“ OUR RICH BLACK HERITAGE “ ANDREW F HILYER

In a speech given by Malcolm X on January 24, 1964, he said,”When you deal with the past, you’re dealing with history, you’re dealing actually with the origin of a thing. When you know the origin, you know the cause. If you don’t know the origin, you don’t know the cause. And if you don’t know the cause, you don’t know the reason, you’re just cut off, you’re left standing in mid-air.” Well, I’m suggesting that this is where Our “Black Communities” in Monroe, Louisiana are Today! You see, most Black people born after 1950 in Monroe have a vague recollection of the past things that went on in Monroe during the early and mid 1900s. Many of them are so clueless that they don’t even know that the 165 Crossover Bridge near Carroll High School, the one that was recently painted and has the face of a Carroll Bulldog on it, is actually named for a White family that lived in Monroe who had the last name of “Renwick.” Also, they don’t seem to know that in the past that a White man name Robert Fuller shot and killed some of his Black employees along Tichelli Road in Monroe. Additionally, they don’t know that the Black guy that survived Robert Fuller’s attack was arrested after he was taken to the hospital, and had to serve jail time! Recently, it came to me that by looking at the past, we can better understand some of the events happening in Monroe today. We need to understand that Black men going to jail for unjust causes and the White man not being charged didn’t just start happening in 2022. It has happened thousands of times in the past. Furthermore, I agree with Malcolm X when he said that the thing that has kept most Black People “almost crippled” in American Society is our complete lack of knowledge concerning the past. Finally, I feel that it is imperative for more Black People to begin taking advantage of the many books, articles, reports, and other sources of information about the past that is available at the local public libraries as well as on the Internet. Well, now let’s get to this week’s Black Pioneer! Andrew Franklin Hilyer was born Hilyer on August 14, 1858 in Georgia. It is believed that his father was also his slavemaster. After the American Civil war he and his mother moved to Nebraska. Soon after the death of his mother, he relocated to Minneapolis, Minnesota, where he became friends with a few of the wealthy White elite families. Andrew graduated from Minneapolis High in 1878. Next, he graduated front the University of Minnesota in 1882. Following his desires to become a lawyer, Andrew decided to enroll at Howard University.He ended up earning 2 Law degrees from Howard! One of his highest accomplishments was becoming one of the founders and the first president of the Union League of the District of Columbia which was organized in 1892, "to advance the moral, material and financial interests of the colored people” in Washington. Andrew also attended and represented the U.S. Commission at the Paris Exposition of 1900 held in London, where he organised the “Collective Exhibit of Negroes in Merchandise, Factories and Allied Occupations.” Lastly, he founded The Negro Correspondence Club which was designed to influence public opinion, media representation and public policy as they affected the black community. The membership of this club was limited to only twelve people and “its existence was never publicized.” On January 13, 1925, Andrew F Hilyer died at his home. It is wonderful that his home is still part of the Howard University campus today,and is used for administrative offices.