African-American museum reopens on Oxford Road

Nov. 15—HENDERSON

The walls, and spaces in between, of the new Rebuild Communities Cultural Center on Oxford Road are filled with monuments to Black history and African American culture, from ancient Africa to modern day.

The great room features both artwork depicting slavery and a 2019 photograph of more than 20 Black Harvard Law School juris doctor candidates posing in front of the campus library.

The stairs, painted black and white, feature the combination of names and phrases like "Speak like Frederick, Lead like Harriet, Challenge like Rosa, Write like Maya." The top stair declares "The Promised Land."

There's a story to be told here, one of survival, achievement and overcoming odds.

"In all of these things, you can find yourself," said 1952 Henderson Institute graduate Gladys Allen, who visited the cultural center and museum last week. "You can be encouraged to be a better person, not just for Black people or white people — every race."

Allen and others joined Rebuild Communities NC Executive Director Edythe Thompson Thursday in reflecting on the significance of the center, which moved from Church Street to 1513 Oxford Road. "The White House" near Walgreens celebrated reopening to the public on Monday with the debut of the "The Moses Generation" exhibit, while the official grand opening is scheduled for Black Friday.

"The Moses Generation" likens Black leaders throughout history who have advocated for justice and equality to the biblical Moses, who learned perseverance through faith.

Thompson has served on the national board of the NAACP and worked in civil rights for 30 years. The Bronx, New York, native was introduced to Henderson after working in Durham.

"I came to Henderson to see if there was a way we could impact the community," Thompson said.

Thompson has experimented with different ways on how best to go about that, but the Rebuild Communities Cultural Center places an emphasis on community engagement and "shifting the paradigm" of what it means to be Black in America, Thompson said.

"Our history, our culture is one of openness, one of love, one of respect, and one of support," Thompson said. "But what we've experienced since we've been in America has given us different attitudes and behaviors. And that's what we need to counter. We need to change the narrative from the American narrative of the slave to the universal and the international narrative of Black folk rising, that Black folk do contribute, that Black folk have great talents, that we have made major contributions to the world, to life and to culture."

Allen was born in Henderson, and worked in Washington, D.C., for 30 years before eventually moving back home more than two decades ago.

If you want the truth, you go to Ms. Allen, Thompson said, adding, "She's the rock. She's the foundation."

Allen sat Thursday in a cultural center room dedicated to influential Black men and leaders. Around the corner, there's another space devoted to Black women. She was joined by Davie Ware and Charles Bullock, among other local Black community members.

"Everyone needs to know where they came from," Ware said. "If you don't know your history, how can you know where you're going if you don't know where you came from?"

Ware is an Alabama native who served in the Vietnam War before embarking on a career as a longshoreman in New Jersey and earning a doctorate in theology and religious education.

He, nor his wife Irene, weren't the only doctors in the room Thursday. Bullock studied at N.C. A&T and Auburn University, and received his Ph.D. in education and administration.

Bullock, a 1963 Henderson Institute graduate, said the cultural center is a place to learn the truth, without casting blame, for young and old.

"And there are places here — they can come have discussions," Bullock said. "They can read books. They can bring their children. There are a lot of facilities just in this building people can come and grow and learn together. It's a gift to the city. We really applaud all that Ms. Thompson has done."

As Bullock mentioned, the cultural center is much more than a museum with exhibits or displays. It's a gathering place, with a breakfast nook, fire pit, conference room, and meditation space.

"I do believe when the doors open — not just [Black people] but every race — we're going to have representation from every race coming in here to see what is in that White House," Allen said. "And that's a blessing for Henderson."

For more on the cultural center, call 919-680-8805 or email RBCommunities27536@gmail.com.