Humanities Council is a friend of Natchez

This column appears on the op-ed page (4A) of The Natchez Democrat (June 14, 2023).

Humanities Council is a friend of Natchez

 By Roscoe Barnes III

The theme song for the NBC show, “Golden Girls,” begins with the words, “Thank you for being a friend. Travel down the road and back again. Your heart is true, you're a pal and a confidant.”

As corny as these words may seem, they express the gratitude that I have for Mississippi Humanities Council and its contributions to Natchez. The council has been a friend, but even more, it has been an essential partner to Natchez, helping us to grow as we strive to tell our full history.

The council has provided many opportunities for our institutions to succeed in their areas of expertise. These institutions are telling stories, providing lectures, having dialogue, and discovering history that is preserved, presented, and publicized throughout the year. This is all being done, in part, by the resources provided by the council.

The success is no surprise when you consider the council’s mission, which is to “create opportunities for Mississippians to learn about themselves and the larger world and enrich communities through civil conversations about their history and culture.”

Just recently, the council and its board members paid a visit to Natchez for a two-day retreat. They met on Thursday and Friday, June 8 and 9, at Historic Natchez Foundation. During their stay, they conducted business and dined at local restaurants. They also toured some of our historical sites, such as Melrose, Rhythm Night Club Memorial Museum, and the Dr. John Banks House, where they held a reception.

Over the years, Dr. Stuart Rockoff, the council’s executive director, and his team have been staunch supporters of Historic Natchez Foundation, Natchez Historical Society, Visit Natchez, and Natchez National Historical Park. They also support the annual Natchez Literary and Cinema Celebration. But that isn’t all. In 2021 and 2022, the council approved six grants for three of our museums.

Here's a list of other things the council has done over the last two years in its support of Natchez:

* In August 2021, John Spann, the council’s program and outreach officer, came to Natchez and spent the day meeting with the staff of Visit Natchez and directors of three museums: Rhythm Night Club Memorial Museum, Dr. John Bowman Banks Museum, and the Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture.

* Spann returned in July 2022 to lead a symposium on the subject of “Freedom.” The event drew a large audience.

* In May 2022, the council, along with Visit Mississippi, approved our application to have Natchez listed on the Mississippi Freedom Trail and the U.S. Civil Rights Trail.

* In October 2022, Rockoff spoke at the monthly meeting of the Natchez Historical Society, where he gave a talk on the Jewish history of Mississippi.

* In 2022, the council brought the traveling Smithsonian exhibit “Voices & Votes: Democracy in America” to Co-Lin in Natchez.

* The council also provides support through its Speakers Bureau, of which our very own Jeremy Houston and Galen Mark LaFrancis are members.

This list does not include the webinars, Zoom calls, and phone calls the council used to provide guidance on grant funding.

As noted on its website, the council is “a private nonprofit corporation funded by Congress through the National Endowment for the Humanities to provide public programs in traditional liberal arts disciplines to serve nonprofit groups in Mississippi.”

By supporting us in our efforts to promote the humanities here in southwest Mississippi, the council is doing what it does best, which is exactly what it was created to do.

In the book of Proverbs, we’re told, “There is a friend who sticks closer than a brother” (ESV). Mississippi Humanities Council, I’m happy to say, has been and continues to be such a friend.

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Roscoe Barnes III, Ph.D., is the cultural heritage tourism manager for Visit Natchez.