https://www.centerforcreativepartnerships.org/leadership
Ellen, can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you became interested in the work that you do?
Yes, I'm from New York City and I went to college at City College of the city of New York. And there, I got to study with Kenneth Clark and that was very influential in my life. It was after Brown vs. Board, which is what he got famous for. But he was still doing doll studies and the students were going and taking notes for him in different parts of the city and so whatever interest I had in civil rights before, it multiplied. Also, City College at that time was free tuition and the students at the University were I would say about half black and half Jewish, so it's interesting 'cause my life has been kind of involved in those two communities.
What was the Orangeburg Massacre and why is it so important to tell that story today through the preservation of the All-Star Bowling Lanes?
It’s important because it was so important in the civil rights history of this country. The students who participated went back to the school. When [the students] tried to get in the bowling alley, they were not admitted. And some of them were beat up. The police were called in huge numbers and surrounded the campus and shot into a group of students who were trying to have a rally around a bonfire and they killed three students and wounded about 29 students. This was two years before Jackson State and two years before Kent State and the amount of people that were injured or killed here was unfortunately greater than either of those other times, but nobody knows about it. It's like a secret and a secret like that I think weighs on a community. I think people want to honor the people that were injured and the people that were killed.
How did receiving an African American Civil Rights grant support your ongoing projects?
Well, we already owned the building, but we were there saying OK now we have to start raising money, so having that grant gave us huge credibility, in addition to that giving us the funds to do phase one of the project. So I'm now confident we'll be able to raise the money to do the whole bowling alley and we're gonna do that first. So we're pretty excited and we owe a lot of it to the National Park Service grant. We're also excited about being on the network because that puts us into such important company, and gives us more credibility. We're excited.
If folks want to learn more about All Star Bowling lanes and the work that you all are doing, where can they find you?
If they want to come to Orangeburg. I'll be happy to give them a tour and they can kind of see what we're doing.I also have an email, which is “EZISHOLTZ at gmail.com” or Centerforcreativepartnerships@gmail.com and we also have two websites which are going to become wonderful because we now have a marketing company to work with us and it's being paid for by a major a nonprofit. So yeah, so we're moving ahead.
The All Star Bowling Lane is located in Orangeburg, South Carolina and was the city’s only bowling alley. This local attraction played a pivotal role during the African American Civil Rights movement and because of its connection to the Orangeburg Massacre is now part of the African American Civil Rights Network. The African American Civil Rights Network recognizes the civil rights movement in the United States and the sacrifices made by those who fought against discrimination and segregation. Created by the African American Civil Rights Act of 2017, and coordinated by the National Park Service, the Network tells the stories of the people, places, and events of the U.S. civil rights movement through a collection of public and private resources.
Visit the National Park Service We Shall Overcome travel itinerary to learn more about the civil rights movement themes and histories. Also, be sure to check out Civil Rights subject site.
Last updated: February 18, 2022