I’ve long hoped that some form of scholarly and cultural collaboration would evolve between Fisk University, my alma mater, and Harlem’s historic Schomburg Center for the Study of Black History and Culture. The prospect of an ongoing scholastic and cultural bond between these two storied institutions has intrigued me, and now it has come to pass.
My interest began after first reading about Arturo Schomburg, the Black, Afro-Centric Puerto Rican of German descent, and his seminal work as curator of Black and African history as when he was the librarian at Fisk during the early 20th century.
In March 2005, it gave me great pleasure while serving as President of the New York Fisk Club to have partnered with Pfizer Corporation to present the Fisk Jubilee Singers in their first concert appearance at the Schomburg Center. Those in attendance were fortunate to have encountered a most memorable music and educational experience. An iconic mural by Aaron Douglas, Fisk’s beloved art professor, still adorns the Schomburg’s ceiling in its main reference room. Douglas was among the central figures helping shape the artistic and intellectual foundations of the Black Arts movement and the storied Harlem Renaissance.
As a former longtime resident of Harlem and a “Son of Fisk,” I view this burgeoning institutional relationship between Fisk and the Schomburg Center as one more essential link to the fullness of African History in the Diaspora. Congratulations, Fisk University and the Schomburg Center for the Study of Black History and Culture.
Dennis Day Fisk Class ’68