Approximately 1,000 people attended a ceremony at Davidson College Thursday to witness the unveiling of a monument that pays tribute to the enslaved individuals who contributed to the college's construction.
Musicians with the Charlotte String Collective played in the corner of the campus as the crowd gazed at two gigantic bronze hands. The “With These Hands” sculpture honors those who were enslaved and helped construct buildings like Elm and Oak Row on campus.
About 120 descendants attended the ceremony, which took place outside Cunningham Theatre Center on campus, near North Main Street in Davidson. The event included those impacted by Jim Crow laws in Davidson. Bnita Smith from Charlotte was one of them. She was pleased that her family's history was being acknowledged.
“We all have history," Smith said. We can’t erase history, whether it’s good or bad.”
Two years ago, the college announced plans to build the hands, estimated to cost $4 million. African American artist Hank Willis Thomas worked with the architectural firm Perkins&Will to create the artwork that sits on campus facing each other.
"Knowing that these buildings were built with the hands of enslaved people, thinking about all of the labor that went in, I wanted to commemorate that,” Thomas said. "I wanted them to think about the storytelling, think about the labor, think about the pain, think about the struggle.”
Doug Hicks is the president of Davidson College. The president's college house was partly built by those who were enslaved. Speaking at the ceremony, Hicks said it was important to spotlight the story of those who helped shape Davidson.
"It's about telling a broader story, inviting more people into our history, and acknowledging those who've been members of this community but hadn't been properly acknowledged,” Hicks said.
Hicks was joined by former Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx, who later served as the U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Foxx is now the chair of the Davidson Board of Trustees.
"For us to become one as a country, as a community, as a city or town. We have to begin looking at each other and understanding those stories and coming together in a different way,” Foxx said. "I think that's what this represents."
Thursday's event featured students, faculty and community members. Davidson resident Julia Turner was one of the people in attendance who was pleased to see the college honoring a painful past.
"I can't imagine it not mattering to me. I want all people's hard work to be recognized,” Turner said. "I think acknowledging the role that slavery played in the building of this country, this school in particular. I don't want to turn my back on that. I want that history to be known.”
That history of Davidson is one that college leaders say is important to embrace and recognize, as it has helped shape the future of the college.
