Healing racism: After 89 years, Coast Guard Academy, Springfield man use racist episode to teach a better future

Published

2 years ago

January 15, 2023

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When Rear Admiral William G. Kelly learned of a dark episode from his cherished institutions past, the superintendent of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy was deeply astonished and profoundly bothered.

That it happened in 1934 didnt dissuade Kelly from seeing if some healing could be done, and a positive result could finally be culled from such a miserable moment. But he wasnt sure the family of the man whod been wronged would be so amenable.

I didnt know about the 1934 episode until we saw a story on Feb. 14, 2021 in the Hartford Courant, said Kelly. It motivated him to reach out to Harrison Brooks Fitch Jr., an 80-year-old lifelong Springfield resident and the son of Harrison Honey Fitch, a victim of racial prejudice during the college basketball season nine decades ago.

When decent people with the best of intentions communicate, though, good things can happen – even from the ashes of bad memories. For Kelly, Fitch and the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, that is what is happening now.

Immediately after the newspaper story came out, Kelly wrote a letter to the editor, apologizing for the incident. In January 2022, the academy learned that the elder Fitch was being inducted into the Huskies Hall of Honor, the hall of fame for the University of Connecticut, where Fitch had been a star athlete in the 1930s.

In February, Kelly sent a letter of congratulations to Fitch, Jr., who likes to go by the first name of Brooks. The admiral wanted an opportunity to do more, but he wasnt sure how the Springfield man would react.

When I reached out, (Fitch) didnt call back immediately. He saw us, watched us, and did research on us to see if the academys actions matched its words.

He did his homework. When he did accept our outreach, I was thrilled, Kelly said.

In 1934, the elder Fitch was a star guard on the basketball team at Connecticut State College, as UConn was then known, and also an extremely popular student on campus. His comportment, decency and friendship did as much to deliver the often unspoken message of racial harmony as was his basketball skill, according to his son.

But when Connecticut State College went to play at Coast Guard, the team was informed Fitch would not be allowed to play.

In another incident that night, an African-American boxer from the University of New Hampshire boxer had not been allowed to compete.

That was not a great night for the Coast Guard, or for the nation, Kelly said.

For me, that was a low point for an institution I love, said Kelly, who played Coast Guard sports before his own graduation in 1987 and considers athletics a critical co-curricular element of the academy. What happened in 1934 was not an indication of what I experienced in the 1980s, or what the institution is today. Reaching out to his son was just the right thing to do.

The son wasnt convinced. At least at first.

I was very skeptical, said Fitch Jr. People can be nice in a letter for (public relations) or a photo opportunity. You can pose and shake hands. I didnt want that.

Neither did Kelly. Still, Fitch needed proof that the academy was practicing what Kelly was preaching.

He studied our retention and graduation rates, and specifically if African-Americans were having success at the academy, Kelly said.

We know the timing is really right. This is an opportunity for us to do more.

Thats what Fitch wants, too. On Oct. 19, eight months after Kelly had contacted him, Fitch visited the Coast Guard campus.

I wanted a face-to-face interaction. Ive development a bit of discernment (ability) face-to-face, Fitch said.

I spent time with the cadets, had a chance to share questions, and I got an idea of (Kellys) philosophy. The letter to me had been sincere.

He added, Id refuse to do a public relations moment, but this is a chance to do something positive. The lessons of the past can help us deal with the reality of the future if we deal with it together.

That the incident occurred in 1934 is coincidental to another seminal moment in Western Massachusetts sports and race relations. That was the year members of an American Legion baseball team from Springfield refused to compete at a tournament in Gastonia, North Carolina, because their Black teammate, Ernest Bunny Taliaferro, would not have been allowed to play.

It wasnt until the 21st century that those two communities found healing and friendship in the early 2000s with a series of friendship baseball games. Until Fitch and Kelly met, the Coast Guard story had not enjoyed such a positive epilogue.

The 1934 game at the Coast Guard Academy was delayed as coaches and officials debated whether Fitch, whose graceful playing style had earned him the nickname Honey could play. The basketball game then went on.

According to accounts of the day, it was a rough affair with high emotions that Connecticut State won. Even Coast Guards northern location did not protect the player from mistreatment, perhaps in part because a high percentage of the academys students were from the South, which serves as a point of context but not an excuse.

