This blog is the third and final update on the semiquincentennial. The first looked at the national and New England regional landscape. The second surveyed the individual New England states. This final blog turns to New York State and City where the news is not good.
Remember this blog excludes what is happening at the county and municipality level where the story is much different and too much for me to track. Individual listings may be found at the I LoveNY website along with non-250th events and the New York State 250 Commission hosted on the New York State Museum website.
NEW YORK STATE
New York wades into controversy over new way of teaching the American Revolution
New program includes voices of Indigenous and enslaved people
By Kathleen Moore, Staff Writer Updated Oct 9, 2024 8:38 a.m.
Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site on Tuesday, Oct. 8, in Albany.
A new video by the New York Education Department and state Parks focuses on enslaved people at the Schuyler Mansion who escaped to join the British. They were promised their freedom and land if they fought for the Loyalists. At least one of the people enslaved at the Schuyler Mansion survived and received land in Nova Scotia after the war.
The state Board of Regents on Monday got a look at the new ways of teaching the American Revolution that will be rolled out by February in state parks in advance of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Later, school programs will be developed from the same content.
The displays will include powerful new videos detailing the lives of unheard people from that time. One highlights an Indigenous woman who fought for the colonists in hopes of keeping her tribal land. After the war, Indigenous soldiers returned to find their land had been taken by their former allies. The Indigenous people were forced out.
“It’s this history that hasn’t been reckoned yet,” Indigenous public historian Heather Bruegl, of the Oneida and Stockbridge-Munsee, said in that video. “The colonists wanted that promise of freedom and they got it — with our help.”
The video ends with a black background and the words: “Since its founding, the United States has never upheld a treaty made with an Indigenous Nation.”
Two other videos showcase the stories of enslaved people who fled the Schuyler Mansion in Albany and other areas because the British promised freedom and land to anyone who fought for the Loyalists. About 3,000 formerly enslaved people who fought for the British and survived the war were given land in Nova Scotia.
There are 40 videos in total. They have not been released online yet.
Regents immediately praised the new pieces, but worried that they would get another deluge of criticism similar to what happened when they approved diversity, equity and inclusion policies.
“We have social studies teachers on Long Island who are afraid to teach what we’re talking about here,” said Regent Roger Tilles. “There are things we talked about this morning that I’m afraid won’t go over well in some of my districts.”
Chancellor Lester Young Jr. said the curriculum requires courage.
“There is a major effort occurring in New York state to ensure that the real history of America is told,” he said. “We are the body that is responsible for the education of all students and it’s important we maintain the courage to do what’s right.”
Still, he acknowledged that there will be a negative reaction from some groups.
“When this board passed the DEI policy, there was tremendous pushback, the depths of which we have not seen in a long time,” he said. “A great American once said, every now and again courage has to kick in. A moment when you have to do what’s right. So I think what this board has to do is continue to lift up the truth and do what’s right.”
The new way of viewing the revolution, as designed by the state Education Department’s Office of Cultural Education and the state Parks Department, is called “the Unfinished Revolution.”
“The American Revolution, as groundbreaking and important as it was, was really incomplete — it did not include all residents of the colonies, did not include women as voters, obviously enslavement was allowed for decades, so how do we grapple with that history?” said state historian Devin Lander in the presentation to the Board of Regents.
“We developed themes for how to talk about that history,” he said. “Really the opportunity is to think about it as … not really the past. It’s connected to events to this day.”
The idea is to see the revolution as the impetus for 250 years of striving to meet the ideals of the Declaration of Independence.
The new videos, photos, narratives and other elements will be shown on “Revisit the Revolution” kiosks installed at parks throughout the state.
Locally, the kiosks will be at the Capitol, Schuyler Mansion and Peebles Island. They will be installed by February.
The Education Department plans to also create programming for schools and push for funding to bring students to their nearest state park to use the kiosks. Currently, state aid does not cover bus transportation for field trips, so the Education Department will propose adding that in next year’s budget.
In addition, the department wants to provide small grants to libraries for programming using the kiosk videos and other materials.
