The Black Oaks Newsletter
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The Black Oaks Newsletter Volum 3, Issue 2 Spring 2009 ‘Mirror to America’: The Legacy of Dr. John Hope Franklin Former Duke University profes- Franklin received a bachelor's tory department and held an sor, historian, and scholar John degree from all-black Fisk Uni- endowed faculty position. Hope Franklin, who championed versity in Nashville, TN in 1935 better race relations in the U.S. – he was denied admission to The National Endowment for for decades, died on Wednes- the University of Oklahoma the Humanities selected Franklin day morning., March 25th. He because of his race – and he in 1976 for the Jefferson Lec- was 94. Franklin died at Duke went on to earn master's and ture, the government's highest University Hospital of conges- doctoral degrees from Harvard honor for achievement in the Dr. John Hope tive heart failure, university University. History fascinated humanities. His three-part lec- Franklin officials said. He is survived by him because it provided a ture became the basis for his 1915-2009 his son, John Whittington Frank- chance to confront the past book Racial Equality in America. lin, and other family members. A while at the same time creating Franklin was named the James B. memorial service will be held in future opportunities. Before Duke Professor of History at Duke Chapel on June 11, which joining the faculty of Howard Duke in 1983, and taught legal would have been his and his late University in Washington, D.C history at the Duke law school wife's 69th anniversary. in 1947, he published his seminal for seven years. His relationship book, From Slavery to Freedom: A with Duke spawned the John Inside this issue: Franklin's story began in the History of African-Americans, Hope Franklin Center for Inter- tiny, all-black town of Renties- which has sold millions of copies disciplinary and International ville, in eastern Oklahoma, and been translated into six Studies and the Franklin Hu- where his father was a lawyer languages. While teaching at manities Institute. SA: Building a 2 and his mother taught elemen- Howard, Franklin joined the Legacy of tary school. They taught him the NAACP Legal Defense Fund Clinton tapped him in 1997 to Service value of hard work and dili- team that helped develop the chair a seven-member panel for gence, but he learned the les- sociological case for the Brown the president's Initiative on Neal performs 2 sons of racism from the segre- v. Board of Education case that Race. The effort tried to pro- AAASE Exter- gated South. When he was six, led to the landmark U.S. Su- mote a dialog about lingering nal Review he and his mother were re- preme Court decision in 1954 racism in American in an effort moved from a train because that ended the legal segregation to breach divides and bring the they refused to move to a com- of black and white children in country together. "We have to Malveaux & 3 partment for blacks. Later, he public schools. He also took get to know each other in a way Lambert’s Fire- tried to help a blind, white part in civil rights marches with we don't," Franklin said. "I'm not side Chat woman cross a street in Tulsa, Martin Luther King Jr. in Mont- suggesting that this, in itself, is a Okla.homa "Can you imagine gomery, AL in the 1960s. “I final healing process, but it cer- Kinobe & Soul 3 being rejected by a blind, white want to be out there on the tainly is the beginning." Beat Africa woman in the middle of the firing line, helping, directing or Perform street while I was helping her doing something to try to make John Hope Franklin lived for across?" he said. "When she this a better world, a better nearly a century and helped Burundi’a For- 3 heard that I was black, she told place to live,” he said. In 1956, define that century,” Duke gotten Story me to take my filthy hands off he was named chairman of the President Richard Brodhead her." When he was 19, he was all-white history department at said. Gov. Beverly Perdue threatened with lynching in Brooklyn College, becoming the noted, “He personified giving Salute to the 4 Mississippi because he had the first black to head a major his- and his work, which advances 2009 AAASE audacity of walking into an ice- tory department. He spent eight the understanding of African- Graduates cream parlor and asking to be years there before moving to American contributions was served. the University of Chicago, unmatched by any other. He will Faculty & Stu- 5 where he again chaired the his- be sadly missed.” dent Award Recipients Page 2 The Black Oaks Newsletter South Africa Winter Term Course Builds a Legacy of Service Since 2007, Elon students en- acy Initiative. Adopt-a-Student change rate that favored the rolled in the “Call of South asks U.S. sponsors to contrib- United States dollar and the Africa” winter term study