The elder Fitch, who lived in Springfield. finished his education at American International College and worked at Monsanto Corp. before his death at age 72 in 1984, carried his scars internally for the most part, according to his son.

My father didnt talk much about it. He was very humble, and in addition, African-American parents didnt want to traumatize or darken the hopes and vision of their children, Fitch said. You cant let people destroy your dreams. Im trying to carry on what he believed.

Fitch said hes working with Kelly and the academy to plan activities for the spring to address diversity and inclusion. Were looking at an academy-wide discussion, he said.

It will include how the lessons of 1934 can be used to address society in 2023. There will also be activities with the basketball programs, which Kelly says are the most diversified units on campus.

Abused by the Coast Guard Academy of 1934, Honey Fitch has not been forgotten at UConn. A basketball, baseball and football star at the college, his inclusion into the Huskies of Honor prompted Kelly to contact his son with a letter of congratulations, an apology for the 1934 incident and an invitation him to visit the academy to hopefully move forward together.

Some things have already changed. The gymnasium named after Johnny Merriman, the Coast Guard basketball coach from 1930 to 1945 and its leader at the time of the incident, is now called Alumni Gymnasium, Kelly said.

The academy and Fitch are looking at possible high school curriculum programs and an ongoing relationship with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Fitch wants the impact to spread beyond the New London campus.

Im a Springfield person and Ive been here since I was 2, he said. Relations with the Springfield Public Schools and local colleges are on the table.

Fitchs son, who is also an alumni of UConn, has started the Harrison Fitch Leadership Fund. It focuses on leadership and creates opportunities for underrepresented students to better pave their future.

The Coast Guard Academy partnership with the fund will connect with the institutions Loy Institute for Leadership, the Office of Inclusion and Diversity and athletics program.

Kelly supports these initiatives, even though – or perhaps especially because – they speak to a dismal past.

It has been the honor of my time as superintendent to meet Mr. and Mrs. Fitch. The Fitch family didnt owe us anything, yet they had the fortitude to provide us an opportunity to demonstrate our growth as an institution and a service, Kelly said. Weve evolved as nation (since 1934), but we are struggling with how to deal with our past. But working with Mr. Fitch was an easy decision, Im grateful for his strength of character and his part of our efforts every day to make things right.

Fitch is convinced progress cannot be made without an understanding of even an unpleasant past. A student of history, he believes telling the story of what went wrong is essential tocreating a better society and a better day.

When I looked at my position, as disappointed as Id been about what had happened, I wanted to make something positive for future generations to come, he said. Thats what Im doing now.

This plaque honors Harrison "Honey" Fitch who was the victim of racism by the Coast Guard Academy while playing basketball for Connecticut State College in 1934. He was inducted into the Huskies Hall of Honor at the University of Connecticut as the college is now known.

Entertainment

Molly-Mae Hague: New documentary will ‘answer a lot of questions’ about Tommy Fury split

Published

2 hours ago

January 16, 2025

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Molly-Mae Hague: New documentary will 'answer a lot of questions' about Tommy Fury split

Molly-Mae Hague has said her new fly-on-the-wall documentary will “answer a lot of questions” surrounding her recent break-up with Tommy Fury.

The couple, who met during the 2019 series of ITV2 reality show Love Island, announced they were going separate ways in August last year.

The split sparked rumours that Fury, 25, had cheated on Hague, also 25, which he later denied.

Speaking at the launch of the first three episodes of a new Amazon Prime documentary Molly-Mae: Behind It All, the influencer said she is “very honest” about the breakdown of her relationship with the boxer, which she said has been “incredibly hard”.

“It is real life,” Hague said. “Tommy and I have a baby together, and it’s a really hard thing that we have both gone through.”

The couple have faced scrutiny that the break-up may have been a publicity stunt, as it coincided with the launch of Hague’s clothing line, Maebe and Fury’s book, Lightning Can Strike Twice: My Life as a Fury.

They were then pictured celebrating New Year’s Eve together, leading to fans speculating if they had got back together.

When questioned on it, Hague said accusations their break-up was planned is the most “frustrating thing”.

