Civic Activism a Way of Life for Kennedy

By KERRI WEBB

As you enter Shirley Kennedy's office on the third floor of South Hall, black and white pictures artfully displaying sit-ins, picket lines, marches, and other images celebrate the spirit of civil protest. Over the years, Kennedy, a lecturer in the Black Studies Department, has even organized demonstrations on campus when she's not in class teaching about civil rights and black history.

She sits on the advisory committee for UCSB's Center for Black Studies and she has been a leader in arranging for the local display next April of artifacts from the shipwreck of the slave trader Henrietta Marie.

Kennedy believes that one of the most cherished rights Americans have is the right to protest. She explains that because it carries with it such a sense of empowerment, protesting is one of the most influential methods to call attention to a problem, gain support, and hopefully make change. That is what she wants to impart to her students.

"It's the way I grew up and that is my goal," Kennedy said. "I want all students to know that they have power and can change the world. I'm a child of the Depression and that has had a very big impact on my life. The fact that my parents were very much political activists, you know, race people, that had a great influence on my life. I grew up in a very politically active, race-conscious family."

Kennedy, herself, was arrested for the first time at the age of 16 for picketing the unfair hiring practices of a department store in her hometown of Chicago. She says that's when she joined the crusade for equality.

With such a childhood, it's no accident that activism is always on her mind and in her heart. Since moving to Santa Barbara in 1970, she has been active in this community. Her workload always seems to increase in February, which is Black History Month.

This is a time to celebrate, learn about, and understand the spirit of African-American culture, and its contributions to American society. Kennedy is co-chairing a committee that is bringing to Santa Barbara a controversial exhibit, "The Wreck of the Henrietta Marie." This exhibit concerns a slave ship that sank more than 300 years ago off the coast of Key West. It will be at the Karpeles Manuscript Library downtown from April 14 to May 31.

"The exhibit is just amazing," Kennedy said. "They've found trading beads, beads that were used in the purchasing of slaves. Think about that. Beads for human beings. This exhibit puts it out there, you know. It puts the whole slave trade in your face." The Santa Barbara Foundation has pledged $20,000 to bring local fifth-graders to the exhibit.

The ship was originally discovered in 1972 by treasure hunter Mel Fisher. His crew found many artifacts, including an ivory tusk, but perhaps the most chilling was the discovery of iron shackles from the wreck that confirmed it had transported slaves from Africa to the Americas. Once the ship's bronze bell was pulled up from the underwater wreckage, the name "Henrietta Marie 1699" could easily be seen. It is the first and only slave shipwreck in North American waters to be seriously studied.

For more information about the Henrietta Marie traveling exhibit, contact Kennedy at x5747, or email her at kennedy@blackstudies.ucsb.edu.