By Tucker Paquette
@tpaquette17
As Black History Month rolls along, an integral part of recognizing Black history is celebrating those who stood up for what they believed in, oftentimes putting themselves at risk – or even in danger – in the process.
At Springfield College, several fascinating stories surrounding race-related protests unfolded in the late 1960s and early 1970s, a particularly defining era of race relations in the country. These anecdotes and other moments set on Alden Street from the time period, which are outlined in an exhibit in the Springfield College Archives in Judd Gymnasia, show just how rich this campus’ history is.
However, before Black students turned to activism and began to make their voices heard on campus, they were part of a troublesome campus environment where inclusivity and acceptance were far from a reality. At times, the campus’ issues ran decidedly deeper than that – a cross-burning outside of International Hall in 1968 showed just how much progress needed to be made at Springfield College with regard to race relations.
One initial development that would pave the way for significant events to come on campus was the formation of The African American Society (or Afro-Am Society for short), a Black student activism group.
The society was created in 1968, and according to Springfield College Associate Professor of History Ian Delahanty, many similar societies were forming around the country during this time. According to Delahanty, the rise of the Black Power Movement was the catalyst for The African American Society, as well as many others elsewhere.
However, the formation of the society was only able to do so much good. As the calendar flipped to February 1969, Black student activists on campus didn’t believe the thoughts and concerns they were raising were being taken seriously, at which point they decided to formally meet with Wilbert E. Locklin, the college’s President at the time, and other members of the school’s administration.
During this meeting, the students provided Locklin with a list of demands, with the goal of increasing racial equality at the school. According to Delahanty, these demands included making a Black Cultural Center, expanding the Admissions staff to recruit more African American students, having scholarships reserved for Black students and making sure the college’s curriculum taught African American history.
Of these demands, having the school’s admissions staff place more of a focus on recruiting African American students stands out. According to Springfield College Archivist Jeff Monseau, Black students on campus during this time felt as if there weren’t many people they could relate to. Having people to look out for them and advocate for them would improve their campus life.
“There was nobody for them, counseling, advising, mentoring, to see people, to be able to communicate with people that understood who you were,” Monseau said. “There were no support systems at all there.”
However, the demands students issued fell on deaf ears. There was no urgency on the part of college administrators to act on student activists’ requests. At this point, it became clear that a more pointed form of action was needed to achieve the meaningful change that students desired.
“The administration, the student body, everybody didn’t seem to be responding appropriately,” Monseau said.
To that end, in May 1969, Black students staged a takeover of the Administration building on campus. However, this too failed to generate any real momentum towards change. So, on March 10, 1970, students took part in another building takeover, this time at Massasoit Hall.
This subsequent takeover was more targeted. A larger group of protestors forced out those who lived in Massasoit Hall in an attempt to reach campus administration. 49 students who participated in this takeover were charged with civil contempt, 47 of whom ended up having to serve jail time.
According to Delahanty, these building takeovers were part of a larger trend of nationwide action. Specifically, they were commonplace at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and at institutions that had protests against the Vietnam War in the late 1960s. With regard to the race-related protests on Alden Street, though, the issues Springfield College students were facing were being felt by others all over the nation.
“What happened at Springfield was the result of specific problems relative to Black students’ status at the College, but it was part of a broader movement among Black college students who experienced similar forms of inequities and racism across the country,” Delahanty said via email.
While student activists on campus were doing everything in their power to create change, they were still running into roadblocks. According to Delahanty, many Black student activists ended up leaving Springfield College, and the vast majority of their demands were not enacted in the time soon after their protests.
Even when progress was eventually made, it wasn’t always linear. A Black Cultural Center was established, but it was ultimately removed in the early 1980s, according to Monseau.
As a matter of fact, according to Monseau and Delahanty, there was a lingering reality of the unrealized progress on campus as recently as five years ago, amidst the nationwide Black Lives Matter movement.
“The campus realized that not much had been done between this 1971 period to relatively recent in our past,” Monseau said.
The 2019-20 school year marked a pivotal time at Springfield College in this regard. It was then that Delahanty said current and past generations of student activists connected.
“A new generation of Black student activists at the College re-discovered this history and formed relationships with the former student activists of 50 years prior that the College took account of the events of the late-1960s,” Delahanty said. “[Springfield College] worked with the veteran and (then) current Black student activists to take meaningful steps toward repairing the damage done back then.”
This timeline provides a somber reminder that the process of achieving meaningful, sustainable change was a long one, and one that still has more room for improvement. However, Springfield College’s role as the home for courageous protests, powerful student activists and an unbroken desire to right past wrongs shows that the school has plenty to fondly recall during Black History Month.
(Photo by Tucker Paquette/The Student)