Iowa Wesleyan University hosts Civil Rights storytelling

Iowa Wesleyan University students, faculty and staff shared stories about lesser-known Civil Rights events and individuals during the “Stories of Unknown Civil Rights Activists” storytelling event Wednesday at the Howe Activity Center. There were six speakers that spoke about the lives of the Civil Rights activists of their choosing.

“When you think of Civil Rights activists, you think of Rosa Parks and Dr. King,” said event coordinator David Wendt. “The people that we are presenting this evening are some that are lesser-known but yet just as important throughout history. People like Lucy Higgs Nichols, who was during the Civil War. And then we have all the way to my lifetime where we are discussing Barbara Jordan and Shirley Chisholm.”

Several of the speakers talked about men and women activists that were active during the 1960s and 1970s. Of these were Mamie Carthan Till-Mobley and Viola Lizzo, Pauli Murray, Fred Shuttlesworth, Felipe Luciano. Another person that was presented was Julia de Burgos was a Puerto Rican poet that was writing in the late 1930s that became better known after her death.

“We have been working on this since the first semester of the school year,” said Wendt. “We were not able to do some of our usual celebrations because of COVID. It was great to be able to do this event. We wanted to do something a little bit different this year, and I like to hear stories.”

Wendt, as a communications instructor for IWU, has been involved with the study of Civil Rights activists for quite some time. Two years ago he took a group of IWU students on a “Civil Rights Spring Break” where they toured several known Civil Rights places and museums and talked to activists such as Annie Pearl Avery.

“The kids really don’t know who some of these people are,” said Wendt. “Julian Bond is a significant person that the students really don’t know about. It’s important to get these stories told. Much of history concerning this subject is not told in many schools. Many of the students here have not been told these stories.”

Contact Michelle Hillestad at michelle.hillestad@southeastiowaunion.com