100 years ago now

Just a short note today.

2PM this afternoon marks exactly one century since residents of Reno assembled in room S-211 of the United States Capitol to defend their homes. They were joined in this effort by their allies in the local chapter of the National Equal Rights League, particularly an attorney named James L. Neill. Facing off across the long oval table were members of the District government, federal officials, and their own white neighbors, who wanted them gone.

The room, which served as the chamber for the Senate Committee on the District of Columbia, was then as ornate as it is today, vividly decorated with allegorical frescoes by Constantino Brumidi. A handful of senators appear to have attended, sweating together with women of both races in the unconditioned summer air. It was all over by 4:30PM. As I wrote in my 2017 article, it went badly for the proponents of S. 1719, 69th Congress, the bill in question. It wouldn't stop the displacement of Reno. The American Civic Association had changed the world around everyone in the room, even if nobody seemed to quite understand it yet.

But it was a remarkable event. Beneath the vaulted ceiling, with the allegory of history facing away, the fading remnants of Reconstruction made contact with the one of the first programs of Urban Renewal. As I have dwelled on the hearing for over fifteen years, it has become more and more loaded with meaning, growing into the story with every detail. For that reason I will not be writing it up what happened in this newsletter. Some things really are worth the wait. I just wanted to take a moment to commemorate what was done and said in the name of that basic promise of equality, one century ago now.

In the meantime, if you really want to know more, the hearing transcript can be read in its entirety on HathiTrust.