US: Historic Black School Vandalized with Nazi, Racist Graffiti

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Telesur

US: Historic Black School Vandalized with Nazi, Racist Graffiti



The Ashburn Colored School in Virginia opened in 1892 at a time when education was
segregated by law in the U.S. | Photo: Facebook / Ashburn Old School Rehabilitation

Published 2 October 2016 (2 hours 17 minutes ago)


. . .

The historic Black Ashburn Colored School in Virginia was vandalized with racist graffiti including swastikas and "white power" slogans as it is being renovated by a group of local students who look to turn it into an education museum, local media reported Saturday.

We are very sad to report that there was vandalism at the Old School last night. If you have any information about this incident, please contact the Sheriff's Department,” the Loudoun School for the Gifted, the group leading the project to restore the historic school, said in a statement on Facebook.

“While we are heartbroken about this senseless act, please know that our students, volunteers, and community will work even harder to complete the dream of renovating the Ashburn Colored School.”

The group raised US$20,000 for the project which also hopes to highlight the region’s Jim Crow segregation practices. Meanwhile, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office has opened an investigation into the incident.


Read more: http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/US-Historic-Black-School-Vandalized-with-Nazi-Racist-Graffiti-20161002-0016.html

[Journeyman]

1. Who ever did it got one thing right: They were definitely "with stupid" . . .

[BlueMTexpat]

2. + a million! eom

[Ford_Prefect]

3. Once again Trump's enabling of hatred empowers fools to vandalize our History.

It seems they cannot allow the reality of the past to threaten their perception.

http://www.loudountimes.com/news/article/students_work_to_save_historic_ashburn_schoolhouse432

Students work to save historic Ashburn schoolhouse
Saturday, Feb. 20, 2016 by Hannah Dellinger, Times-Mirror Staff Writer

An old, forgotten structure on the north side of Ashburn Road looks like a dilapidated shed or barn, but the building holds stories from Loudoun’s post-Civil War era past.

When it was constructed in 1892, it was called “Ashburn Colored School.” Now students from Loudoun School for the Gifted are trying to preserve the structure to save a piece of history often overlooked.

“We bought the land around the old school house to build our new school there,” said Deep Sran, principal and founder of the private school. “We chose this site entirely because of the story of the old school.”

The private school opened eight years ago in Ashburn, but quickly outgrew its campus on Cape Court. Sran said after learning about the old school house, he knew he wanted to move the entire school expansion to the site.

Eighth-graders conducted thorough research on the old schoolhouse. They found that a church and a group of community members built and founded it.

“This school is a product of the Civil War reconstruction not succeeding and people coming together to say we need to educate our kids,” said Sran. “Now everyone’s forgotten about single race schools. But it is a sign of progress and how far education has come.”

The school was open from 1892 to 1957. The students were able to find people still living in Loudoun County that attended the school.

The one-room schoolhouse served students from elementary school through high school.

Harry Sabille owned the property for over 40 years. The Loudoun School for the Gifted has a contract to purchase the structure and the surrounding property. Sran said Sabille agreed to sell the property because it was a dream of his late wife to see the schoolhouse restored.

https://edwinwashingtonproject.org/schools/loudoun-colored-schools/ashburn-colored-school-loudoun/

[Mamajami]

6. And folks scream about the Taliban destroying Afghan history. We have the same kind of people

here.

[vkkv]

10. Well.. ancient Buddhist statues carved into rock are a bit more "permanent" if they aren't rocketed

repeatedly.. but I do get your point.

[GulfCoast66]

18. These people are vandals

Who will be arrested, fired and shunned if they are caught. And I hope they will be. The Taliban was the government.

I do not know what your goal is with such a false comparison, but it fell flat.

[yuiyoshida]

4. What are these Jerks going to do when Trump is defeated?

Riot? Try and over throw the government? Eventually this crap has to stop, one way or another.

[Coolest Ranger]

5. I'm dreading it too

Its going to get violent against us

[Mc Mike]

8. There will be some bundy style brigading, with the same fizzle,

then we'll get to hear a bunch of 'rahowahhhh!'s, when they run to cry online about their losses.

