Women’s Hall of Fame to lead Black History Month discussion
NORWALK — Many African-Americans who tried to escape oppression and hatred in the South during the early 1900s ended up in northern cities, including Hartford.
White people largely ignored their black neighbors, but as the black population doubled, racial tensions began to flare, according to the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame. Education officials considered segregating schools and blacks once again found themselves in an oppressive environment.
In Connecticut, black civil rights leaders including Mary Townsend Seymour began opening their homes to others who felt compelled to organize in the fight for equal rights. With Seymour’s help, Hartford’s chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People opened on Oct. 9, 1917. She was its spokesperson.
In honor of Black History month, the legacies of Seymour and other black women will be the focus of a discussion at 2 p.m. Feb. 2 at the Norwalk Historical Society Museum, 141 East Ave.
The museum is hosting a speaker from the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame to lead a 45-minute talk about some of Connecticut’s most remarkable African American women. The speaker has not yet been named.
“We go as far back as Mary Townsend Seymour, who lived shortly after the Civil War era,” said Tina Carlson, programs coordinator at the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame. “She was involved in women’s right to vote but as a minority, she felt white ladies were leaving blacks out of the conversation.”
The talk includes historical conversations about Maria Miller Stewart, the first woman in the country to address a mixed gender/
mixed race audience on the topic of abolition; Marian Anderson, the first AfricanAmerican to perform with the Metropolitan Opera; and Denise Nappier, the first woman elected state treasurer in Connecticut and the first black woman elected state treasurer in the U.S.
The lecture concludes with a question-and-answer session and refreshments.
“It is our mission to talk about these women and to educate the public because a lot of women’s voices are muted or silenced — whether by choice or by force — and their stories simply aren’t told in today’s (school) curriculum,” Carlson said. “We find that by telling these stories, we are inspiring the next generation of women leaders.”
The Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame, a nonprofit founded in Hartford in 1994, educates the public about the achievements of women and girls and honors
Connecticut women and preserves their stories.
The lecture on Feb. 2 is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is encouraged. Call 203-8460525 or visit www.ctafricanamerican heroines.brownpaper tickets.com.
The Norwalk Historical Society Museum is next to City Hall, parking is available. In case of inclement weather, the lecture will be rescheduled for 2 p.m. Feb. 9. For information on the Connecticut Women’s Hall of Fame, visit cwhf.org.