Photo by Justene Bartkowski Photography
By Karen Melton, Southeast PA volunteer
Glynis Johns realized years ago that the lives, contributions, and businesses of Blacks were missing from the historical narrative of the Scranton area. She set about to change that, founding The Black Scranton Project in 2017, an organization ‘dedicated to archiving and celebrating the African-American heritage and culture of the Scranton Area.’
Her realization it was missing came while doing a master’s thesis on the history of Blacks in Scranton, and she wanted to share what she had learned about local Black heritage and culture, in part from digging through archival material at the historical society.
In the years since, the Black Scranton Project has achieved non-profit status and organized dozens of events seeking to reclaim the Black historical foundations of the city. The events have ranged from art exhibits, lectures and presentations, to a book club, creation of a Black business directory, and large celebration events such as the recent Juneteenth, which drew nearly 1,000 people and was a show of support for the Black Lives Matter movement. U.S. Senator Bob Casey and Congressman Matt Cartwright both spoke at the event.
Glynis believes the momentum of the movement may result in real change this time. There are discussions with city officials about defunding the police and instead investing in the community. At the same time the Black Scranton Project is raising money to open a community center – a permanent space where people of color can gather for learning and tutoring, for arts and recreation, and for mobilizing.
The Black Lives Matter movement has also brought new attention to the Black Business Directory developed by the Black Scranton Project for Northeastern PA and raised awareness for patronizing those businesses.
The project website provides a resource section with extensive listings under the heading ‘Anti-racism Resources for White People.’ It includes books, articles, films, podcasts, and organizations to follow on social media.
Please make a visit to the Black Scranton Project website. You can subscribe to the project newsletter, take advantage of the anti-racism resource listing and share it with friends, make a donation to support the community center fundraiser, and if you’re local, you can sign up to volunteer at a future event.
Jeff Smith, an ExCom member of the NEPA group, met Glynis Johns in early 2019 when he attended a Black Scranton Project exhibit during Black History Month and immediately wanted to become a supporter and ally. He was struck by the many important stories of Blacks in the heritage of Scranton that are nowhere to be found in history books of the area.
The NEPA group and its members have since contributed volunteers and donations to Black Scranton Project events. And that is Jeff’s advice to all of our PA Sierra Club groups – find the local organizations who are working for racial justice and support them however you can. He says Glynis has welcomed them with open arms and is even helping with a clean energy symposium being organized for the fall.
He also sees the impact Glynis and the Black Scranton Project have had in raising the profile of Black-owned businesses and in raising community awareness. Scranton has a tradition of raising appropriate flags in celebration of ethnic related holidays. 2020 is the first year a flag was raised in tribute to Black History Month.
This blog was included as part of the 2020 Fall Sylvanian newsletter. Please click here to check out more articles from this edition!