Memorial garners support
Posted on January 31, 2008
The JMU chapter of the NAACP and the Student Government Association announced an initiative to help fund the construction of the first-ever Civil Rights Monument in Richmond.
In 1951, a courageous 16-year-old girl named Barbara Johns led a walkout with her fellow students at her high school in Farmville, Va. to protest the intolerable conditions because of segregation at the school. These supporters struggled for racial integration and brought positive change not only to the Virginia community, but to the rest of the country as well.
Johns will be featured on one side of the monument.
The monument originated from an executive order from Gov. Mark Warner in 2005 and is in need of private funds to support the building of this historic monument.
In honor and support of Black History Month and in remembrance of Virginians who aided in the struggle toward equal rights, the SGA and JMU chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People sent a letter to club presidents. Student Body President Lee Brooks and president of the JMU chapter of the NAACP Stephanie Reese asked for help from the entire JMU community in order to build this historic monument.
At the end of February, SGA will write a single check on behalf of all the students at JMU based on the amount of donations received. After the check from the SGA is sent, an entry will be added on the memorial Web site.
“This initiative is the first JMU campaign to support the memorial,” Brooks said.
Although the initiative has just begun, Brooks has high hopes that the JMU community will show its support for this cause.
“We have received questions and requests for donation forms,” Brooks said. “We have just announced the initiative, so we anticipate [donations] to start rolling in!”
Phi Alpha Theta, James Madison University’s History Honor Society, is one of the many organizations that has already stepped up and donated to the memorial.
“Phi Alpha Theta will be donating $50 to the Civil Right Memorial in Richmond, Va. because we believe that it is important to be a part of history,” President Amy Cerminara said. “By donating we are a taking an active stance on history and thus leaving a legacy.”
Club donations can be made by use of a written check or through a cash donation. Faculty and staff can contact the SGA office to receive a pledge card with detailed information to make private donations to the Civil Rights Memorial Foundation.
The memorial will be installed in Richmond by July.