Kathleen Moore
Times Union’s education reporter. You can reach her at Kathleen.Moore@timesunion.com or 518-918-5497.
https://www.timesunion.com/education/article/albany-faces-controversy-new-way-teach-19821414.php
New York State 250th Commemoration Commission Meeting
The New York State 250th Commemoration Commission held a meeting on Wednesday, October 23rd. The meeting is open to the public and took place at the Seneca Art & Culture Center at Ganondagan State Historic Site, the New York State Museum, and the Schomburg Library.
The meeting was pathetic, a true embarrassment. The panelists were located in all three venues. All three panels were displayed on-line. The figures were too small to discern as were the signs identifying them. If you didn’t recognize by voice, you were lost. The acoustics were terrible. Even the panelists in one location complained about not being able to hear speakers in the other locations.
And this is from a panel with no funding. If any funding is included in the budget for next year, it would be the second half of 2025 at the earliest before such funds were available.
The guest Presenter: Andrea Smith, Lafayette College, author of “Memory Wars: Settlers and Natives Remember Washington’s Sullivan Expedition of 1779” was the highlight of the session.
The next meeting will be in February.
There is an event upcoming at the end of the month which appears to be a statewide one presented by
2025 NYS 250 Commemoration Virtual Summit
You’re invited to join us January 30, 2025 at 10:00 AM as we reconvene planners, programmers and promoters for a 250 Commemoration Virtual Summit. The morning program will follow-up on the successful September 2024 gathering in Saratoga Springs with a virtual event packed with updates, progress reports, ideas and guidance. A live / in-person event is also planned for September of 2025 – details will be shared at the virtual meeting in January.
We look forward to seeing you!
Date: Thursday January 30, 2025
Time: 10:00 AM to 11:45 AM
Virtual Link: You will receive a calendar appointment – please rsvp to reserve the day and time.
The meeting link will be sent to you both as an email and calendar appointment update on January 25, 2025.
PRELIMINARY AGENDA (Draft)
9:55 AM: Login begins to the virtual platform.
10:00 AM: Welcome/Remarks: Devin Lander, New York State Historian; NYS Education Department
10:15 AM: Updates:
NYS Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation
– Phil Giltner, Special Initiatives Coordinator & Madeleine Gionet, Director of Marketing
Empire State Development
– Ross Levi, Vice President/Executive Director of Tourism
10:45 AM: Updates / Best Practice / Case Studies In Collaboration:
– Brief presentations from destinations, museums and historic organizations
11:30 AM: Closing Remarks / Next Steps / Plans for September 2025
Contact Information:
NYS 250 Commemoration Questions: Devin R. Lander, New York State Historian, Devin.Lander@nysed.gov
Event Registration Questions: Brooke Wilson, New York State Tourism Industry Association (NYSTIA), brooke@nystia.org
NEW YORK CITY
The only reason the New York City American Revolution 250th isn’t even more pathetic than the state version is because there isn’t one. Local organizations are moving ahead with their own events but there is no city- or borough-wide organization.
The one event that is drawing attention is
To celebrate America’s 250th birthday on July 4, 2026, the largest fleet of the world’s most magnificent tall ships and gray hull ships will sail into New York Harbor, pass in Presidential review, and salute the Statue of Liberty.
In the tradition of the 1976 Bicentennial, the Statue of Liberty Centennial in 1986, the Columbus Quincentennial in 1992, the Millennium celebration in 2000, and the Bicentennial of the Star-Spangled Banner in 2012, international fleets will arrive in grand style and spend a week in the heart of the nation’s first capitol.
Sailors will come together in the universal fellowship of freedom, hope, and opportunity that our country has always represented.
This will be a big event. There will be thousands of tourists and much to see. Of course, on July 4, 1776, not much happened in New York City. A few days later the Declaration of Independence was read, the statue of George III was toppled, and a fleet of tall British ships carrying 30,000 soldiers was on its way to Manhattan. The Battle of New York was engaged.
In other words, the biggest battle of 1776 occurred in the Battle of New York/Brooklyn/Long Island. New York has the opportunity to dominate the 1776 anniversary celebration by commemorating the biggest battle of the year. Certainly Westchester County will celebrate the battles in 1776 that were a spillover from this campaign, but New York City will not. Organizations that commemorate the Battle of New York anyway annually will continue to do so, but the city will do nothing just like the state.
The clock is ticking and New York State and City are running out of time.
