Marriage is difficult, complicated and, unfortunately, they often fail. But the failure of marriage is not a rule and many do last for the long run. David and Thelma Driskell have been married for an impressive 64 years *Applause*. They mention responsibility, dedication and an understanding that marriage isn’t all about romance as the keys to their duration. David is a world recognized leading authority on African American art. He is both a professor and an artist, has curated dozens of shows of his own work and other artists. If you would like to hear David speak, although on a different topic, he is interviewed in the Rosenwald film!
One of the highest symbols of athletic victory is surely the Olympic gold medal. Many know the story of how Jesse Owens, an African American track athlete, won this prestigious icon in front of Hitler and a Germany mobilizing for the most destructive war in human history. The film “Race,” which stars Stephan James as Owens, shows the athletic feats of the man, but also conveys a lesser known facet of the story: the feelings of human brotherhood between Owens and his primary competitor, Germany’s Lutz Long.
Marlene Dortch, granddaughter of Owens, commented on this relationship after a screening of the film and forum in Bowie, Maryland. She tells of how the two men pushed past the (racial) politics and tensions surrounding the 1936 Games and competed to the best of their abilities. Long and Owens wrote letters to each other after the games and kept in touch, including a heartfelt letter from Long right before he was deployed as a soldier in Germany’s army. He died of wounds in a British hospital after the allied invasion of Sicily in 1943.
The film expresses the bonds that all humans have, despite what the feeling of the moment, political anxieties and even war may try to sever. Dortch sees her grandfather and grandmother as being examples of how to face challenges and maneuver with grace past adversity.
Owens was also a resident of the Michigan Garden Apartments created by Julius Rosenwald that were featured in the film.
The Woodville School is one of the few remaining Rosenwald schools. Erected in 1923, the building is found off of Route 17 in Ordinary, Gloucester County, Virginia. The school Woodville School, contrasts with most remaining Rosenwald schools due to remaining in fairly good condition. This is in part because the school has never been completely abandoned, serving as both a home and storage house for antiques since the school’s closing. Wes Wilson, of the T.C. Walker-Woodville Rosenwald School Foundation, hopes not to restore the school, but to rehabilitate it, saying, “Restoration is to take it back to the way it looked at a point in time. Rehabilitation would be to make it a usable product while retaining as much a historical presence as you could.” The foundation plans to add bathrooms, air conditioning, electricity, and other modern conveniences to allow the building to serve as a center for the community.
On February 8th, Aviva Kempner was invited by Valaida Fullwood to attend a special screening of Rosenwald at the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture in Charlotte, NC. After the screening, Aviva took part in a Q&A session with the guests at the Gantt Center. The screening was part of the Black History Month celebration, and was in part a promotion for the Levine Museum exhibit, “The Soul of Philanthropy”. The exhibit will remain open until February 28th.
The event was hosted by the New Generation of African American Philanthropists in collaboration with the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture.
Additionally, it is interesting to note that the Center also recently played host to a great exhibit called, “Art of a New Deal: African-American Artists in the WPA,” the displayed art from Jacob Lawrence, Charles White, and Hale Woodruff, who all also received a Rosenwald fund.
Thanks to the Library of Congress, the film based on the best selling novel, Native Son, will finally be screened uncensored and in its entirety at Museum of Modern Art. The film, which features dialogue written by the novel’s author, Richard Wright, also places him in the lead role of Bigger. Richard Wright was also the recipient of a Rosenwald fund.
You can read more about the story in the New York Times article, here.
On February 4th, David S. Ferriero, Archivist of the United States, opened up the evening at the National Archives with a warm introduction for the film, Rosenwald, as well as for Aviva Kempner and author, journalist, and president of the National Archives Foundation A’Lelia Bundles. Bundles also appears in the film.
Archivist David S. Ferriero
The showing saw a large turnout as many enthusiastic viewers stayed for a chance to listen to Aviva and A’Lelia discuss the film after the screening.
On January 24th, Aviva Kempner headed out to Las Vegas, Nevada for the 14th Annual Las Vegas Jewish Film Festival. Aviva spoke at the screening with Leslie Smith Rosen, the Head of Upper School for AEC, and drew a very enthusiastic crowd.
Aviva Kempner with Joshua Abbey, director of the Las Vegas Jewish Film Festival
Upon her return to Washington DC, Aviva attended a screening held by George Washington University’s Department of Religion. Aviva was joined by Stephanie Deutsch, who was interviewed in the film.
Stephanie Deutsch (left) and Aviva Kempner (right)
Also attending the screening was Lawrence Perry, who had attended a Rosenwald School. He was greatly appreciative of the films creation and loved seeing it.
We’re proud to announce that Rosenwald will be screened March 23rd at the Montclair Public Library as part of the Montclair Historical Society’s film series focusing on Civil Rights and the African American experience with a historical perspective. For more information on the film series, read the Montclair Patch article by Eric Kiefer, here.
Central Davie Academy is a school that sits in Mocksville, NC, on a site that formerly played host to a Rosenwald school. The school, established in 1933 as Mocksville Colored Grade School, stood for many years- eventually becoming Mocksville Colored High School, Davie County Training School (where teachers were trained). The original Rosenwald school no longer stands, but new efforts are being made to commemorate the school with a historical sign near the current school’s flagpole.
On January 18th, as part of a commemoration to Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosenwald was screened before a full house by the JCC Manhattan in New York City. The film was presented by Aviva, who held a small discussion as well. Among the attendees in the crowded JCC event was a woman who was a former teacher at a Rosenwald school.
The next day, Aviva attended another screening of Rosenwald in commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr., this time in Washington, DC. Presenting the film with her and joining in on discussion was great civil rights leader, Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights.
Recent Comments