of Telling the Full Story, and I had to say something as an act of care, not only for myself and those who are alive and yet to be born, but for the ancestors who deserve the full story.

On March 1, 2020, I launched a Call to Action to unRedact the Facts of history to Tell the Full American Story. Thank you to the National Trust staff who made sure the President and CEO received my letter dated Feb. 20, 2021 in which I asked for follow-up to the commitment the National Trust said they were making to revisiting the language they use to tell the full story. Despite the commitment, they continued to use the passive voice to describe history, yet state, #TellTheFullStory. The Call to Action letter is my response, backed by 30+ signatures. Thank you to everyone who signed. Thank you to those, out of fear of losing financial support from the National Trust for their preservation projects, did not sign.

In a turn of serendipity, on Wed., May 26, 2021, I discovered that the National Trust’s Preservation Magazine editors had, in fact, edited one of the passive voice excerpts I brought to their attention on February 20, 2021.

More on the serendipity: On Wed., May 26, 2021, I was curious if the National Trust made a statement on its website in support of the 1619 founder Nikole Hannah-Jones in light of the UNC ordeal. Instead of finding support for Hannah-Jones, I discovered from a word search for "1619" on the National Trust's website, that the editorial team edited one of the articles I shared in my February letter, "A Reimagined Library, Opens the Cover of Fort Monroe's Black History".

The Editor’s Note says the edit occurred on March 2, 2021 - one day after the Call to Action letter launch. Did they edit the excerpt as a result of the Call to Action? Yes or no, the efforts of unRedact the Facts deserve attribution and citation when they revise their publication.

For an example, see the Instagram post and/or NonProfitAF article regarding the revision exchange with NonProfitAF. As I stated in that post:  The person behind unRedact the Facts is a Black woman and when individuals and institutions #CiteBlackWomen, they practice racial equity. Doing so adds to a much more balanced perception of Black women and Black people in general. It balances the negative stereotypes with our positive contributions to society, i.e., with reality. 

-kW, 6 June 2021

PS - Not for a lack of trying, the Call to Action did not appear in a publication for Preservation Month in May. Thank you to the publications that considered publishing the call.

Click on image for latest update and to use filters.

Click on image for latest update and to use filters.

May 31, 2020

It all began with the Instagram post shared by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, on May 31, 2020 (at right). The markups show the active voice revision to their passive voice description of the human trafficking during US slavery that took place in a building they own in Washington, DC.

 
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Follow our journey on Instagram.

