Ian Brickey, ian.brickey@sierraclub.org
SPRINGFIELD, IL -- Members of the Springfield, Illinois, community turned out on Monday to call on President Biden to designate the site of the 1908 Springfield Race Riot as a national monument. The public hearing, hosted by Interior Assistant Secretary Shannon Estenoz and White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory, comes after a National Park Service feasibility study concluded that the site, near the historic home of Abraham Lincoln in Springfield, is suitable for inclusion in the national park system. More than 30 local organizations have joined the Springfield NAACP and other community and national leaders in support of this proposal.
In 1908, a White mob violently attacked Springfield’s Black community, killing residents and destroying numerous black-owned properties. The racist assault received national attention and was condemned in Ida B. Wells-Barnett’s famous speech, “Lynching, Our National Crime,” and spurred the creation of the NAACP the next year.
In response, Nick Dodson, Sangamon Valley Sierra Club Group Chair, released the following statement:
“Our public lands and national monuments not only protect the places that make up this country, they memorialize the stories and legacies that define the nation. The 1908 Springfield Race Riot was a terrible moment of mass racial violence, but preserving the site of it can be one of healing and commemoration. The Springfield community supports the effort to designate this site as a national monument, and we urge President Biden to protect this place for the next generation to learn from.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.