As Foster Auditorium moves into regular use as the home of UA women’s basketball and volleyball, the Black Faculty and Staff Association (BFSA) takes a serendipitous pause during Black History Month to thank those who recognized what this historic site is and what it should be to The University of Alabama.
Advocates worked tirelessly over many years through decrees, articles, letters to the editor and to University administrators, and other strategies to ensure the Auditorium would be restored to pay tribute to Autherine Lucy Foster, Vivian Malone Jones, and James Hood. These advocates who championed the cause consists of The Crimson White staff; student organizations including the SGA; the Faculty Senate; and individual students, faculty, staff, alumni, and members of the larger Tuscaloosa community.
We regret that these well-deserved acknowledgements were not made during the formal University dedication of the Autherine Lucy Foster Tower and Malone-Hood Plaza on November 3, 2010, as the tribute ultimately came to pass because of these unwavering voices. Therefore, during this month of reflection and celebration, the BFSA takes this opportunity to say thanks to those advocates for:
– Urging the University to stop the decay and demise of Foster Auditorium.
– Suggesting that Foster Auditorium not only be renovated, but also that a fitting memorial to its historic Civil Rights significance be constructed, even as perceived financial obstacles persisted.
– Insisting that an appropriate monument be erected even after UA Athletics assumed renovation of the actual structure.
– Recommending that the Foster memorial singularly spotlight the contributions of Autherine Lucy Foster, Malone Jones, and Hood toward the desegregation of The University of Alabama and memorialize their contributions to the Civil Rights Movement.
BFSA offers a special thanks to the greater Tuscaloosa community, especially members of the African-American community, who formed an essential support system for the University’s first African-American students and who have continued to nurture African American students through the decades.
Finally, as the nation celebrates Black History Month, we all must continue to advocate for additional approaches for documenting and presenting more fully the history of the Civil Rights Movement and progress at the University of Alabama.
BFSA looks forward to working with all University constituents to add to the existing memorial by including, for example, artifacts, programming and vibrant 21st century technologies (e.g., videos, virtual tours, etc.). Commemorating such historically significant events at our beloved Capstone helps to cultivate a hospitable campus environment.
This is a statement released by the Black Faculty and Staff Association.
