Vol. 106, Iss. 8 | Tuesday, October 18, 2016
The Flat Hat
The Weekly Student Newspaper
of The College of William and Mary
Flathatnews.com | Follow us:
SWEM
Swem purchases Quran manuscript Quran dates back to early West African slaves in United States YUTONG ZHAN THE FLAT HAT
College, once built by slaves, names building in their honor TUCKER HIGGINS / THE FLAT HAT
On Saturday, Oct. 15, the College dedicated and renamed the Jamestown dorms as Lemon and Hardy in honor of two African-Americans, one a slave of the College.
Lemon dorm named for slave owned by College ALFRED OUYANG THE FLAT HAT
was more to come. “The names of Lemon and Hardy now grace two of William and Mary’s most elegant and engaging residence halls, and I think the names will lead the ways for all the other buildings on campus that will be named for people of color during the generations to come — the Lemon and Hardy Halls comes first,” Reveley said. The Lemon Project, established by the Board of Visitors in 2009, is an ongoing research initiative to explore the College’s involvement in slavery, segregation and its ongoing relationship with the African-American community.
In April 2016, the College of William and Mary’s Board of Visitors passed a resolution renaming Jamestown North and South Halls as Lemon and Hardy Halls, in memory of a former slave owned by the College in the 18th century named Lemon, and a later honorary AfricanAmerican dean named Carroll Hardy. On Saturday, Oct. 15 the College held a dedication ceremony for Lemon and Hardy Halls in front of Jamestown field. College President Taylor Reveley, Hardy’s family, alumni and students attended. In a speech at the start of the ceremony, Reveley said there
Discussing the Lemon Project, Reveley said Lemon
BOV RESOLUTION ON LEMON PROJECT, 2009 WHEREAS, the College of William and Mary acknowledges that it owned and exploited slave labor from its founding to the Civil War; and WHEREAS, the College acknowledges that it engaged in the discrimination and exclusion that characterized educational institutions during the era of Jim Crow and disfranchisement and that it failed to challenge these hurtful policies; and WHEREAS, the legacy of that era has encumbered the College’s relationships with the Williamsburg and Peninsular African American community, many of whom are descendents of antebellum slaves and many more of whom have worked for or attended the College since that time; and WHEREAS, as a preeminent institution of higher learning we are dedicated to understanding the truth of our past and the impact that past may have had on us and on the community; and WHEREAS, only of late have we learned of an African American named Lemon who was owned by the College during the late 18th and early 19th century, served it well, and, remarkably, carved out a life of his own in Williamsburg. THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Board of Visitors of the College of William and Mary heartily supports the creation of the Lemon Project: A Journey of Reconciliation that will be a long-term research project under the sponsorship of the Office of the Provost, involving College faculty, staff, and students as well as members of the Greater Williamsburg community, to better understand, chronicle, and preserve the history of blacks at the College and in the community and to promote a deeper understanding of the indebtedness of the College to the work and support of its diverse neighbors.
Swem Special Collections purchased a 19th century Quran manuscript Sept. 19, the only Quran manuscript owned by the College. This West African Quran manuscript is expected to unveil more details about enslaved Muslim African Americans and to diversify the collection of documents at the College of William and Mary. Special Collections purchased the Quran manuscript on eBay at the request of religious studies professor Oludamini Ogunnaike and it arrived at Special Collections Sept. 30. According to the description online and preliminary analysis, this manuscript was written during the 19th century in what is now Nigeria. Because of its centrality to Islamic life, the Quran is considered the crucial text for the study of Islam. For Muslims, the Quran is the literal word of God, and everything about it is sacred, including the calligraphy and the paper itself. Beyond its religious significance, this manuscript could also play a crucial role in further research on African Muslims. Ogunnaike said that the individuality of the manuscript could provide more information about African Muslims, which could not be easily found out through reading a printed Quran. “The way in which this Quran had been divided up [in 60 parts] might tell us something about the particular West African understanding of the Quran and how it was used, which we don’t know about.” Ogunnaike said. “Also some of the facts, that the word ‘Muhamad’ was in red and nothing else in the text was in red, might tell us something about the particular beliefs and interpretation of Islam.” In addition, Ogunnaike said he believed the unique features discovered in this Quran will contribute to the understanding of enslaved African Americans. “If there are some unique things which we can learn about West African Muslim practice from this Quran, then we could by extension conclude or hypothesize that some of these special things would also apply to enslaved African American Muslims,” Ogunnaike said. Religious and American studies professor Maureen Fitzgerald also discussed the value of this hand-written Quran. “Evidence of Muslim activity early in American history has been spotty and difficult to use. We know, certainly, that African Muslims were enslaved and brought to Western hemisphere,” Fitzgerald said in an email. “Yet See QURAN page 4
See DEDICATION page 3
OBITUARY
College mourns death of Austin Zheng ’18 Zheng was interested in health, cultural arts SARAH SMITH FLAT HAT NEWS EDITOR
Austin Zheng ’18 died Oct. 15 sometime after 2:00 a.m. According to an email from Vice President for Student Affairs Ginger Ambler ’88, Ph.D. ’06, Zheng died after medics and the Williamsburg Police Department responded to a 911 call about a student in cardiac arrest at an off-campus location. He was then transported to Riverside Doctor’s Hospital. At the College of William and Mary, Zheng was studying biology and art. He was also an active member of Kappa Alpha Fraternity. He had a self-described special interest in both health and cultural arts. “Austin’s passions were as diverse and interesting as himself,” Skip Estes said. “Loved by his Kappa Alpha Order fraternity
Today’s Weather
Index Profile News Opinions Variety Sports
brothers and all who knew him, Austin will be dearly missed.” The William and Mary Police Department are offering assistance to those who were closest to Zheng. Additionally, the Dean of Students Office, the Counseling Center, Residence Life, campus ministers and the Department of Student Affairs were on-call throughout the weekend and will be at the beginning of this week. At this time, no details about funeral or memorial arrangements are known. Ambler said she would send a follow-up email later in the week once those services were finalized. “Today’s tragedy reminds us of how close we are to one another at William & Mary,” Ambler said in an email. “What affects one of us affects us all. I know you join me in extending our heartfelt sympathies to Austin’s family and his many friends.”
TUCKER HIGGINS / THE FLAT HAT
Students have been placing signs and flowers in front of the Crim Dell as a memorial to remember student Austin Zheng ’18 after his death on Oct. 15.
Inside Sports
Inside Opinions
Why every eligible student should vote in November
2 3-4 5-6 7-8 9-10
Sunny, High 86, Low 66
Sean Willner ’19 explains why even students disappointed by their options in this upcoming presidential election should take the time to vote. page 5
Tribe cooks the Blue Hens
In a comeback performance, William and Mary got its first conference win in the 2016 homecoming game. page 10