Record high Seneca crowd celebrates Black History

In the estimation of the mayor, this year’s Black History Luncheon in Seneca set an attendance record. Mayor Dan Alexander estimates the turnout was 300 guests. He and others were beaming about the message left by the keynote luncheon speaker, a college professor of English and American studies. For Dr. Berlethia Pitts, this was a homecoming, for she is a native of Seneca and former resident of the city’s Perry Hill Community. These days she is a distinguished member of the faculty of Georgia’s Fort Valley State University. Pitts called her hometown a trailblazer when it comes to inclusion and recognition of th-African-American race. This is the 7th year that city government has thrown a luncheon to call attention to Black History Month, and keynote speaker Pitts gave numerous examples of why Black History Month still matters. Those reasons, according to Pitts, include misconceptions, distortions, and mis-truths about the contributions that black Americans have made to the United States since they arrived on slave ships centuries. 101.7/WGOG NEWS will feature some of Pitts remarks from today’s luncheon. The audience also heard a Clemson University professor, Dr. Rhondda Thomas, speak about what blacks did for Clemson University, specifically their work to construct several of the campus’s main buildings.