[FSogol]

13. Exactly. They'll all scurry back to their rat holes. n/t

[Odin2005]

7. The deplorables.

[vkkv]

9. Small-minded sickos = RepubliScums.. nt

[Panich52]

11. Perfect example of why Trump must lose big

If the election is close (never mind that the Dark Ages return w/ him winning) the nativist and white supremacist "deplorables" gain credibility. This is something far too many left-of-centers ignore, or just refuse to admit.

I was never a fervent fan of either Clinton, but Hillary must win by a landslide. Any other result shows the world how garden the rabbit hole, or sewage drain, this country has fallen.

[BadGimp]

12. very sad

[Neurotica]

15. We are having a community rally on Sunday

to say that this is unacceptable in our community. Part of this community event will be focused on removing the graffiti and repairing the damage.

[Tanuki]

16. I followed a couple of links and found a gofundme page to support the restoration project.

There is also a link so that a portion of Amazon.com purchases can go to the project.

https://www.gofundme.com/ashburnoldschool?utm_medium=wdgt

http://www.loudounschool.org/oldschool

I also found this excellent article by the teacher who spearheaded the project, and I hope others will read it:

..."The high point of the experience for our students so far has been meeting two former students, Yvonne Neal and Louise Winzor, and meeting Reverend Alfonso Harrod, whose sister, Lola Jackson, was their teacher. When we met Miss Neal, who attended school here from 1938 through 1945, she remembered Miss Jackson warmly and told of the love she felt for and experienced every day in the school.
......
By the 1950s, when the Soviet Union had already put a satellite in space, some of our community’s children were still forced to attend a one-room school with an outhouse. One of our students is now working to create a replica of the outhouse building as part of his Eagle Scout project, to remind visitors of what education was like for some students in Loudoun County during the Space Age. These are truths that are easy to forget in what is now a diverse, affluent, and vibrant suburban county. Yet, the schools here were only integrated in 1968, almost 15 years after Brown v. Board of Education found “separate but equal” to be unconstitutional.

The site is of great historical significance, particularly for what it reveals about the African American experience in the county. Around 1880, Charlie Harris, an African American farmer, purchased the adjacent lot and donated it for what would become the Zion Baptist Church. Mr. Harris’s red barn has been restored and moved to One Loudoun. Extant records suggest that members of the congregation built the school in 1892. The 640-square-foot school housed up to 50 students between the ages of 6 and 17 by the early 20th century.

Over the past two years, our students raised about $20,000 through bake sales, yard sales, and individual donations. This money was used to rebuild the foundation a few months ago and to repair the windows, which were just re-installed a couple of weeks ago, bringing sunlight into the school for the first time in decades. During our second bake and yard sale two weeks ago, it was with great excitement and pride that we looked at the visible progress bringing the schoolhouse back to life–and back into the light.
............(regarding the vandalism):
This is certainly a teachable moment, but what does it teach?
On the “cause” side, it teaches that the words and ideas people learn matter. They shape how people behave, and they create genuine good or harm. Though the words and ideas scrawled on this historic building have been shared publicly and privately in this country for far too long, it’s been ideas like justice, decency, and community that have galvanized this recent outpouring of support. Also on the cause side, it is clear that the perpetrators lacked worthy endeavors or goals. If people have worthwhile things to do, they don’t do things like this. On the “effect” side, it shows that there are words and actions that are beyond the pale, that so offend standards of right and wrong that they move people to act–to volunteer their time and to donate their money to strangers. On balance, this episode teaches me to teach my students that there are many more reasonable and generous people who will act to undo the actions of the few hateful and destructive ones.

This episode also teaches that amazing connections and outcomes are now possible among people across the globe. This was impossible just a few years ago. In 24 hours, a story about a small town in Loudoun County, Virginia, has reached the whole world. What was once a story of local interest now draws interest and support from people thousands of miles away. Like us, they’re all just trying to figure out how to make sense of it. What I have learned is, as is often the case, a reflection of what I believed before: the better angels of our nature will prevail, so long as we respond when people trample upon beautiful things.” (more at link)

[Neurotica]

17. So the wonderful result has been that these donations will help accelerate the restoration project

I'm sure the cretins responsible for the damage didn't have the foresight to understand that this might be an unintended consequence!