Blacks at Bradley book, 2001
Title
Blacks at Bradley book, 2001
Description
Blacks at Bradley 1897-2000 was researched and published by Arwin Smallwood, PhD, director of African American Studies (1997-2003), before continuing his career at Memphis University and then North Carolina A&T University where he is currently serving as vice provost for undergraduate education. Smallwood was assisted by students in his History and African American Studies courses as well as staff from Special Collections.
In one sense, Blacks at Bradley fits with a series of publications that reexamined the history and character of the institution around the centennial celebration with academic rigor and attention, including Race, Ethnicity, and an American Campus edited by Tim Conley and Anne Sterner and The University as Learning Community: Tradition, Innovation, Prospects edited by Tim Conley and Demetrice Worley; and the unpublished “History of Bradley University 1897-1997” by Paul Sawyer, PhD (also in Special Collections).
In another sense, Blacks at Bradley builds on a longer legacy of critical self-appraisal and consciousness-raising. Sometimes these efforts were led by university administrators but more often it was the result of bright, motivated students and alums, often working with key members of the faculty, as seen in ephemeral publications— "This is Black" (1969) and Black Awareness Magazine (early 1990s)—and other records of student activism and invited speakers.
All of these efforts build on the monumental legacy of Romeo B. Garrett whose master’s thesis in 1947 eventually became his 1973 book, The Negro in Peoria. Both Garrett and Smallwood credit the policies of openness established at Bradley's founding—without distinction to “sect, creed, nationality, politics, or party”—in creating the foundation for progress despite evidence of racism, insensitivity, and exclusion in the history of the institution.
The question has always been whether the stewards of the university will remember to live up to its founding ideals. Even more might be said about the contributions of staff, students, and faculty to the promotion of civil rights in the community as fights for equal legal and political rights, as well as fair employment and housing grew from vital forms of early activism in the nineteenth century and flourished in civil rights campaigns throughout the 1900s and on to the present era. Researchers can trace these influences through the books and vertical files carefully gathered, collated, and conserved by staff and faculty in Special Collections
In one sense, Blacks at Bradley fits with a series of publications that reexamined the history and character of the institution around the centennial celebration with academic rigor and attention, including Race, Ethnicity, and an American Campus edited by Tim Conley and Anne Sterner and The University as Learning Community: Tradition, Innovation, Prospects edited by Tim Conley and Demetrice Worley; and the unpublished “History of Bradley University 1897-1997” by Paul Sawyer, PhD (also in Special Collections).
In another sense, Blacks at Bradley builds on a longer legacy of critical self-appraisal and consciousness-raising. Sometimes these efforts were led by university administrators but more often it was the result of bright, motivated students and alums, often working with key members of the faculty, as seen in ephemeral publications— "This is Black" (1969) and Black Awareness Magazine (early 1990s)—and other records of student activism and invited speakers.
All of these efforts build on the monumental legacy of Romeo B. Garrett whose master’s thesis in 1947 eventually became his 1973 book, The Negro in Peoria. Both Garrett and Smallwood credit the policies of openness established at Bradley's founding—without distinction to “sect, creed, nationality, politics, or party”—in creating the foundation for progress despite evidence of racism, insensitivity, and exclusion in the history of the institution.
The question has always been whether the stewards of the university will remember to live up to its founding ideals. Even more might be said about the contributions of staff, students, and faculty to the promotion of civil rights in the community as fights for equal legal and political rights, as well as fair employment and housing grew from vital forms of early activism in the nineteenth century and flourished in civil rights campaigns throughout the 1900s and on to the present era. Researchers can trace these influences through the books and vertical files carefully gathered, collated, and conserved by staff and faculty in Special Collections
Creator
Arwin D. Smallwood
Date
2001
Subject
College students, Faculty
Rights
For official publication permission or to request high resolution images, contact Special Collections at specialcollections@bradley.edu or (309)677-2822.
Citation
Arwin D. Smallwood, “Blacks at Bradley book, 2001,” Virginius H. Chase Special Collections Center, accessed May 8, 2024, https://bradleyspecialcollections.omeka.net/items/show/86.