Center visit a must for Du Bois students

Written May 11, 2007 by Randy Weinstein in The Berkshire Eagle

To the Editor of THE EAGLE: I am heartened by the articulated vision of Monument Mountain students, with regard to W.E.B. Du Bois’ legacy (letters, March 7-9.) They are forthright,  knowledgeable and passionate about our famous native son’s often-neglected history.

Cindy Schmelkin, for one, suggested that a Du Bois Center  informational center would greatly benefit our community. I think Cindy and her schoolmates will be pleased to know that such a facility exists at the W.E.B. Du Bois Center , across from the Great Barrington fairgrounds. It is a non-profit educational center where students from Mount Everett and Lenox High Schools, Berkshire Community and Williams Colleges, and elsewhere spend considerable time.

The Du Bois Center  has a significant museum filled with Du Bois artifacts, a reference library, bookstore, a lecture and film hall, and on-going world-class exhibitions. The personal library of General Ulysses S. Grant, one of our great civil rights presidents, is currently on display.

Board members David Levering Lewis and John Y. Simon maintain that the “Center perpetuates Du Bois’s legacy of social justice.” The Center is usually open daily, free of charge, with an historian on hand to set Du Bois’ record straight.

I invite Cindy and others to visit the Center. Perhaps they would like to organize a program at the Center for our community.