Executive Director Lori Walters shut down the pre-meeting chatter at 12:30 with the regular reminders and turned the meeting over to President Joanne. This was her next-to-last meeting as President and she promoted herself to Queen, donning regal robes and a sparkly coronet which balked at cooperating.
Tom Strode played the Star Spangled Banner. Ingrid Sheldon’s inspiration focused on leadership. She was inspired by President Joanne’s leadership during this difficult year. Kathy Waugh’s husband Curt took time out of preparing for the Lot Lounge, to record “Sunny” for us. It will be sung tomorrow night at Kerrytown Concert House when it launches its new The Lot Lounge, outdoor performances in the parking lot behind KCH.
Queen Joanne regained the podium. She ‘freeze framed’ for a couple of seconds to allow photographer Fred Buetler to get a photo. She announced that Al Storey’s interview with Becky Pazkowski on You Tube. Queen Joanne thanked all the people who make the meetings run smoothly, and announced birthdays.
We will celebrate the Peace Pole 0n Wednesday, June 30 from 5:00pm until 7:00pm. Join other celebrating Rotarians at the site, which is East of the little Gallup Park parking lot, East of the corner of Geddes and Huron Parkway. Please park at Huron High School and walk down as the parking is extremely limited in the lot. Westbound Geddes is closed!
Queen Joanne then embarked on Pierson’s Practically Painless Pandemic Presidency: A Year in Review. It was a crowded and speedy year, and the Queen’s recounting was thorough and fast. She had several goals that she met.
- Sustain and Grow RCAA. She lauded the Membership Committee’s success in bringing in 14 new members are reinstating four former members.
- Burnish our Public Image. She thanked the Public Image Committee for initiatives including renaming Harpoon to Ann Arbor Rotarian, organizing Adopt-a-Highway, advertisements in the Observer, heightened social media presence, and replacing stock pictures with pictures of us, among other things.
- Respond to Rotary International’s admonition that Rotary must change and grow in order to survive and prosper. This year the club has streamlined operations and rethought all functions and leadership assignments. The purpose is to make leadership positions possible for working people, ie, young members.
- Emphasize Social Justice and Peace themes. The Anti-Racist Committee budded off the Peace Committee. They have raised awareness of racism and brought 13 speakers to our meetings. The Peace Committee installed the Peace Pole and is planning another Peace Conference March 11 & 12, 2022.
- Continue to support international Humanitarian Projects with eleven projects this year. Recognize and thank other projects, all of which had a very successful and active year: Community Allocations, Rotary Fights Summer Hunger, VITA, Golf and Tennis Outing (a virtual dinner party and auction this year), Hire MI Vet, Saturday in the Park, Tutoring, Rotaract and Interact, and Strive Scholars.
Queen Joanne thanked four Board Members whose terms are complete: Rosemarie Rowney, Barbara Eichmuller, Tom Millard, and Peg Talburtt.
And before catching her breath, she turned the podium over to Dennis Powers, who introduced our speaker, Angela Denise Dillard. Professor Dillard is the Richard A. Meisler Collegiate Professor of Afroamerican & African Studies, History, and in the Residential College at U-M, a member of the Social Theory & Practice Program. Her topic is Ideology and The “Wide” Civil Rights Movement:What Counts as Black History?
Professor Dillard pointed out that there is wide intellectual diversity in the black community, it is not monolithic. Its base is center right. She reacquainted us with names from the past: James Meredith, Roy Innis, Mildred Jefferson, and Reverent J. H. Jackson. These powerful voices spoke out powerfully, supporting issues that today we associate with the hard right.
Professor Dillard told us that the problem with designating an event, or a place, as a ‘monument’ covers up the contemporaneous currents of thinking within the affected community. The question with the civil disobedience and marches and protests in the late ’50s and 60’s is, were they effective or is social change evolutionary? Dr. King supported the activism theory: Dr. Jackson supported the evolutionary theory.
A ‘wide’ look at the history of the racism debates makes room for all voices not just the ones who are loudest and most popular at any given moment.
Queen Joanne took back the podium, asked Dr. Dillard to remain for questions and closed the meeting for those who had to go. Her closing quote was from Winnie the Pooh: “If there ever comes a day when we can’t be together, keep me in your heart, I’ll stay there forever.”
Professor Dillard stayed at least 20 minutes answering questions. She is writing a book about these ideas and will let us know when it is available.
Submitted by Agnes Reading
Photos by Fred Beutler
