“There’s not enough troops in the army to force the Southern people to break down segregation and admit the nigra race into our theaters, into our swimming pools, into our homes, and into our churches,” said former South Carolina Senator and namesake of Winthrop’s Thurmond hall, Strom Thurmond.
Racism is the bane of our society. It is grotesque, violent and has been holding our country back for centuries. One of the men responsible was Strom Thurmond.
He originally ran for president in 1948 as a Dixiecrat candidate on a platform supporting segregation and states rights. He did not succeed in his bid for the presidency, but successfully ran for and won a Senate seat. In 1957, the first civil rights legislation in America since the Reconstruction era was being considered. Senator Thurmond—spokesperson for segregation—gave the longest filibuster in U.S. history against the legislation. He ultimately failed to stop the resolution from passing, but became the South’s mouthpiece for segregation.
In 1964, the debate over a more comprehensive civil rights act was well underway. A majority of southern Democrats were in opposition to the Civil Rights Act and fled to the Republican Party. Undeterred by the majority of his own party deciding to support the legislation, he broke with the Democratic Party and allied himself with the Republicans. He called on former Democrats to join him and “better the Republican Party.”
In 2003 it was revealed in an interview that Strom Thurmond had an illegitimate daughter with his housemaid. Her name [the housemaid] was Carrie Butler, an African American woman who was, at most, 16 years old when she gave birth to their child, Essie Mae Washington-Williams.
Even for 1925 standards, this is statutory rape. In a twist of horrific historical irony, the man renowned for preaching traditional marriage and segregation, impregnated a black woman. His actions are reminiscent of how Thomas Jefferson would rape and have illegitimate children with his slave, Sally Hemmings.
According to Winthrop’s website, “Thurmond [hall] is named for the late J. Strom Thurmond, longest-serving U.S. senator who passed away in 2003 at the age of 100” and that “He served on Winthrop’s Board of Trustees from 1936-38 and again from 1947-51 when he was governor of South Carolina.” This statement is ignorant of his atrocious record on civil rights and treatment of women. It is misleading and deserves to be redrafted. Winthrop immortalized a man who stood in the way of the struggle for equality for Black Americans.
Although there is no justice for the lives that Strom Thurmond irreparably harmed, something can be done. The Winthrop community should universally condemn the name of Thurmond Hall and demand its removal. Winthrop should be ashamed that they allowed his name to remain this long. It must be a top priority for the university to rename the building and remove his painting.
It is a gross insult to minority students particularly, to have to see the face of Jim-Crow America staring at them when they go to class. This is a powerful statement that forces students of color to be reminded of Thurmond’s contribution to racial disparities in the south.
It is not unreasonable to demand this. Earlier this year Winthrop students expressed their discontent for Tillman Hall, named after the ex-confederate Benjamin Tillman. Winthrop responded by asking permission from the state legislature to rename the building. Due to the Heritage Act in South Carolina, nothing has been done. It is a bureaucratic roadblock created by southern revisionists to legally justify adoration of amoral people. If the legislature does not repeal the Heritage Act, the university should refuse to recognize the law. Rename the building without approval and file a class action lawsuit against the state.
To believe that this would be “erasing history” requires a narrow conception of history. History’s importance is derived from our capability to reflect on it and willingness to learn from the mistakes. Although we cannot erase the stains of prejudice that Strom Thurmond’s legacy left on South Carolina, we can do better as a community and condemn our grisly past.
