African American History in the West End: Resistance & Redlining

Join the West End Museum and the Afrimerican Academy for a walking tour and lecture on African American history in the West End neighborhood. The program will move chronologically, beginning with a brief walking tour to discuss the 19th-century history of Joy Street (previously Belknap Street), where local Black Americans congregated to form the first populous West Boston (renamed from New Fields) community. Here, the community built the oldest standing Black church in the United States, founded a school, and developed a successful elite, including William Cooper Nell and Lewis Hayden. They, and many others, were instrumental in founding the Abolitionist movement.

After the tour, Marlon Solomon, Founder & Senior Project Engineer of the Afrimerican Academy, will delve into the poignant history of Boston's redlining and the consequential urban renewal projects. In his talk, Marlon will explore how these pivotal changes during the Civil Rights era led to the dissolution of both the indigenous African American community and the vibrant multicultural community of Boston's West End.

This event promises to offer an in-depth analysis and a unique perspective on how decades of infrastructural transformations impacted these communities long after their displacement from the West End. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the historical and cultural contexts that shaped Boston's urban landscape.

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