 
Hi there! In response to recent developments, folks have asked how they can help. Here’s your chance to spring into action. unRedact to Action - Call to Action 2021 A Call to Action for accountability in the way we re-tell history. Please read
Hi there! In response to recent developments, folks have asked how they can help. Here’s your chance to spring into action. unRedact to Action - Call to Action 2021 A Call to Action for accountability in the way we re-tell history. Please read, share, sign. Thank you to signers in CO, DC, IL, NY! Words on the post are below: In spite of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's statement in August 2020 that they are "evaluating our language choices and editorial framing organization-wide" (see Aug. 14, 2020 post below this post), they continued to use redacted language that supports a white supremacist narrative of history. Because of this, I, a Black woman who practices preservation architecture, sent another request to the organization in February 2021, requesting that they unRedact the facts of history to tell the full story (see letter in link). In response, the institution reiterated their comment from August 2020, adding concern about moving too fast in the eyes of some of their (financial) supporters. Continued use of redacted language does not #TellTheFullStory. Furthermore, it does not help us heal because redacted history perpetuates lies about Black, Indigenous, and White people in the US. Therefore, this is a Call to Action for the National Trust and other history and historic preservation organizations, and history keepers as a whole to unRedact the Facts of history for racial equity and healing. See the Call to Action letter in the link in profile. Please consider signing and share. Thanks + May all beings be at peace.
“But if we don’t become more comfortable being explicit about the racial identity of the people doing the oppressing, we’re failing to tell the whole story.” This quote is the last sentence of “The NYT [New York Times]
“But if we don’t become more comfortable being explicit about the racial identity of the people doing the oppressing, we’re failing to tell the whole story.” This quote is the last sentence of “The NYT [New York Times] wrote about lynching by White people without using the word ‘white’, “ by Jenee Desmond-Harris, published in Vox.com, on February 10, 2015. Thank you to the new friend who sent this article to me yesterday. Please see the previous post for the Call to Action about telling the full story and consider signing the letter and share. Want more info? See link in profile and the other posts in this account. Thank you + May all beings be at peace.
Hi there! In response to recent developments, folks have asked how they can help. Here’s your chance to spring into action: unRedact to Action - Call to Action 2021 Words on the post are below: In spite of the National Trust for Historic Pre
Hi there! In response to recent developments, folks have asked how they can help. Here’s your chance to spring into action: unRedact to Action - Call to Action 2021 Words on the post are below: In spite of the National Trust for Historic Preservation's statement in August 2020 that they are "evaluating our language choices and editorial framing organization-wide" (see Aug. 14, 2020 post below this post), they continued to use redacted language that supports a white supremacist narrative of history. Because of this, I, a Black woman who practices preservation architecture, sent another request to the organization in February 2021, requesting that they unRedact the facts of history to tell the full story (see letter in link). In response, the institution reiterated their comment from August 2020, adding concern about moving too fast in the eyes of some of their (financial) supporters. Continued use of redacted language does not #TellTheFullStory. Furthermore, it does not help us heal because redacted history perpetuates lies about Black, Indigenous, and White people in the US. Therefore, this is a Call to Action for the National Trust and other history and historic preservation organizations, and history keepers as a whole to unRedact the Facts of history for racial equity and healing. See the Call to Action letter in the link in profile. Please consider signing and share. Thanks + May all beings be at peace.
How to “unRedact the Facts”?* Redacted Facts 1 - The Passive Voice 2 - Euphemisms that replace “White people” 3 - Plantations as palatial estates 4 - Slaves 5 - Slavery omitted in the founding of US cities + institutions unR
How to “unRedact the Facts”?* Redacted Facts 1 - The Passive Voice 2 - Euphemisms that replace “White people” 3 - Plantations as palatial estates 4 - Slaves 5 - Slavery omitted in the founding of US cities + institutions unRedacted Facts 1 - The Active Voice 2 - White people 3 - Plantations as concentration camps. “Places of contention” (Who developed this phrase? Please share their name(s), thanks!) 4 - Enslaved Africans, Enslaved African craftspeople, Enslaved Indigenous 5 - Europeans traded Africans as well as beavers *Language and grammar examples of many ways to unRedact. For more info on the above, see posts from 2020. Thank you. May all beings be at peace.
Hi there! In response to recent developments, folks have asked how they can help. Here’s your chance to spring into action. unRedact to Action - Call to Action 2021 A Call to Action for accountability in the way we re-tell history. Please read “But if we don’t become more comfortable being explicit about the racial identity of the people doing the oppressing, we’re failing to tell the whole story.” This quote is the last sentence of “The NYT [New York Times] Hi there! In response to recent developments, folks have asked how they can help. Here’s your chance to spring into action: unRedact to Action - Call to Action 2021 Words on the post are below: In spite of the National Trust for Historic Pre How to “unRedact the Facts”?* Redacted Facts 1 - The Passive Voice 2 - Euphemisms that replace “White people” 3 - Plantations as palatial estates 4 - Slaves 5 - Slavery omitted in the founding of US cities + institutions unR

Disagree with this Call to Action?

Feel as though this is against the good deeds of historic preservation and philanthropy, in general?

Do you disagree with this Call to Action? Feel as though this is against the good deeds of historic preservation and philanthropy, in general? If yes, here are some things to consider:

  1. The Call to Action might appear to be against the work of non-profit organizations that support much-needed efforts. The Call does not deny they are doing good. However, is this good the real, social change we need?

  2. Why is using the active voice and revising history to include the antagonist in the (hi)story, “White people” so controversial?

  3. Does saying “Black people who were enslaved by White people” negate the good deeds of philanthropic giving? If yes, how? How does rewriting our current status quo history to a history of accountability denigrate the act of giving money to Black people?

  4. And, why is it not OK to be critical of philanthropic giving?

For more food for thought, listen to Anand Giridharadas on The Ezra Klein Show. Pay close attention at minute 15:00 and thereafter.