Up & Coming Weekly

‘Faces and Places’ on Display by STAFF REPORT The striking faces and special places of North Carolina will soon be appearing at the Museum of the Cape Fear Cultural Complex on the Celebrate North Carolina: Faces and Places (www.celebrate.nc.gov) photog- raphy exhibit tour of the state. An initiative of First Gentleman Bob Eaves, in cooperation with the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the exhibit will be in Fayetteville from June 29-July 18. The exhibition of 30 photographs features four from 2009 N.C. State Fair winners, eight from the State Archives, and 18 from members of the N.C. Press Photographers Association. Altogether 27 libraries and three museums will present the quality color and black and white images to the people of the state. The State Library of North Carolina (http://statelibrary. ncdcr.gov/index.html) invited public libraries to host the exhibit, and muse- ums were invited to ensure broader geographic distribution. If “Scout” Had Been A Klansman’s Daughter by D.G. MARTIN Fifty years ago, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mocking Bird gave us a sympathetic hero who seemed to stand up against the worst features of our region’s social system. The story, narrated by his adoring daughter Scout, told us how Atticus Finch, the principled attorney, defended an unfairly accused African American. The book attacked the ugly racism of rednecks and the Klan. Its warm, finely crafted story engaged us and pushed us a gentle, posi- tive step forward. But it was a very small step. It did not force us to confront the foun- dations of a system that relegated one race to a subservient role. The good, sometimes devoted, relationships, between servants and their superiors obscured the oppressiveness of the system. Maybe we need another story to push us a little bit further in understanding and dealing with our history. What if Scout had been the daughter of a leader of the Klan instead of the child of a beloved, fair-minded lawyer? The small town South of the middle of the last century seen through the eyes of a Klansman’s daughter might force us to take a larger step forward in confronting the real brutality of our former ways. A new novel by UNC-Chapel Hill Professor Minrose Gwin gives us a chance to see our region through different eyes. Her book, The Queen of Palmyra, takes us back to 1963 and a small southern town. Florence, the fictional narrator and central character, is an 11-year-old girl who spends most of her days in the com- pany of and in the care of her grandmother’s African-American maid, Zenie. While Zenie was telling young Florence stories of Zenobia, Queen of A Camp Lejeune Marine, E5 Kevin Miller, was captured by photographer Corey Lowenstein in Military Appreciation at a past “Salute Our Troops” event in Raleigh. The image is included in the “Celebrate North Carolina: Faces” and Places photo exhibit on display at the Museum of the Cape Fear. (Photo courtesy of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources) Images of people at work and play are in the exhibit, along with a Camp Lejeune Marine standing at attention in Military Appreciation, by N.C. Press Photographers Association member Corey Lowenstein. Then there’s the relaxing picture Bass Fishing, one of more than one million images in the State Archives. Library patrons have enjoyed the exhibit in other venues. “A great exhibit, one of the best!” from Johnston County, or from the Pender County Public Library, “This is a beautiful state, it’s a state of history and its pres- ent, Thanks PCPL.” Photography will also be the highlight of July’s 2nd Saturdays event from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m, as the museum presents “Photography: The Snapshot of Our Lives.” Second Saturdays is a statewide initiative to show- case artists at state museums and historic sites. For more information on the exhibit call the Museum of the Cape Fear at (910) 486-1330. For information on the tour call (919) 807-7389. The State Archives and the State Library are within the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information on Cultural Resources is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com. Palmyra, Florence’s father, Winburn Lafayette Forrest III, was telling her tales “about brave Christian men who, yes siree bobtail, fought to the death like true soldiers for little girls like me and beautiful and pure women like my mother.” During the days, Zenie brought Florence into her home in “Shake Rag,” the black section of town. Later, in the evenings Florence would bring to her father his beloved box of robe, hood, and other items, for his Klan meetings and “activities.” And, once, her father proudly took her inside a Klan meeting where she wore her own spe- cially made white robe. Other times, she would slip away with her mother to warn black friends about upcoming Klan activities. When Florence fell behind in her schoolwork, Zenie’s niece, Eva, was the only person who could teach Florence the English grammar she needed to catch up. But Eva’s activities in organizing voter registration efforts made her a target of Win Forrest and his Klan brothers. The consequences of that conflict frame an awful tragedy that rips Florence away from her connection to Zenie, to her father and mother, and to her hometown. In a new setting she will find relief from the racial conflict, subservience and the confusion of her hometown and her father’s racism. She will find her own freedom as she puts aside the shackles of her father’s attitudes. It is tempting to read The Queen of Palmyra as an allegory of the transforma- tion of the modern south and the benefit to whites from the destruction of the social system they fought so hard to preserve. But Minrose Gwin does not preach. She is a gifted storyteller, careful wordsmith, and sensitive observer of personal interactions. Her book would be compelling reading, even if it had no important underlying message. D.G. MARTIN, Columnist COMMENTS? 484-6200 ext. 222 or editor@upandcomingweekly.com   484-6200 www.upandcomingweekly.com 16 UCW JUNE 30-JULY 6, 2010 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM

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