Workgroups
Communications/PR Workgroup ~ Co-chairs: Dr. Oralene Simmons & Ron Katz
The overall purpose of the Communications/PR Workgroup is to be the authorized spokesperson for the Buncombe Community Remembrance Project. All questions from the general public and/or reporters should be directed to the Chair (Dr. Oralene Simmons) or to the Chair’s designee. The Workgroup will also be responsible for the following:
- Establishing press releases, articles, and interviews.
- Inviting journalists and press to workshops, ceremonies, and events.
- Inviting community members to the unveiling ceremony.
Community Engagement Workgroup ~ Co-chairs: Rev. Damita Wilder & Rebecca Brothers
The Community Engagement Workgroup will be responsible for developing strategies to ensure inclusion of community groups throughout the City of Asheville and Buncombe County. The Workgroup will assist in identifying meeting spaces in which the Community Stakeholders’ Committee feels welcome, seen, and heard. The Workgroup will work in conjunction with the Communications/PR Workgroup to facilitate community articles that enhance community engagement, awareness, and discussion.
Museums Tour Workgroup ~ Chair: Yolanda Adams
The Museums Tour Workgroup is responsible for planning all aspects of arranging for community partners and stakeholders to visit the Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration, and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama.
Lynching Research Workgroup ~ Chair: Samantha Cole
The Lynching Research Workgroup is responsible for following up on the research conducted by EJI related to recorded lynchings in Buncombe County, as well as conducting additional research pertaining to other possible lynchings that may have occurred throughout the County. Research is to accomplish the following:
- Involvement of college and university students in research efforts.
- Reflect on the living members of the community who might have an authentic connection to experiences of racial violence, and to explore ways of ensuring their voices are represented in a substantive fashion.
Logistics/Historical Marker Site Location Workgroup ~ Chair: Carmen Ramos-Kennedy
The Logistics/Historical Marker Site Location Workgroup is responsible for the following:
- Assessing the feasibility of potential installation sites.
- Navigating through steps related to acquisition of needed permits, institutional approval, or municipal authorization.
- Identifying local concrete, sign installation, or general contractor companies who can assist with physical installation of sign where municipal services are unavailable.
- Incorporating a local Soil Collection ceremony and/or exhibit in the community prior to the historical marker installation.
- Identifying stakeholders who can effectuate acquisition of needed land for the marker installation and/or neutralize political opposition against the acquisition of land for this purpose.
- Plan a marker dedication and unveiling ceremony.
Essay Competition Workgroup ~ Chair: Eric Grant
The Essay Competition Workgroup is responsible for identifying stakeholders who can help distribute information about the Essay Contest to 9-12th Grade High School principals, teachers, students, parents, and other relevant role players, particularly regarding students living in low to moderate income communities.
Once the historic marker has been ordered for fabrication, EJI provides CRP coalitions with the necessary information to begin inviting local Grade 9 – 12 public high school students to participate in EJI’s Racial Justice Essay Competition. Students are challenged to write a response to information about historical events featured in our 2017 History of Racial Injustice calendar. We typically choose 4 to 5 winners and award over $5,000 in scholarships and prizes.
Educational Outreach Workgroup ~ Co-Chairs: Ed Manning, Jacquelyn Hallum & Dr. Darin Waters
The Educational Outreach Workgroup is responsible for establishing workshops, events, and presentations that highlight the work of the EJI and the Buncombe Community Remembrance Project. The Workgroup attempts to develop strategies and educational programming that eliminates community pushback and/or opposition to the community truth telling, reconciliation, and transformation. The Workgroup also identifies stakeholders who could plan, attend, and/or present/perform in a dedication and unveiling program that would feature a culturally relevant program in an accessible venue.
Compliance Workgroup ~ Co-chairs: Dr. Joseph Fox & Kimberlee Archie
The Compliance Workgroup is responsible for overall compliance and reporting to accomplish the goals of the Buncombe Community Remembrance Project related to the Soil Collections and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice Monument Placement Initiative. The main focus will be on the following required items:
- Organizing a Community Remembrance Project (CRP) coalition
- Complete the Historical Marker Proposal of Interest
- Reviewing and conducting Research about county lynching victims
- Crafting the Marker Language based on EJI and local historical society review, depending on the local process for marker approvals
- Identifying Site(s) for Installation of historical marker
- Securing Necessary Permits and Approval for marker installation
- Post-Land Securing Confirmation, EJI orders the historical marker to be fabricated
- Planning the Historical Marker Dedication and Unveiling Ceremony
- Facilitating the historical marker project affiliated High School Racial Justice Essay Competition leading up to marker installation
- Process Completion, including installing the historical marker(s) and holding the dedication and unveiling ceremony
- Sustain engagement post-historical marker dedication to potentially partner with EJI for the Memorial Monument Placement Initiative.
- Monitor compliance toward completing EJI’s Step-by-Step Project Checklist.
