In 1931, nine Black teenagers—later known as the Scottsboro Boys—were falsely accused of raping two white women, igniting one of the most infamous legal injustices in U.S. history and a global fight for civil rights. Founded in 2010 by the late Sheila Washington, the Scottsboro Boys Museum preserves their story and her legacy, including her pivotal role in securing their posthumous exoneration through the 2013 Scottsboro Boys Act.

In this episode, Executive Director Dr. Tom Reidy joins us to reflect on Washington’s impact, the museum’s role in healing and reconciliation, and the ongoing work of carrying forward justice unfinished.

This episode is dedicated to the work and memory of Scottsboro Boys Museum founder Shelia Washington (1960-2021).

bghpn.org l thescottsboromuseum.com

How do faith, dignity, self-respect, and inter generational land stewardship inform both survival and freedom?

In celebration of Black August and the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, this episode focuses on the Safe House Black History Museum in Greensboro, AL.

In Greensboro, AL, stands a house that once shielded Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from the deadly threats of the Ku Klux Klan on March 21st, 1968, two weeks before his assassination in Memphis, Tennessee. Today, the Safe House Black History Museums honors the everyday foot soldiers of the movement and their sacrifices in the struggle for freedom. 

Executive Director Rev. Kervin Jones joins us to discuss preserving the unique culture and history of Alabama's Black belt, honoring the unsung foot soldiers of the movement, confronting the lingering traumas of Jim Crow, and the continuing fight for land retention and freedom.

This episode is dedicated to the work and memory of museum founder Theresa Turner Burroughs (1928-2019).

bghpn.org l safehousemuseum.org

How has the Penn Center functioned as a hub for Black freedom and cultural preservation for over 160 years?

Founded in 1862 as one of the first schools for formerly enslaved people, the Penn Center has long been a cornerstone of Black self-determination on St. Helena Island. Today, it remains a vital force for cultural preservation and land retention in the Gullah Geechee corridor.

In this episode, Executive Director Dr. Robert Adams discusses the modern threats and challenges to the center and St. Helena Island, and how the Center is using traditional education and mutual aid to help families protect their ancestral land.

bghpn.org l https://www.penncenter.com/

What does it mean to sustain a living culture and a community still fighting for recognition, where even the burial grounds are contested, and challenging development means standing for both the dead and the living?

Founder and Executive Director Glenda Simmons-Jenkins and Operations Officer Kathy Carswell join Black Preservation Stories to discuss Gullah/Geechee heritage, land loss, displacement, and the ongoing fight for self-determination. From zoning battles to protecting ancestral burial grounds, they explore what it truly means to preserve not just Black history, but a living future.

bghpn.org / gullahcommunitytrust.org

This episode centers on the Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project, based in Jacksonville, Florida. Founded in 2011, the project honors the memory of two million Africans who perished during the transatlantic crossing and the ten million who survived to shape the Americas—through the placement of historical markers and public ceremonies of remembrance across the United States.

Founder and Program Director Ann Chinn joins me for a conversation about how her spiritual experiences in Brazil and encounters with African diasporic traditions helped shape her path. We discuss Indigenous-Afrodescendant relationships, the emotional and spiritual labor of stewarding memory across time and place, and her reflections on aging, legacy, and passing the torch in grassroots preservation work. Join us as we explore the question: What does it mean to honor and carry the memory of 12 million souls?

bghpn.org / middlepassageproject.com

On this episode of Black Preservation Stories, we focus on Friends of the Tanner House in Philadelphia, who, since December 2021, have rallied to save the childhood home of artist Henry Ossawa Tanner, known for The Banjo Lesson and The Thankful Poor. In 2023, they launched a community-driven visioning process for restoration, programming, and stewardship to transform the house into a vibrant cultural center. Co-coordinator Christopher Rogers joins me to trace their journey—from grassroots coalition to nonprofit, from initial stabilization to plans for exhibitions, workshops, and public events—and explore how centering people over policy can spark intergenerational connections. Join us as we ask: How can preserving a historic home empower an entire community?

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On this episode of Black Preservation Stories, we visit the Mound Bayou Museum of African American Culture and History in Mound Bayou, Mississippi—known as the “Jewel of the Delta” and the oldest all-Black municipality in the U.S., founded in 1887 by formerly enslaved visionaries Isaiah T. Montgomery and Benjamin T. Green. The museum's mission is to honor traditions of self-governance, mutual aid, and resilience. Co-founders Darryl and Herman Johnson Jr. discuss Dr. T.R.M. Howard’s civil-rights organizing, Emmett Till’s ties to the town, the 1982 caravan that saved the community, landmark institutions like Taborian Hospital and the Delta Health Center, and acquiring authentic props featured in the films Till and Women of the Movement (2022). Join us as we explore the question: How does Mound Bayou's legacy continue to shape a model of Black self-determination?

bghpn.org

This episode of Black Preservation Stories focuses on the developing Bellevue Passage Museum, in Bellevue, Maryland, one of the last historically black maritime communities on the Eastern shore, as developers proposed 14 multi-million dollar waterfront homes that threatened to erase Bellevue. The museum's founders race to protect its working-class and communal legacy. Dr. Dennis De Shields and his daughter Kat De Shields Moon, co-founder and program director, join us to discuss returning to Bellevue in adulthood, confronting zoning battles, leveraging technology, and crafting programs that merge historic preservation with community revitalization. Join us as we explore the question: What does it take to preserve a community on the verge of disappearing? 

bghpn.org