Springfield Doubletake: When Commemoration is Celebration

Sitting at the intersection of the Old State House and the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum, in the center of town, just west of a statue of Abraham Lincoln with his coattails being blown by a strong breeze, is our country’s newest National Monument, in remembrance of the 1908 Springfield Race Riot.

Designated by President Biden using the Antiquities Act, the multi-block landmark recognizes the devastation caused by a white lynch mob that destroyed the lives, homes, and businesses of Black, and some Jewish, people living in the Badlands and Levee neighborhoods. The ensuing outcry and response led to the establishment of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). 

I am in town for the Illinois State Fair when I hear about the National Monument designation on the radio and make a beeline to see one of the primary sites. I'm visiting on Saturday morning, the first full day after the designation of this place being a national monument. A few blocks away, the Springfield farmers market is bursting with the summer’s harvest: there are dozens of kinds of tomatoes and a similarly mind-boggling number of kinds of melons. Floating above the cornucopia of produce is the chitchat of families knowing that back to school is just days away.

Many people don’t realize the creation of the NAACP was fueled by the 1908 race riot. A well-established local walking tour provides a well-documented route, and is a rich resource that contextualizes the injustice and the civic response over time. It’s just one of many efforts by community members over the past 100 years to ensure that what happened during those two days in August 1908 is connected to how we understand what we see in the present.

This place doesn't tell us what to think. It invites us to be curious. It offers an invitation to share an experience with the other people who have come to visit. In doing so, this place enables us to become a public. And in this protected space we are free to wonder, to imagine, to honor, to share, to believe. 

This is the public humanities.

As Illinois Humanities looks towards its 50th anniversary in the year ahead, and the country looks towards the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 2026, this monument is a reminder that when we uplift complex stories and bring them into the sun, we all get to stand in the light.

In a little while I'll head back to the state fair. I'm looking forward to seeing the goats and perusing the State’s champions. 

I'll definitely try to see the quilts and canned goods. And I'll stop by to see my Arts Council colleagues in the First Lady’s Tent. 

But best of all, I'll just be with the other state fairgoers. I might get funnel cake. 

I know I've got to try some of the “Golden Abe” winners, which includes a dill pickle pizza. 

What an amazing thing to be in Illinois, where in a single day, you can buy corn and tomatoes at a farmer’s market, visit a national monument, and gather with people from around the state, country, and the world to take part in a day full of history, culture, heritage, and humanity.