By Greg Oliver
The Journal
CLEMSON — The first in a series of listening sessions about a proposed Green Book Tour of the city of Clemson and Clemson University will take place this weekend at Nettles Park.
The event will happen from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Sunday.
“The general idea is to form a collaboration with Clemson city, nonprofit and higher education entities to create a historical Green Book Tour featuring African American notable Clemson students, Clemson neighborhoods, churches, land, businesses and sites,” said Mia Tensley, chair of the Friends of the Clemson Area African American Museum and a member of the city’s Arts and Historical Commission. “This project is now in the pre-planning stage, and successful development and implementation will require community participation, grant funding, research and collaboration among several groups. Community input is vital to this process.”
Dr. Rhondda Thomas, a Clemson University professor who heads the Call My Name coalition that works with various coalitions in Clemson, Pendleton and Seneca to document and share history of African Americans and local communities, told the commission last month African Americans have long been a part of Clemson history.
“I think this would go a long way to begin revealing that history to the state and the world,” Thomas said, emphasizing she is not speaking on behalf of Clemson University.
Thomas said the name Green Book goes back to the day when African Americans used a green book including a list of hotels, restaurants and other places they could stay or eat or go to for entertainment during segregation. A Green Book trail, in her words, would “identify sites of interest pertaining to African Americans in the state” and be incorporated as part of Juneteenth, Kwanzaa and Black History Month celebrations, where people could “walk the trail, run the trail or bike on the trail.”
Grants for such an endeavor are in the application process, and officials say having the city as a partner would bolster the chances of success in getting them approved.
“If we can work together, I think this project will be even stronger,” Thomas said. “I think it’s a win-win for the city and for the university and for the community.”
She also wants the community to play a major role in the project.
“Sometimes the community vision is different,” she said. “I don’t want this to be my vision. I think you have more buy-in when there’s more people at the table and it’s their vision.”
Tensley said lifelong and longtime residents of Clemson, Central and Seneca with historical information beneficial to the proposed Green Book Tour are encouraged to attend the listening sessions, starting with the first on Sunday. During the sessions, community members will have opportunities not only to discuss the Green Book Tour, but also the ongoing Woodland Cemetery project on the Clemson University campus, where a total of 667 unmarked African American graves have been discovered, and other relevant topics.
Thomas also hopes to see African Americans in the community and local community members who are descendants at the table for discussion so they can provide input.
“This may take time — this is a multi-year project that may take 3-5 years — but that doesn’t mean we don’t get started,” she said. “If we can work together, I think this project will be even stronger. I think it’s a win-win for the city and for the university and for the community.”
Tensley said additional dates for the listening sessions have yet to be set.
“We will meet after the first listening session and determine new dates,” she said.
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