BLACK HISTORY MONTH
Preserve the Past, Envision the Future

National Park Service -- steward of African-American history

Bob Stanton, Eva Paterson

Sunday, February 25, 2007

The National Park Service has become one of the largest stewards of African-American history in the United States. Few people, however, including many park visitors, realize this.

Our national parks play a key role in shaping the way Americans think about our shared legacies. They also serve as the nation's premier classrooms and the places from which a significant number of Americans learn about our country's history.

Twenty national park sites were created specifically to protect and preserve some part of the African-American experience. In 2005, more than 1 million people visited these sites and were provided with opportunities to better understand -- maybe for the first time -- the contributions and impact of African Americans.

Our nation's increasingly multi ethnic population will shape how we see our past, and thus envision our future, and determine which historic places are preserved and interpreted.

In August 2006, Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in West Virginia joined with the NAACP to commemorate the 100th anniversary of W.E.B. Du Bois' ground breaking civil rights gathering known as the "Niagara Movement." The park service's Underground Railroad Network to Freedom program (celebrating its 10th year in 2008) remains the only nationwide effort dedicated to preserving the legacy of those who made their escape from slavery to freedom.

While others have avoided assuming this responsibility, the National Park Service, by adding sites and programs such as these, has continued to interpret, preserve and provide educational opportunities that respect all cultures and their contributions to the development of our nation.

Here in the Bay Area, at Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial in Concord, is a National Park Service-affiliated unit that recognizes racial discrimination and social injustice against African Americans in the Navy during World War II. In the largest home-front tragedy of that war, a ship packed with munitions and explosives exploded there on July 17, 1944, and 320 men (202 of whom were black) lost their lives while loading ammunition onto ships docked in the Carquinez Strait. A mutiny followed, spurred by the fact that these black men received no adequate training, handled dangerous equipment and could not be assured of the safety of their working conditions. The Navy court-martialed 50 of the men for mutiny, and dishonorably discharged and imprisoned them. At the conclusion of World War II, President Harry S Truman commuted their sentences, and this event ultimately served as a catalyst in persuading Truman to issue an executive order ending segregation and unequal treatment in the armed services.

Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond reveals the contributions of African Americans during the wartime shipbuilding boom; during this period, job opportunities triggered an enormous migration of African Americans to the Bay Area. Yet, severely inadequate funding for national parks unfortunately threatens to undermine this cultural and historic site. In fiscal year 2007, the National Park System suffered from an operational funding deficit in excess of $800 million. When national parks suffer from a lack of adequate funding that leads to reductions in park staff, programs and services, African-American history suffers as well.

Here in San Francisco, where the National Park Service brought the "parks to the people" by creating the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, studies show that accessible and affordable transportation linking communities of color to that park is still lacking. Other studies reveal that economics, while a factor in the low visitation by people of color to parks, is secondary to the lack of cultural relevance of park programs to diverse visitors. The National Park Service's inadequate budget systemwide for social science programs can be viewed as one reason for this widening relevance gap between the national parks and culturally diverse communities. This problem, however, is not insurmountable.

As we approach the 100th birthday of the National Park System in 2016, our national parks face an uncertain future. Congress and the Bush administration have a unique opportunity to work together to improve the future of our parks. The administration has proposed a $258 million increase for the parks' operating budget, including educational and interpretive programs, as part of its National Park Centennial Initiative. We need Congress to seize this opportunity. We need Congress and the administration together to help in creating new national parks that honor the struggles, successes and signature moments in the rich tapestry of African-American history.

Finally, citizen advocates, including the African-American community, can play a more engaged role in protecting our national parks. While our national parks are not the only source for preservation and interpretation of black history, they remain one of the most visible venues for the promotion of this history. None of us can afford to take them for granted.

Bob Stanton is the former director of the National Park Service and chairman of the National Council of the National Parks Conservation Association. Eva Paterson is the president of the Equal Justice Society.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/02/25/EDGC7N6OJ41.DTL