Should My Uncle John be in Your Public Square?
The Bronzed Project intentionally doesn’t answer that question for you, because I want you to decide for yourself.
I take little pride in the fact that past generations saw fit to honor several of my maternal relatives with bronzed statues in public squares. I didn’t travel thousands of miles to visit their memorials in Philadelphia, New England and the Midwest to honor or justify their past actions. Each time I left my home in Connecticut, I went looking for you, an engaged American willing to discuss race, class and politics and a better way forward for public discourse in our frayed democracy.
The statues, or in one instance an entire town named after my Uncle John O’Neill, provided the structure for a map—not a geographic one—but one that outlines a process. Study the history, talk with others about the stories, process what you’ve learned, be inspired to write a story of your own to share with others. The Bronzed Project celebrates respectful exchanges and the power of story-sharing—not angry tirades. We must face the “other” rather than demonize it, especially when it comes to discussions about race, class and politics. As I tracked down one bronzed Uncle John then another, their heroics receded in my narratives and contemporary voices from all political stripes and races took their place. This site honors the courage these Americans showed by speaking, listening and story-sharing with me without rancor.
Mary Collins
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Mary Collins
Mary Collins is the Program Coordinator of the Writing Minors at Central Connecticut State University, the author of five nonfiction books and many award-winning features and essays. She worked in Washington, DC as an editor and writer at National Geographic and the Smithsonian and taught part-time at Johns Hopkins’ MA in Writing Program prior to moving to Connecticut in 2007. Mary has traveled the US for book-author readings, guest speaking and as a writing workshop leader for many top programs, including Yale, where she teaches a nonfiction workshop in the summer writing program.