Cortez Williams of Albuquerque talked about the historical contributions African Americans have made to the region at a talk last Thursday at the Laboratory. A display tied to Williams' talk remains in the Otowi Building through March 1. The talk and display is in celebration of Black History Month. Photo by Ed Vigil, Public Affairs"Blacks have been in this area since 1100 A.D. In fact, I can trace their arrival as far back as 639 B.C.," said Cortez Williams.
Williams spoke last Thursday in the Physics Building Auditorium at Technical Area 3 as part of the Lab's observance of Black History Month. Williams is president of C.W. Enterprises Inc., consulting firm, and professor emeritus after more than 23 years at the University of New Mexico.
Williams' topic, "Reconsidering The American West: Blacks in the West, 1100 to 1899," provided the audience with many examples of how selected cultures, epochs and economic classes are chronicled in depth, while others receive minimal coverage, therefore distorting true American history.
"American historiographers are too parochial -- they need to integrate other disciplines to get a true picture of history. Science integrates into all disciplines, into all fields," Williams said.
"Pottery by certain pueblos have African symbols, and in New Mexico the people of Acoma Pueblo already had seen blacks and recognized them as being from the South," Williams said.
According to Williams, 37 families originally came from Spain and of those, 17 were Black. The muster rolls of 1694-1695, which the Spanish government kept for every town or village in the colonies, documented the racial background of all the inhabitants.
African-Americans in New Spain faced considerable barriers to social acceptance, particularly among the early ruling class of royalty and its military officers, he said. The community records placed individuals within 15 distinct social classes according to their ratio of Black, Native American and Spanish ancestry. Characterizations such as Albarazado, Chino, Cambujo, Castizo, Mulattos, Coyotes, Lobo and Morisco were given, to name a few. Today, based on a United States census, more than 12.3 percent of all Hispanics in the U.S. acknowledge some African ancestry, he said.
Williams provided many examples of the early Black pioneers, such as James Beckworth, founder of a Black town in southern Colorado; Buddy Mason, laundress for miners; Mason carried a wrought iron stove on her back from Georgia to California; Henry O. Flipper, first graduate of West Point who built bridges in New Mexico; Fredrick Douglas, the nation's first U.S. Marshal; and Pio Picco, first governor of California.
Williams also provided a viewgraph of Black towns in the West that include El Vado, Bocktee, Canadian Colored, Union City, Roberts, Liberty, Lima and Clearwater, to name a few. A large percentage of the Black towns are in Oklahoma, including one founded by a Black, Native American woman who was provided with land when ostracized by her tribe, Williams said.
"European anthropologists have provided racial designations that don't fit," said Williams. "Throughout history, Blacks have been sent in a disapora all over the world; there are Blacks who are Polish, Italian and English. People make adjustments back and forth because they do not want to be pigeonholed," Williams said.
The Black History Month exhibits will be on display until March 1 in the second-and third-floor lobbies of the Otowi Building at TA-3.
A scheduled talk Feb. 12 by Charles Becknell Jr., research coordinator of the Charlie Morrissey Research Hall, a division of the African American Studies program at the University of New Mexico, was canceled due to inclement weather and will not be rescheduled.
Williams' talk was sponsored by the Laboratory's Diversity/Affirmative Action Board, the African American Diversity Working Group, Strategic Research Directorate (ADSR), ADTR and the Diversity (DVO) Office.
--Kathryn Ostic