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Anti-Racism Group Plans ‘Sit-In’ At Faneuil Hall
To our neighbors in Jamaica Plain and beyond,
The Lucy Parsons Center is moving from Hyde Square to the South End!
Image caption: A Protester Holds a sign at the Faneuil Hall protest last Citing that the nearly 250 year-old Boston icon is a symbol of anti-Black racism, the New Democracy Coalition is organizing a protest on Wednesday, August 10, to raise awareness about the persistence of racism and to the need to change the name of Faneuil Hall. “We try not to call this building Faneuil Hall. Instead, we call it Slave Traders Hall because the building is named after a slave owner. Peter Faneuil was a white supremacist and a person who believed in profiting from the slave trade. His name doesn’t deserve to be on a public building,” said the Rev. Kevin Peterson, founder of the New Democracy Coalition. Peterson’s organization has been leading the fight to change the name of Faneuil Hall since 2017. But powerful forces who believe that the current name is harmless have been resistant, including former Mayor Marty Walsh. Over the years Peterson has called for the name change as a form of addressing this issue of reparations and creating an “environment in Boston where we can truly address the issue of systemic racism.” “On August 10th we will continue our unending effort to change the name of Faneuil Hall because its name represents racial terrorism. We in this city would never stand for a building being called Hitler Hall. That would be an insult to all of us. Why then we tolerate having the name of a publicly owned building named after a racist,” added Peterson. The New Democracy Coalition group says that of the 140 businesses at the Faneuil Hall Quincy Marketplace, none are owned by Black people. “Economic aparthied happens at the so-called Faneuil Hall. By changing the name we address the issue of who we are as Bostonians. We must not tolerate racism.” The New Democracy Coalition recently won a battle around anti-racism by convincing the Boston City Council to official apologive for slavery in Boston. “These symbolic victories add up to a fuller narrative of freedom.” The Faneuil Hall protest will begin at 11AM at the flagpole on the plaza of Boston city hall on August 11th. For more information, email: thenewdemocracycoalition@gmail.com —The New Democracy Coalition
In 2011, a UMB professor and longtime supporter of the LPC left the collective a large donation upon his death. At the time, the Lucy Parsons Center collective decided to use that money to buy the 358a Centre St. storefront in Hyde Square. This was a controversial decision, and many people involved with the organization felt excluded from the small, undemocratic process. They disagreed with the decisions to move from the original South End rental and buy real estate in Hyde Square, a neighborhood which has faced active gentrification over the past couple decades. People felt the LPC moving in would exacerbate gentrification. None of the current members of the collective were involved in these decisions made 10 years ago, but now we have decided to rectify the mistake we believe was made by moving to Hyde Square in the first place. We are moving back to our old space at 549 Columbus Ave in the South End, which had been occupied by MakeShift Boston since we left. Unfortunately, MakeShift closed during the pandemic, so keeping that historically community-driven space functional was the final motivation for us to move back. It is larger, accessible (both physically and transitwise), and much closer to both the city center and to many schools. We have been working to pass on the space in Jamaica Plain to SCOPE LLC. We collaborated with SCOPE because they are a local organization run by a majority of people from Jamaica Plain and people of color. As a streetwear brand, record label, and entertainment collaborative, they are driving the style, culture, music, art, and community power in Hyde Square. We are working out a rent-to-own agreement to sell the storefront to SCOPE. Unlike landlords, we don’t want to involve predatory banks in any real estate this neighborhood profits from. So, we are reaching out to the Boston community to support our fundraiser at tinyurl.com/lpcfunds. The funds will cover ceiling and electrical repairs in the South End space, ultimately sustaining a volunteer-run radical bookstore and community forum for decades to come. With gratitude, The Lucy Parsons Center collective
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Phoebe Delmonte: p.1, 4, 5 Hannah Blauner: p.2, 3, 7 Adrian Alvarez: p.6, 8 THIS PAPER IS AN ONGOING PROJECT OF BRAIN ARTS ORGANIZATION, INC., A 501(C)(3) NONPROFIT. PLEASE CONSIDER DONATING TO, VOLUNTEERING OR OTHERWISE SUPPORTING US: BRAIN-ARTS.ORG
THIS PROGRAM IS SUPPORTED IN PART BY A GRANT FROM THE BOSTON CULTURAL COUNCIL, A LOCAL AGENCY WHICH IS FUNDED BY THE MASSACHUSETTS CULTURAL COUNCIL, AS ADMINSTRATED BY THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF ARTS + CULTURE