Fairhaven Neighborhood News

February is African American History MonthFrom the Library of CongressThe Library of Congress, NationalArchives and Records Administra -tion, National Endowment for theHumanities, National Gallery of Art,National Park Service, SmithsonianInstitution and United StatesHolocaust Memorial Museum join inpaying tribute to the generations ofAfrican Americans who struggledwith adversity to achieve fullcitizenship in American society.As a Harvard-trained historian,Carter G. Woodson, like W. E. B. DuBois before him, believed that truthcould not be denied and that reasonwould prevail over prejudice. Hishopes to raise awareness of AfricanAmericans’ contributions to civiliza -tion was realized when he and theorganization he founded, the Associa -tion for the Study of Negro Life andHistory (ASNLH), conceived andannounced Negro History Week in1925.The event was first celebratedduring a week in February 1926 thatencompassed the birthdays of bothAbraham Lincoln and FrederickDouglass. The response wasoverwhelming: Black history clubssprang up; teachers demandedmaterials to instruct their pupils; andprogressive whites, not simply whitescholars and philanthropists, steppedforward to endorse the effort.By the time of Woodson’s death in1950, Negro History Week had becomea central part of African American lifeand substantial progress had beenmade in bringing more Americans toappreciate the celebration. At midcentury,mayors of cities nationwideissued proclama tions noting NegroHistory Week.The Black Awakening of the 1960sdramatically expanded the conscious -ness of African Americans about theimportance of black history, and theCivil Rights move ment focusedAmericans of all color on the subjectof the contributions of AfricanAmericans to our history and culture.The celebration was expanded to amonth in 1976, the nation’s bicenten -nial. President Gerald R. Ford urgedAmericans to “seize the opportunityto honor the too-often neglectedaccomplishments of black Americansin every area of endeavor throughoutour history.”That year, fifty years after the firstcelebration, the association held thefirst African American History Month.By this time, the entire nation hadcome to recognize the importance ofBlack history in the drama of theAmerican story. Since then eachAmerican president has issuedAfrican American History Monthproclamations. And the association —now the Association for the Study ofAfrican American Life and History(ASALH )— continues to promote thestudy of Black history all year.(Excerpt from an essay by DarylMichael Scott, Howard University, forthe Association for the Study of AfricanAmerican Life and History)About This Year’s ThemeThis year's theme “Black Women inAmerican Culture and History,”honors African American women andthe myriad of roles they played in theshaping of our nation. The theme,chosen by the Association for theStudy of African American Life andHistory urges all Americans to studyand reflect on the value of theircontribution to the nation.Women to consider: SojournerTruth (www.sojournertruth.org), RosaParks (www.rosaparks.org), EllaFitzgerald (www.ellafitzgerald.com),Zora Neale Hurston (http://zoranealehurston.com)For more information on BlackHistory Month, visit the Library ofCongress sponsored website: www.africanamericanhistorymonth.gov/;The Smithsonian Institute website:www.smithsonianeducation.org/heritage_month/bhm/index.html; theNational Park service: www.nps.gov/history/aahistory; and the NationalEndowment for the Humanities:http://edsitement.neh.gov/blackhistory-month#node-19469•••BOH says daytime meetings have nothing to do with wind foesBy Beth DavidEditorFairhaven Board of Health chair -per son Peter DeTerra said thatboard’s decision to hold the last twomeetings at noon had nothing to dowith Windwise, the group of residentsopposed to two industrial windturbines slated to be installed inFairhaven on Arsene Street near thewastewater treatment plant.Mr. DeTerra explained in an emailthat a Feb. 6 meeting was held on Feb2 because of a conflict with a boardmember. He said the board wanted tosend a letter to the Selectboard toclarify some issues that Windwisemembers had brought up.Board member Jeannine Lopesconfirmed that she had a conflict withthe last two meetings, but that theboard would start meeting again onits Monday night schedule.About 20 members of Windwiseattended the board meeting onTuesday, 2/21.According to an email fromWindwise’s Ken Pottel, the groupwanted to be on the agenda todemand that the board mandatenoise measuring devices in all houseswithin 3,000 feet of the IWTs .He said the board is deliberatelyavoiding the group.“We really do not know how to dealwith a town board which is doingeverything to keep us from being ableto meet with them,” wrote Mr. Pottel.Mr. DeTerra said the board neededmore time to get answers to theirquestions.The BOH was also waiting for ananswer from the Department ofEnvironmental Protection about theclaim from the group that industrialwind turbines constitute a “noisometrade” and must be sited in adesignated zone. The BOH alsosought a ruling from Town Counselinstructing them on whether or notthey had the authority to stop theIWT project.In a letter dated Jan. 20, Atty. TomCrotty responded to the board sayingthat they did not have the authorityto act.He quoted a 1974 court casestating “an anticipatory injunctioncannot be obtained where thenuisance depends upon the way inwhich an enterprise is conducted,rather than upon the essentialcharacter of the enterprise itself.”The DEP letter states thatindustrial wind turbines do not fallunder the categor requiring aseparate zone and cautioned theboard against invoking a “siteassignment process in this novelcontext.”Both letters will be available onour website: www.NeighbNews.comPage 4Thursday, February 23, 2012Fairhaven Neighborhood News