When Benjamin Campbell, writer of Richmond’s Unhealed History, spoke at 2 events inward the Around the World through Books serial on Feb 8, he came alongside an agenda. Campbell, who has lived inward Richmond as well as served every bit a priest at 3 Episcopal churches since 1970, has a mission to convey improve opportunities to the people of the city, peculiarly those living inward neighborhoods dominated past times populace housing.
In 2 sessions - a luncheon at the Downtown Campus as well as an eve presentation inward Lipman Auditorium on the Parham Campus - Campbell traced 400 years of solid reason as well as metropolis policy designed to suppress opportunities for African Americans. Richmond’s unhealed history includes a slave market, a serial of urban renewal projects that destroyed African American neighborhoods, as well as a populace shipping scheme that generally does non cross into neighboring counties - limiting access to jobs as well as higher education.
“This is non apartment solid reason nosotros are living on,” he said. “It is crooked land, as well as nosotros cannot residual until it is flat.” Campbell industrial plant alongside RVA Rapid Transit, a grassroots organization serving Metro Richmond, which promotes a regional transit scheme (rvarapidtransit.org); he asked the audience to catch the website as well as back upwards the cause.
Around the World through Books is sponsored past times the Reynolds Multicultural Enrichment Council.