“I wish it could have been a publicity stunt because it would have been a lot easier,” she said.

“Going through all of this with the turmoil of a break-up has been incredibly hard, to have those comments, and I do see the comments, I see all of them.”

She added: “Our relationship has always been in the public eye but to deal with this break-up with millions of eyes watching it is hard and it is complicated.

“The reason why I don’t comment on it or speak about it on my YouTube publicly is simply because we are both navigating it ourselves, we both are figuring it out as adults and parents.

“I really do think the documentary is going to answer a lot of questions and we do touch on [the New Year’s] situation. The last thing I want is any confusion, and I don’t want people to feel confused by things that are going on.

“When I agreed to do this documentary I agreed to do it fully, the highs, lows, good days and bad days it has all got to be in there.”

It comes as Fury told Men’s Health that the reason behind their break-up was because he had a “problem with alcohol”.

“I couldn’t be the partner that I wanted to be anymore,” he told the magazine, adding: “Cheating was never a thing. You can ask Molly this yourself. It was the drink, and the drink is not a good thing.”

‘I did struggle with motherhood’

The new documentary also gives viewers behind-the-scenes access to Hague figuring out how to juggle being a mother to one-year-old Bambi, who she shares with Fury, and launching a new business.

“It’s not a secret that I did struggle at the start of my motherhood journey,” Hague said.

“It’s been an ongoing struggle for me, but right now I am in such an incredible place with being a mum and motherhood is all I could have dreamed of.

“I really want to work on my fashion brand this year and focus on being a mum. I want to leave a lot of the things that happened last year in last year and focus on the positives.”

She added that ahead of the documentary coming out, she feels like she needs to get her “thick skin into play”.

“These three episodes are what they are, and I hope [the public] enjoy them. The reason we did the series in two drops was because a lot of the things we touch on in the first three episodes are very current and ongoing, and it is real life and I really wanted to share the honesty with my audience and explain things to them.

“It just felt like the right thing to do.”

Molly-Mae: Behind It All episodes 1-3 launch exclusively on Prime Video on 17 January. The latter three episodes will drop in spring 2025.

Politics

Sir Keir Starmer to sign 100-year ‘friendship’ deal with Ukraine in first Kyiv visit since becoming PM

Published

2 hours ago

January 16, 2025

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Sir Keir Starmer to sign 100-year 'friendship' deal with Ukraine in first Kyiv visit since becoming PM

Keir Starmer will sign a century-long partnership with Ukraine today, as the prime minister makes his first visit to the war-torn country in an effort to shore up support for Kyiv – just days ahead of the arrival of Donald Trump in the White House.

Sir Keir said the 100-year agreement underpinned Britain’s “steadfast support” for Ukraine as he reiterated European unity in the face of Russia n aggression. The treaty and political declaration will be laid in parliament in the coming weeks.

“Putin’s ambition to wrench Ukraine away for its closest partners has been a monumental strategic failure. Instead, we are closer than ever and this partnership will take that friendship to the next level,” said the prime minister.

“The power of our long-term friendships cannot be underestimated. Supporting Ukraine to defend itself from Russia’s barbaric invasion and rebuild a prosperous, sovereign future, is vital to the government’s security and Plan for Change.”

War latest: Moscow ‘planned terror attacks’ on airlines across world

The PM’s visit is part of a wider effort on the part of European leaders to shore up support for Kyiv as they ramp up discussions over regional security ahead of the handover of power in Washington. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Prime Minister Donald Tusk of Poland on Wednesday.

The flurry of diplomatic activity comes as the conflict between Ukraine and Russia has intensified ahead of the inauguration of president-elect Trump, with Vladimir Putin trying to take as much territory as possible ahead of expected peace talks.

On Wednesday, Ukraine’s state energy company was forced into emergency cuts after a massive Russian military attack.

Russia controls around a fifth of Ukraine after nearly three years of war and says any deal to end the conflict must take that into account.

In September 2022, it proclaimed four regions that it only partly controls as part of its own territory, which was condemned by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) as an “attempted illegal annexation”.

While President Joe Biden was steadfast in the US’s continuing support of Ukraine’s military effort, Trump has made it clear he wants to end the conflict quickly, hastening discussions about what a settlement might look like between Kyiv and Moscow.

