It was the one thing that made all this sacrifice really worth it. In doing that, who was she protecting?īenedict: We think of the public Morgan Library as the legacy that she was protecting. And she was Black and then had to flip to white.Īt the end of her life, Belle purposely destroyed her correspondence. That is such an interesting age because she was Black for 16 years! That's a long time. Murray: One of the things that I think is the most interesting to me was that Belle was 16 when this decision was made for her. So there was so much heavy burden and responsibility and sacrifice that I think, you know, it would be tough to say it was a "freedom" to be white in that time for Belle.īook Reviews 'When I Was White' Centers On The Formation Of Race, Identity And Selfīelle had lived a significant part of her life as a Black person before she began to pass though, right? They not only were financially dependent upon her, but their identity as white people hinged on her identity as a white person as well. And it was not only her personal identity that was kind of hinging on this white identity. To have a child would be to take a risk that her child would not look as white as she did. She could not marry and have children if she wanted to maintain her identity as J.P. Most of all, Belle had to give up the idea of having a family of her own. There were so many sacrifices that went along with passing that we felt really needed to be explored. ![]() She couldn't embrace her father's teachings. ![]() Her mother was part of an elite free community of color in Washington, D.C., that had been free for generations.Īnd Belle had to sacrifice all of that to pass as white. So she's kind of steeped in all of that teaching, and that's paired with this wonderful rich heritage she had from her mother. We could have gotten it right from that moment forward. He was an advocate of the Civil Rights Act of 1875, which, if it had not been overturned by the Supreme Court in the, could have set the stage for equality. He was a man who was dean of Howard Law School, one of the first and only Black professors at the University of South Carolina at a time period when it was integrated for a brief moment.īenedict: Yes, during Reconstruction. There was a tremendous amount of sacrifice and victory, and Victoria and I thought it was really important to explore that in the book.īelle's father was Richard Theodore Greener. Morgan's personal librarian and the ability to really wield a great deal of power. I'm wondering if either of you thinks that passing makes you more free or less free?īenedict: Great question! I mean, I think there are certainly benefits of passing, right? Belle had the ability to rise up and become J.P. ![]() This summer, Code Switch is focusing on books that touch on the idea of freedom. It's interesting because the central theme in your book, really, in my opinion, is passing. As I came to know more about her, I knew hers was a story that needed to be told. And, you know, I hadn't started writing at that time, but Belle had started to inhabit my imagination way back when. Did anyone mention Belle da Costa Greene at that point?īenedict: I was so fortunate that a docent who just happened to be in my vicinity mentioned her to me, somebody who had obviously, whether it was through their own research or just word of mouth, knew about the role that Belle had played. Marie, you spent a lot of time browsing through the Morgan when you came to New York in the '90s.
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