By Mike McCombs
The Island News
The First Beaufort Community Marathon Reading of the 1619 Project: A New Origin Story by Nikole Hannah-Jones will take place at 7 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 13 during Martin Luther King weekend at the Tabernacle Baptist Church Fellowship Hall.
The reading was conceived by three local women – Marie LeRoy, Sally Lombard and TZiPi Radonsky. While Radonsky was in Massachusetts in 2021, the NAACP North Shore Youth Council of Massachusetts hosted the reading of The 1619 Project, and Radonsky took part. The women felt the event would translate well to Beaufort.
“We needed to do this here,” Radonsky said.
The women reached out to Rev. Kenneth Hodges and explained what they wanted to do.
“He gave us the Fellowship Hall. People from the church are taking part as readers and as volunteers and supporters,” Radonsky said. “Rev. Hodges has been very supportive of us.”
What does a marathon reading look like?
Beginning at 7 p.m., multiple volunteer readers – Radonsky estimates about 50 – will read the work from beginning to end in 15-minute blocks. (Readers can follow the QR code with this story to volunteer to read.)
Organizers estimate the reading to finish around midnight. But if it’s not finished, the reading will continue until it is.
Snacks and drinks will be provided to those who read. T-shirts will be given to each reader and offered for sale. NeverMore Books and Beaufort Bookstore will be present, as well, selling various books.
What is the 1619 Project and why this book?
The 1619 Project, a piece of long-form journalism from the New York Times and the New York Times Magazine, is essentially an anthology of essays reframing American history and the institution of slavery’s impact on the United States’ economy, laws, society, and the livelihoods of Black Americans. The project is often critical of many traditionally revered figures and events in American history.
The work has been both praised and criticized.
Hannah-Jones, who has been invited to the marathon reading, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary for her introductory essay. The Smithsonian Institution partnered with the editors of the project, and New York University’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute named the project one of the 10 greatest works of journalism of the decade.
Meanwhile, politicians and elected officials, predominantly conservatives, criticized the work, often accusing it of being “woke” and “hating America” and have worked to ban the teaching of the work, sometimes banning the work itself.
A number of historians, with various political leanings, have questioned specific claims made by the authors, but the majority of the project was considered groundbreaking, and the Times and its partners have stood by the work.
Many states, including South Carolina, have placed restrictions on language and how history is taught in public schools, particularly when it relates to Black history and the history of Slavery, Jim Crow and segregation. For many who oppose these restrictions, reading this book can be seen as an act of civil disobedience.
Radonsky said the organizers’ intent is to tell the truth, the whole story. Quoting Hannah-Jones, she said, “if we are truly a great nation, the truth cannot destroy us.”
What’s the goal?
Radonsky said there has been much support for and positive reaction to the reading. She also admits, it’s not all positive.
“Some have told me they want nothing to do with this,” she said. “And that’s OK.”
But looking at the big picture, Radonsky and her friends hope they can create some understanding.
“I hope I’ll be able to say that we were able to cross boundaries and that people got to meet people and learn something, that they got to know some people they didn’t know and that maybe they’ll look at people differently and there will be more peace in our community,” Radnsky said. “A lot of things you don’t see immediately, but there’s a ripple effect. A big part of this is about getting to know your neighbor as you know yourself.”
Want To Go?
What: Beaufort Community Marathon Reading of the 1619 Project: A New Origin Story
When: 7 a.m., Saturday, Jan. 13
Where: Tabernacle Baptist Church Fellowship Hall, Beaufort
Cost: The event is free and open to the public
Want to read? Follow this QR code to volunteer to be a reader.
Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.
