Thank you to everyone who joined us last month for our Community Engagement Lunch & Learn with the Jefferson County Memorial Project.
We had two very dynamic speakers – Abigail Schneider and Myeisha Hutchinson – visit us to discuss the JCMP and what the organization means not only to the city of Birmingham, but to the whole state of Alabama. We also learned how the JCMP is connected to the Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery.
photo by Iron City Ink
Abigail and Myeisha spoke at Forge on September 11 – just two days after the JCMP dedicated their first historical marker at Sloss Furnaces National Historic Landmark. The marker honors the lives of Jake McKenzie and Tom Redmond, two black men lynched at mines owned by the Sloss-Sheffield Iron and Steel Company. The event at will reflect on the lives of Mr. Redmond and Mr. McKenzie and the system of convict leasing that continued to abuse and exploit black residents long after the abolition of slavery.
Historical Marker dedication at Sloss Furnaces- photo by Bham Now
The JCMP is a grassroots coalition whose goal is to memorialize the victims of racial terror violence and expand our county’s understanding of past and present issues of racial injustice.
The organization is composed of over 40 community partners and a multi-racial, multi-faith, multi-sector, and multi-generational group of committed volunteers. The four goals of JCMP are to:
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Research Jefferson County’s 30 documented victims and their descendants through our JCMP College Fellow Program.
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Educate the public on the importance of this history through events such as art exhibits, school curriculum, and JCMP trainings.
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Place historical markers at lynching sites and retrieve our monument from the National Memorial for Peace and Justice.
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Advocate for reform where racial injustice still exists today.
Through these four steps the JCMP will work with Alabamians to confront our history and reconcile for our future.
Through the work of JCMP, Birmingham is also re-learning some important moments in our city’s history. For example, down the street from Forge is Linn Park (known as Central Park at the time) – the site where a white mob lynched Lewis Houston on November 24, 1883. Mr. Houston was the first of the 30 documented lynchings in Jefferson County.
photo by Birmingham Times
Abigail Schneider is the director of the Jefferson County Memorial Project (JCMP). She graduated from Yale University with a double-major in Philosophy and American History. Schneider wrote her thesis on Illinois lynchings to push back on the idea that racial violence is only a “southern issue.” As part of her research, she helped facilitate commemoration ceremonies for these forgotten events. She moved to Birmingham through Venture For America, where she worked on financial literacy tools at the startup Azlo. Through JCMP, she wants to continue her work in lynching memory and reconciliation. Historically Birmingham has been at the forefront of activism around racial injustice. With JCMP, Birmingham can yet again be a national leader in this discussion.
Myeisha Hutchinson, Jefferson County Outreach Manager for Congresswoman Terri Sewell, oversees the Office’s intergovernmental and external affairs. A lifelong resident of Woodlawn, her training in community organizing has come from a range of local and national organizations including the Highlander Research and Education Center, Congressional Black Caucus Political Boot Camp, Leadership Birmingham, and Leadership Alabama’s Alabama Leadership Initiative.
You can also learn more at JCMP’s recently launched blog, Liberated Voices.
The Community Engagement Lunch & Learn series at Forge is sponsored by Red Thread Consulting. Follow Forge on Facebook to see all of future events that are free and open to the public!