Students in the program learn the history of the Black Press in America. (Photo by T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center. Click to enlarge.)

Press release from the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center

The T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center will open a new exhibit, “The Black Press: Stewards of Democracy,” on October 7, 2023. The opening of the new exhibit will coincide with the 167th birthday celebration of T. Thomas Fortune on October 3.

In conjunction with the exhibit, the Cultural Center has created the Fortune Tellers Docent Training Program and is currently working with a select group of high school and college students who will become tour guides for the upcoming exhibit.

Program participants visited Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch. (Photo by T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center. Click to enlarge.)

The program started on July 10 and runs until August 10. The selected students will be paid a stipend of $400 when the program ends and will be hired as employees of the Cultural Center when the exhibit opens this Fall.

The participating students hail from different schools throughout Monmouth County and beyond. The schools represented are Red Bank Regional High School (Saeed Ellis), Ranney School (Ava Deady, Priscilla Michel, Kaylee Godfrey), Academy of Allied Health and Science in Neptune (Precious Ogunsakin, Joseph Capuno), Colonia High School in Colonia (Sydni Scott), and Brookdale Community College (Xavier Reid).

T. Thomas Fortune was one of the most prominent and influential journalists and newspaper publishers of his time. As part of their training, the students are learning about the impact that the Black Press had on American History. From the founding of the first Black owned newspaper in 1827 by Samuel Cornish and John Russwurm, Freedom’s Journal, the Black Press chronicled the
contributions and illustrious history of African Americans. The Black Press gave voice to the wide range of Black experiences and the issues that mattered in the development of a true democracy.

In addition to T. Thomas Fortune, the students are learning about influential leaders of the Black Press such as Ida B. Wells, a significant figure in the women’s suffrage movement who led a vigilant anti-lynching campaign. Ethel Payne, often called the “First Lady of the Black Press,” who was one of the first Black women to join the White House Press Corps, along with Alice
Dunnigan, in the 1940s. Both women left a significant impact on modern day media.

The students were also introduced to A. Philip Randolph, a civil rights activist and labor unionist who organized the first successful African American led labor union; the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters. His independent magazine, The Messenger, discussed many important economic and political views and opinions that related to the prosperity of African American people. A Civil Rights icon and the brainchild behind the 1963 March on Washington, A. Philip Randolph is a name most high school students have never heard of.

The Fortune Tellers Docent Training Program is sponsored by Monmouth Medical Center (MMC). Recently, these up-and-coming tour guides visited MMC, to view the exhibit Black Firsts in Medicine in Monmouth County. It was developed exclusively for MMC and in partnership with the T. Thomas Fortune Foundation. The exhibit celebrates the groundbreaking contributions of Black Americans in the health care industry, and is the companion exhibit to Ancestral Ascension, about the Dr. James Parker Family of medical professionals, whose decades of service to the Greater Red Bank community is unmatched. The Parker Family Legacy Room at the T. Thomas Fortune Cultural Center was also sponsored by MMC.

The students met with the President and CEO of Monmouth Medical Center and Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus, Eric Carney, and the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Director, Sylvia Jacobs. “Our mission is to provide the highest quality, safest care to all who entrust us with their care, and this requires us to meet the unique individual and cultural needs of everyone we serve,” said Carney. “While outstanding clinical care is essential, cultural education and awareness is foundational to delivering high quality, equitable health care. We are so honored to partner on these important initiatives with the T. Thomas Fortune Culture Center, which has a fantastic track-record of providing research and education on the historical contributions of Black Americans.”

Stan Cain of Stan Cain Design, the exhibit designer, met with the students to show them how an exhibit goes from a thoroughly researched topic and evolves into a visual presentation. Fortune Center Executive Director, Gilda Rogers, and the Cultural Center’s Research Assistant, Suubi Mondesir, are the curators of the exhibit, and have been working with the students throughout the program.

Architect Mark Fitzsimmons, a Fortune Foundation Board member, shared with the students the architectural importance of the time-period of the home and the importance of historic preservation. Dr. Carol Penn has been an ongoing presence with the group, teaching them the importance of creating balance in their lives and how to alleviate stress. When the new exhibit opens in the Fall, the Fortune Tellers will be ready to share their newfound knowledge with visitors to the Center.

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