African American History conference unites advocates

Local civil rights activists and historians gathered in Columbia last month for the South Carolina African American Heritage Commission Conference. 

The second annual conference, themed “Uplifting Voices,” was hosted by the S.C. Department of Archives and History. 

“Everyone’s excited to be here,” said Dr. Eric Emerson, the department’s director.  “We’ve got a very different group of presenters. Every session, there’s something different or new. I think it has something for a lot of different people to come here each and every year.” 

Gov. Jim Hodges established the commission in 2001. It has helped preserve state landmarks, records and buildings with deep ties to African American history. 

Ayanna Goines, an African American history consultant for the department, was the conference’s lead organizer. 

The event focused on a variety of topics, such as the Reconstruction Era, the role of African American women in the civil rights movement and the preservation of Black history. 

“All of these people were coming together because they had a common interest, which was Black history in South Carolina,” Goines said. “It’s one thing to go to a conference and watch the panelist and the speakers. But I noticed a lot of people talking with others.” 

Cecil Williams, the keynote speaker, discussed the role of students in the civil rights movement.  

“History today is still very relevant, especially to our young people, because history and legacy helps to mold young men,” said Williams, a longtime photographer of S.C. Black communities. “It helps them develop an understanding of being involved and the people that sacrificed, whose shoulders we stand on.” 

Williams photographed key civil rights moments in the state, such as the desegregation of Clemson University and the Orangeburg Massacre. The Order of the Palmetto recipient also founded the state’s first civil rights museum, containing his photos, the Cecil Williams South Carolina Civil Rights Museum. 

“Our whole thing among the museum owners is not just for it to be Black history, but American history,” Williams said. “A lot of times in South Carolina, people assume it’s an African American-only museum, but it’s not. We have people of all races who contributed.” 

The conference also featured student panelists from the University of South Carolina and USC Beaufort. Students presented their ongoing efforts to preserve the state’s African American history. 

William Bowman is a longtime public officeholder in Irmo whose family’s roots in the area date to 1803. His family legacy inspired him to become a historian.  He helped push for the development of a historical marker in Irmo for Judge Harold Boyd, South Carolina’s lead attorney for 1954’s Brown vs. Board of Education. 

“My goal here was to network with some people who are doing historical things in their towns around South Carolina, also to learn more about how I can preserve and present history in Irmo,” Bowman said. 

More than 150 guests attended the conference, an improvement from last year, Goines said. 

“The amount of people for the student research panel surprised me,” Goines said. “We were hoping it was going to draw a big crowd, but we didn’t think the crowd would be as big as it was. I heard people during and after saying how great it was to hear from the students.” 

Goines hopes the conference continues to grow while expanding the reach of African American history in the state. 

“People can count on this conference to be a place where they can gather together with people who have the same interests and a thirst for knowledge,” Goines said.