'Drive the darkness away.' Cape Cod human rights leader John Reed remembered

HYANNIS — A song by American performer Ruben Studdard played Saturday afternoon in the hall of the Barnstable Performing Arts Center at Barnstable High School, during a community tribute to human rights and civil rights leader John Reed.

“I need an angel, I'm calling an angel” echoed through the theater as the audience said goodbye to their own angel, leader, mentor and guide.

Reed, a former teacher of African American studies, history and social studies at the high school, died Feb. 10 due to complications associated with Parkinson's disease and a stroke he suffered in September 2022.

“John was a teacher to all of us, he made everyone aware of the issues affecting our community and people around us,” said Debra Dagwan, a former Barnstable Town Council member and close friend. “I realized how many lives John has touched as I came into the hall today, seeing so many people, coming from across the country to celebrate his life.”

Friends, family and well-wishers shared stories, anecdotes and personal experiences with Reed. The hall filled with laughter from time to time, as Reed was recalled as a warm, welcoming and joyous presence in the lives of people in Cape Cod. Students from the school's music department performed as well.

Reed founded Barnstable County Human Rights Commission in 2005.

An equity officer at Barnstable High School, Reed also founded the Barnstable County Human Rights Advisory Commission in 2005 and created the Human Rights Academy for Cape students. He established the annual Human Rights awards breakfast and the Friends of the Human Rights Fund. In 2021, he received the commission’s Rosenthal Community Champion award.

Reed promoted equality in every sphere of life, according to friend, artist and curator Carl Lopes. “John was there to reduce discrimination; he was very skilled at identifying, discussing and addressing equity issues that impacted our schools and community,” said Lopes on Saturday at the event.

Reed also launched recruitment efforts at Barnstable High School for more people of color as teachers.

Civil rights was a priority for John Reed, according to friend Carl Lopes.

Reed acknowledged and fought all his life for civil rights, knowing that civil rights ensured all citizens to be treated equally regardless of their race, religion, gender or sexual orientation, Lopes said.

Reed knew civil rights was a never ending battle; that people of color and other marginalized groups faced ongoing injustice and discrimination, he said.

“Reed certainly fought the good fight and made a phenomenal difference in the lives of so many people, through everything he did,” Lopes said.

Leaders of the Zion Union Heritage Museum intend to move forward with John Reed's vision.

Gospel was also a love of Reed's, Dagwan said.

She and Reed started “Gospel Impersonators” in Falmouth in the 1990s — a program that explored the history of gospel music and included people aged 4 to 89.

Reed also served as vice president and president of NAACP Cape Cod, and he co-founded the Zion Union Heritage Museum in Hyannis in 2007, along with Harold Tobey, the first Black police officer for the town of Barnstable.

The museum was created to celebrate African-American, Cape Verdean, Wampanoag, Brazilian and Caribbean people and their histories, according to its website. According to Lopes, Reed once said, “If we don't tell our story, who will?” Reed gave opportunities to artists, families and individuals to tell their stories.

“We're dedicated to moving the museum forward and continuing the legacy that John began,” said Lopes, a board member for the museum.

Reed was a mentor, guide and friend who encouraged love no matter the nationality, color or race, according to state Rep. Kip Diggs.

As a teacher's union president, Reed was awarded the 2008 Human & Civil Rights Award from the National Education Association. Many of Reed’s students and former students were present Saturday, sharing memories.

State Rep. Kip Diggs, D-Barnstable, who knew Reed as a mentor, guide and friend, said "Reed’s legacy will go on because people like us are going to make sure that we're going to do what he wants us to do.”

“He wanted us to be loving for everybody, no matter what nationality, color or race someone is," Diggs said. "We vow to continue his legacy.”

John Reed led a student group that took field trips to Boston and made college tours.

The Imani Club, a group that Reed founded around 1973, gathered once a week to talk about cultural history, and also took students of color to Boston for field trips and college tours. He knew the inconsistencies and stereotypical teaching of Black history in schools, according to Lopes.

“John held his students accountable and yet he always had their backs; he wanted to ensure that all students had the same opportunities and access to resources and support as their peers did,” Lopes said.

Another student and later a colleague, Bill Monroe highlighted Reed’s participation and contribution in the scout community of Cape Cod. Reed spent all his life bringing people together, Monroe said.

“He lived a life of respecting others and helping everyone to find a common ground,” said Monroe, on behalf of the Cape Cod and Islands Council, Boy Scouts of America.

John Reed grew up in Boston, and began to teach at Barnstable High School in 1973.

The third of five siblings, Reed was born in Boston on Sept. 28, 1950, and grew up in Dorchester and Roxbury. Reed attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, completing his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education. He began teaching at Barnstable High School in 1973.

Reed was afraid of the dark, according to lifelong friend and museum leader Julia Monteiro Johnson on Saturday. Yet, through his life and work, Reed was the one who helped drive the darkness away, Johnson said.

Rasheek Tabassum Mujib writes about healthcare and education. Reach her at mujib@capecodonline.com.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Teacher, advocate, mentor John Reed's legacy on Cape Cod remembered