Dear Friends,
This weekend, both The New York Times and The Washington Post wrote about our school and Monastery's 2018 report on The History of Enslaved People at Georgetown Visitation. Those articles have engendered continued discussion about this important topic. I thought it fit to update our community on our ongoing work.
Sharing Our Story
Since releasing the research report in April of 2018, Visitation has worked to share this information as widely as possible, including posting both the report and all supporting archival documents on our website, hosting multiple on-campus events to discuss the report and its implications, and working with these reporters, as well as the Catholic Standard to share our story. But understanding our history is just the beginning of our journey.
As Sister Mary Berchmans so eloquently stated in 2017: "We want not only to acknowledge this painful part of our history, but to really examine it; not just to reflect on this pain, but to take clear steps forward to ensure our community is welcoming and inclusive; not just to improve our community within these walls, but to use these insights to make our world a more equitable place for all human beings."
Deepening the Conversation
To that end, we have been actively weaving this history into our curriculum at Visitation in many ways. How we talk about our founders has changed, as has how we teach students in our history classes about slavery in the United States. As highlighted in our most recent alumnae magazine, our AP Language & Literature curriculum features more diverse authors and explores issues of race and justice in America. In addition, our religion classes continue to examine modern social justice issues, discussing the injustices of our times to which society turns a blind eye just as many did to slavery at the turn of the 19th century.
Members of our faculty & staff have formed a committee to continue to explore ways to integrate the content and address the important moral issues raised by this research as we help our students grow into women of faith, vision, and purpose. Talking About Race Prompted by the insightful comment of an alumna at one of our History of Enslaved People events, we have also opened up conversation about the school's more recent history with race. The spring issue of our alumnae magazine featured interviews with six Black alumnae - one from each decade since our first known Black graduate in 1968 - exploring their experiences at Visitation. Recognizing that theirs are not representative of all Black student experiences, we have also invited all alumnae to share their stories so we can learn from our past.
Further, we have convened an Alumnae Diversity & Inclusion Committee, led by Leena Moore Donaldson '93, Sidonie Becton '07, and Mimi Cekuta '08, to continue to explore ways we can make our community welcoming and inclusive to all. Please reach out to Director of Alumnae Relations Suzie Koones Egan '79 if you are interested in getting involved. Building on the success of their spring "Coffee & Conversation," the committee invites alumnae to a "Community Conversation: Facing Race - Past, Present, and Future" here at Visitation the morning of September 28 to advance this important conversation. Invitations will be sent via email. Connecting with Descendants & Honoring the Enslaved
Our Board of Directors continues to be actively engaged in this work; earlier this summer, they formed a Special Committee on Descendancy that is exploring next steps the school and Monastery can take in connecting with individuals who are descendants of those who were enslaved by the Sisters.
At the same time, we also have a Memorialization Committee planning opportunities for reflection, reconciliation, repentance, and remembrance as well as appropriate ways to restore our history of slavery and enslaved persons to Visitation's collective and institutional memory.
As a new member of the community, I am encouraged by the dedication of The History of Enslaved People Committee and the Board of Directors to advance this important and ongoing work with the values of honesty, humility, and humanity. I am committed to partnering with them to ensure our community continues to be welcoming and inclusive for all. If you have any questions about this work, please don't hesitate to reach out - our door is always open.
I hope to see many of you at our September 28 event as we continue this vital dialogue.
In Christ, Dr. Barbara McGraw Edmondson
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