(Host) On this Martin Luther King Jr. Day, commentator Bill Mares is
thinking about the anti-racism crusade of a former fellow legislator and
teaching mentor.
(Mares) Bob Walsh had a racial epiphany in the
cauldron of the Vietnam War. He became the executive officer of a
Marine unit that was ill-disciplined and rife with racial strife. The
major he replaced gave him a list of five black Marines, and said,
"These five guys are going to kill you!"
Undaunted, Walsh began talking to the black soldiers.
"The
more I talked to them, the more I saw their legitimate gripes. They
were really a lot like me. They had the same problems at home, the same
chance of getting killed. Yet many of their leaders were racists who
gave them every crappy detail in the battalion." The unfairness of the
situation made an indelible impression on Walsh.
Fast forward to
1980. As a U.S. history teacher at South Burlington high school, Walsh
volunteered to teach a new course on black history. This was unknown
territory. There was no textbook. All he had were a few handouts and
films and Lerone Bennett’s book BEFORE THE MAYFLOWER. Gradually, Walsh
assembled a curriculum. Over the next 15 years, it became one of the
school’s most popular courses, with three sections each semester.
Walsh
and Dr. Leon Burrell at UVM wrote and published their own text book
called "The Other America: The African-American Experience.." The book
received good reviews and was re-printed.
His next book grew out
of legislative hearings on racism in Vermont schools. Walsh was
incensed to hear legislators and educators telling persons of color,
"You are exaggerating. There’s no racism or bigotry here! We’re
diversified!" Walsh’ sharp reply was, "Diversity is just a white man’s
way of not having to talk about racism."
Walsh said to himself,
"If they won’t believe what people of color tell them, maybe they will
believe what a middle-aged white guy will say."
He called the book "Through White Eyes: Color and Racism in Vermont." And kept it to 110 pages, so people would READ it!
Walsh
then established the non-profit Vermont African American History
Project to help pay for the publications and to encourage teachers to
take a 3-credit college course in African-American history. He persuaded
Howard University to design an on-line course for teachers using "The
Other America" as the text book.
Walsh’s third book will be a
biography of Francis Brooks, only the third African-American elected to
the Vermont House of Representatives. Brooks, who served in the House
for twenty-five years, was a Norwich University graduate, a high school
chemistry teacher and coach, and is now the Sergeant At Arms of the
State House.
Walsh’s biggest disappointment has been his
inability to persuade the Administration or Legislature to require black
history for getting a license to teach social-studies.
But he’s
not giving up. He says, "I could forget about all this and just meld
into society. But a black guy can’t just disappear like that. He can’t
change the color of his skin. He has to deal with these frustrations
every day. So why should I quit? I don’t have the right to quit!"