After George Floyd’s killing in 2020, Mary Finn wanted to read to learn all she could about racism. She had just retired, the pandemic had started, and she immersed herself in that reading, especially contemporary black writers. The Wiscasset woman still is reading, now going further back in black history to some of the works of James Weldon Johnson. And Finn is getting to talk online with others about what they are reading and learning about, and from, the author-poet-civil rights advocate who died in a 1938 car-train crash downtown.
“I learned some things I didn’t know” such as about nuances in Southern black culture about a century ago, she said Sunday, five days after the first discussion in the free series. She knew Johnson’s name for a hymn of his in her church’s hymnal. Taking part in the book group “was a way for me to learn about his life and why he was so highly regarded as a writer and a poet. He just really had an amazing life that I had no knowledge of.
“So when I heard about this book group, I was like, ‘Oh, I know absolutely nothing about this very important American figure in the (19)20s and 30s.’”
First Congregational Church of Wiscasset’s interim minister, Rev. Dr. Amy Lignitz Harken felt the same when Maine Humanities Council offered the High Street church a poster on the book group. Harken could not take part in the June 1 Zoom talk but is reading one of Johnson’s books MHC left there. The disparities Johnson’s works helped shed light on remain relevant, and she was very happy the series is being held and that the church was told of it, she said in a phone interview.
MHC, Lincoln County Historical Association, the James Weldon Johnson Task Force, and Maine’s Permanent Commission on the Status of Racial, Indigenous, and Maine Tribal Populations are sponsoring the book discussions on Johnson’s “Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man” and “Complete Poems,” Leigh Anne Keichline said. She and James Ford are facilitating them for MHC.
“James Weldon Johnson was an extraordinary human being! He contributed so much artistically, intellectually, and politically,” Keichline said in email responses to questions. “Black history is truly American history. It’s central to the history of our country. The upcoming celebration of Johnson
on June 17 in downtown Wiscasset feels like a valuable opportunity to celebrate someone who contributed so much to American society.
Keichline added, “Johnson is best known for the song ‘Lift Every Voice,’ but had so many facets; he was a diplomat, an educator, and a lawyer, and a civil rights leader. He studied creative literature at Columbia University and wrote poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. One participant (June 1) said it seemed like Johnson had lived three or four lifetimes. The more I look into Johnson's life and contributions, the more amazed I am. How incredible that fate ended his bright life here in Wiscasset. Now we can shine a light on his legacy, and hopefully carry it forward in 2022.”
What would Finn tell prospective participants of the online sessions? “Join it with a curious mind, and you won’t be disappointed.” It was good to hear other readers’ comments and see the themes that emerged, she recalled of the June 1 group, Finn said.
Keichline said the book discussions are free and open to the public, “and we have complimentary books to offer, thanks to Maine Humanities Council. Folks are welcome to attend the book discussions coming up
on (June 7 and 13) and can attend either or both. They would just want to procure the books first.”
