It is no surprise that one of the most prestigious institutes of higher learning, Princeton University, has prestigious alumnus, one of the most prominent and most famous one being president Woodrow Wilson. What we often forget is that even in the White House, racism was extremely prevalent. Wilson himself was no exception.
In 2015, Princeton University's Black Justice League led protests across campus to tear down Woodrow Wilson's name in regards to his racist legacy. One of the most famous accounts that show Wilsons prejudice occurred in 1914 when William Monroe Trotter, the then leader of the African-American civil rights movement, was humiliated by the past president. During this time, Trotter was regarded as one of the most important and necessary leaders to African American rights and in 1914, he arranged a meeting with Wilson alongside a few of his supporters to discuss the segregation in the country. Trotter was a Harvard educated man who founded The Guardian, still one of the most notable newspapers today. What is interesting to look at is that Trotter was initially a firm supporter for Wilson during Wilson's Campaign despite Wilson never directly stating that he would support racial equality. Trotter was hopefully and thought that because Wilson insisted he was fighting for the working man, this would encompass African Americans as well. Unfortunately, Trotter learned that that was not the case. In 1913, Trotter, Trotter's wife Deenie and Ida B. Wells thoroughly discussed the Jim Crows to Wilson and left hopeful. While Wilson never promised anything, they believed that he understood the plight of the African Americans yet in the coming year, segregation only worsened. The event on November 12 was arranged and Trotter arrived at the Oval Office, prepared to discuss segregation with Wilson, confident that the president would understand. Wilson would not have it and quickly stated that he saw "segregation as a benefit to blacks", one of the most disheartening quotes that Wilson spoke being "My question would be this: If you think that you gentlemen, as an organization, and all other Negro citizens of this Country, that you are being humiliated, you will believe it. If you take it as a humiliation, which it is not intended as, sow the seeds of that impression all over the country, why the consequences will be very serious." Wilson continued to say to Trotter "You have spoiled the whole cause for which you came".Wilson then promptly "kicked" Trotter and his supporters out. This only fueled Trotter's desire to fight back against the president who refused to listen.
After that incident, the respect that the black community had and Trotter once held for Wilson was lost and they continued to fight for the cause. This angered Wilson and the two consistently battled it out. At the end, Wilson admitted that he should have controlled his temper but the damage was forever done.
Wilson's name is prominently displayed across Princeton's campus, there is a mural of him in the dining hall and his name in the School of Public and International Affairs. Those in the Black Justice League argued that "Princeton continues to demonstrate its seemingly intractable investment in white supremacy and its vestiges." After a series of long debates, Princeton agreed this year to remove the mural of Wilson that celebrated his accomplishments. The fight is not over however, colleges across the nation are calling for the removal of people such as Alexander Hamilton who owned slaves and other significant figures who supported racism. Ultimately, the legacy that many politicans leave behind is mixed with what is considered evil and good.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2016/04/27/princeton-to-remove-overly-celebratory-mural-of-woodrow-wilson/
http://www.newsweek.com/should-we-tear-down-statues-slave-owning-presidents-651738
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/11/wilson-legacy-racism/417549/
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/04/04/472985937/princeton-will-keep-woodrow-wilsons-name-on-school-buildings
https://www.theguardian.com/education/2015/nov/23/princeton-woodrow-wilson-racism-students-remove-name
Thanks for the very interesting blog post Madison. Wilson was a good president in many ways, but we cannot forget his push for segregation when workplaces had been working fine without it. Trotter was right for calling him out and arguing with him, and you even write that Wilson later admitted that he should have controlled his temper. Although Trotter had very controversial opinions during his time, his activism was one of the many important things that set the stage for the Civil Rights Movement. Another thing I liked about your post was that you connected what we learn in class to more current events, showing that history does still affect the world around us.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.whitehousehistory.org/william-monroe-trotter-challenges-president-wilson
I thought that you took a very unique angle on Wilson's presidency, and mainly focused on the conflicts between him and a previously unknown person in William Monroe Totter.I think that this issue has been seen throughout history, and I like how you connected this divisive issue to today and its effects even now. I do think we have to take in account that Wilson was from the south, and while this racism is still not okay he probably felt that it was normal because of his heritage.
ReplyDeleteThis post was really related to me personally Madison, and I really liked your angle. Woodrow Wilson was not only one of the more pro-segregation presidents of our time. I have two cousins personally who are African American that go to Princeton, and they have witnessed the glorification that Wilson has on the prestigious campus. Today, the university still resists to change the names of buildings and sites, although an auditorium has been renamed. But this is more evident on a macro scale. Yale has the John C. Calhoun statue, and there are statues all across the country filled with firmly racist figures. Charlottesville has only continue to bring this back into the foreground. We need to ensure that there is a need to reassess the problems plaguing society and be able to look back at our history to understand why we are faced with the situations at hand.
ReplyDeleteSource
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/05/nyregion/princeton-board-votes-to-keep-woodrow-wilsons-name-on-campus-buildings.html