JEFFERSON CITY – The Missouri NAACP is partnering with Lincoln University and local churches to honor and remember enslaved people in Osage County on Monday.
This observation came about when an Osage County native, Julie Allen, self-published A History of Enslaved People of Osage County, a book that contains public records and available history about the buying, holding and selling of enslaved people before and after the Civil War a few months ago.
“By this act of remembering, we are emboldened to live in a way that helps prevent injustice and inequality from happening in our own time," said Trevor Dancer, pastor of First United Methodist of Jefferson City, in a release.
The actual event will be held at First United Methodist and will feature prayer, song, a group discussion, and there will also be a portion of the program where the names of the enslaved people will be read aloud for the first time in front of an audience.
“The discussion that we're going to have tomorrow night, is going to be instrumental in making sure that we as a community that the families who've been here, and people who even move into the state, folks who wish to remain in Missouri, have a better vantage point,” Allen said.
Allen has already given the books away to the Secretary of State Library, the Osage county Library and the Jefferson City Library. Her next goal: the schools.
“It's a good opportunity, I think, for the school district to have a book that really is very factual, that pulls the records and gives this untold story,” Allen said. “Really, it's sort of a lost story of Osage County, and it's relevant to our schools, you know, our children should learn about these things.”
This reasoning is why the Missouri NAACP purchased multiple copies of the book to give to not just churches, but also Jefferson City high schools.
“The idea that we can't teach a piece of history in a public school or in any school is devastating to the academic process, and ultimately, to humanity,” said Nimrod T. Chapel, the president of the Missouri NAACP. “We've got to be able to tell the truth, if without truth, there's no justice.”
Chapel says teaching Black history in Missouri schools has been a hot topic within the past few months.
“One of the ways that this is so important today is that we hear about critical race theory, you know, it's all over the media,” Chapel said. “Last session, I can't tell you how many hearings we went to, and how many phone calls, how many advocates, organizers, citizens and parents came to Jefferson City, saying, ‘all we want to hear about is the truth.’”
Allen says she knows this discussion does not come without criticism.
“It's not to make anybody feel bad,” she said. “You know, I think sometimes people think, ‘well, you're talking about this to make somebody feel bad or to cause division.’ It has nothing to do with that. It's just to tell the real story about what happened in our state and in our county and in neighboring counties.”
Allen says that regardless of the turnout tomorrow, she believes she is taking the correct first step in educating her community on a topic that’s long overdue.
“It's given me a base to really just start thinking about and challenging myself,” Allen said.
The recognition event will take place at 7 p.m. at First United Methodist on Monday.
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July 18, 2022 at 06:18AM
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Local author and NAACP team up to spread history of slavery in Osage County - KOMU 8
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