ute $40 to support a child's continued support of Elon stu- abroad course have embarked education for one year, and dents, family, and friends, the on journeys of personal, cul- began with the modest goal of 2009 class doubled its impact, tural, and historical discovery. sponsoring 25 students and sponsoring more than 155 In their comparative analyses of donating a few children's books students as they helped open forms of protests and recon- to the empty shelves of the the school's library with an ciliation movements in the US library at the Ekukhanyisweni array of books, most of which and South Africa. Following Primary School in Alexandra, were donated by Dan & Laurel the numerous calls from stu- South Africa. Elon students in Woods of the Tennessee-based dents after their return “to do the 2008 program surpassed Sapphire Foundation (and par- something,” the course the initial goal by sponsoring 73 ents of Amber Woods „10, adopted service-learning peda- students with school and gym who participated in the pro- gogy and developed the Adopt- uniforms and supplies and gram). For more info., visit the a-Student program and the some books were donated to class blog at http://idd.elon.edu/ Global Links Library and Liter- the school. Helped by an ex- sasa or email [email protected] Broader Disciplines & Departments Engaged in A/AAS-Related Research Unprecedented cross-disciplinary Research topics related to in locations spanning the globe, Sustainable Energy Solutions in Black life and culture have al- including: Alison Brooks‟ Ghana.” Amber L. Christino‟s research and ways been well represented at “Using Waste Stabilization presentation “Les Relations scholarship Elon‟s Student Undergraduate Ponds to Improve Water Qual- Contemporaines Entre la Research Forum, but the 2009 ity: A Case Study of the Uni- France Et L‟afrique : ¿De Quelle collaborations program saw presentations versity of Dar Es Salaam Cam- Façon Est-Ce Que Sarkozy est taking place from a wide array of disciplines, pus, Tanzania;” Amanda K. en Train de Changer la including Political Science, Brown & Megan A. Prilutski‟s Politique Gaulliste?” was deliv- among AAASE Mathematics, Environmental “Understanding the Relation- ered entirely in French and- students and Studies, Foreign Languages, and ship between National Health- Megan L. Dempsey conducted Business. Also noteworthy is care and Malaria in Ghana;” and “An Analysis of the Introduc- faculty and across the fact that many of the stu- Kristin R. Schulz & John R. tion of Gender Quota Systems dents performed their research McGreevy‟s “The Prospects of in Sub-Saharan Africa. campus. Duke Professor Mark Anthony Neal Performs AAASE External Review external evaluation. Duke is cluding NewsOne.com. Neal‟s one of Elon University‟s aspi- blog “Critical Noir” appears at rant institutions. Dr, Neal ar- Vibe Magazine. Dr. Neal will rived on campus on Thursday, provide a copy pf his report of May 7th, 2009 to c.hat with the program by June 2009, and students, faculty, staff, and ad- a copy will be made available to Since its previous evaluation in ministrators about their experi- program faculty and staff, the 2003 by Dartmouth professor ences and desires for the pro- Dean of Elon College, the Col- J. Martin Fowler, renowned gram. Dr. Neal is the author lege of Arts and Sciences and scholar Dr. Mark Anthony and co-editor of several books. the Provost. The suggestions Neal, Professor of Black Popu- A frequent commentator for from the report will be used to lar Culture in the African/ National Public Radio‟s News advance the program‟s mission, African-American Studies pro- and Notes with Farai Chideya, objectives, and goals of its cur- gram at Duke University per- Neal also contributes to sev- rent five-year plan (2006-11). formed the program‟s second eral on-line media outlets, in- Volum 3, Issue 2 Page 3 AAASE Sponsors Presidential Fireside Chat with Malveaux & Lambert On April 8th, 2009, President discussed the common chal- expenses. “The goal must be to of Bennett College for lenges and differences between have students feel at home in Women, economist, author, Elon and Bennett, a historically the world,” Malveaux said, and commentator Dr. Julianne black all-women school that while Lambert noted that Elon Malveaux, joined Elon Univer- enrolls 689 students at its cam- graduates no longer assume sity President, Dr. Leo Lambert pus in Greensboro, N.C. Both that their first job will be in the for a historic Presidential presidents said they are inter- United States. The two presi- “Fireside Chat.” The event ested in increasing student dents discussed the financial spearheaded by AAASE and diversity, but face economic pressures on students in the cosponsored by W/GS at Elon, challenges in providing scholar- wake of the world economic the Elon University Members of ships to students from varied crisis.