In November, President Zelenskyy said for the first time in an interview with Sky News that Ukraine was prepared to temporarily cede territory to Russia to end the war if the conflict was frozen along current lines.

He added after a ceasefire was agreed, Kyiv could negotiate for the return of seized territory.

Sir Keir has also changed his tone, from insisting allies must “double down” on support for Ukraine for “as long as it takes” at the November G20 summit, to saying British policy was now “to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position for negotiations”.

The prime minister will want to reiterate to President Zelenskyy that nothing is off the table, as the duo discuss the ongoing conflict, the impending Trump presidency and what a settlement could look like.

As part of the partnership deal, the UK will bolster military collaboration on maritime security through a new framework to strengthen the Baltic, Black and Azov seas.

President Zelenskyy has reportedly told journalists the two leaders will discuss the possibility of British troops joining a post-war peacekeeping force, as other European leaders such as French President Emmanuel Macron – who visited the PM at his Chequers country residence last week – and Tusk have similar conversations.

Ukraine relies on US support to continue the conflict, given it provides the bulk of military aid. But Trump has made it clear he is reluctant to keep funding the war, saying during the election campaign he would end it “within 24 hours” of taking office.

He has subsequently acknowledged that ending the conflict will be more difficult, but his administration is keen to press ahead: Trump has said he will arrange a call with Putin soon after his inauguration on 20 January, while the new US envoy to Ukraine, retired lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, said last week he wanted a solution to the war in the first 100 days of office.

The discussion around peacekeeping forces is part of a wider conversation among European allies about what security guarantees should be put in place for Ukraine, including buffer zones and the threat of more weapons for Ukraine in the absence of NATO membership.

President Zelenskyy has said any guarantees must be backed up by the US as the prospect of a NATO membership invitation fades from view.

Ukraine becoming a member of NATO is a clear red line for Moscow, with Putin describing Kyiv joining the security alliance as “an unacceptable threat”.

Last week, Trump acknowledged Moscow’s longstanding opposition to Ukraine’s ambition to join NATO, given it would mean “Russia has somebody right on their doorstep, and I can understand their feeling about that”.

European leaders are concerned Trump will force Ukraine into an unjust peace deal, and they will be shut out of the negotiations which will shape the security of the continent for many years.

NATO chief Mark Rutte last month cautioned Trump over his plans for a peace deal, warning it would lead to the West’s enemies “high fiving” and would only serve to embolden China, North Korea and Iran.

The PM has come under criticism from Conservative rivals for not visiting Ukraine sooner, with former defence secretary Grant Shapps saying he was “astonished” is has taken the PM six months in power to visit the country.

However, Sir Keir has met the Ukrainian leader six times, as well as hosting him twice at Number 10 since taking office in July.

World

Biden warns of an ‘oligarchy’ of wealth and power threatening US democracy

Published

2 hours ago

January 16, 2025

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Biden warns of an 'oligarchy' of wealth and power threatening US democracy

President Joe Biden has warned of a “dangerous concentration of power” among a few wealthy people in the United States in his farewell address to the nation.

Without naming president-elect Donald Trump, Mr Biden said: “Today, an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that really threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights and freedom and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead.”

During his speech from the Oval Office in the White House, the president said there was “a dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a few ultra-wealthy people” and warned of “dangerous consequences if their abuse of power is left unchecked”.

Although he did not give names, some of the world’s richest individuals and tech titans have flocked to Mr Trump’s side, particularly since his election win in November.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, spent more than $100m helping Mr Trump get elected, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos have also donated to Mr Trump’s inauguration.

While Mr Biden was giving his speech, Mr Trump, Mr Musk and vice president-elect JD Vance dined with Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella at Mar-a-Lago, according to news outlet Semafor.

During his address Mr Biden also warned of a “tech-industrial complex” he said was bringing an “avalanche of misinformation and disinformation, enabling the abuse of power”, following social media company Meta scrapping its fact-checking programme in the US and loosening its hate speech guidelines.

The president said the US Constitution should be amended to say no president should have immunity for crimes committed in office, after the Supreme Court granted Mr Trump protection last year from criminal liability over his role in trying to undermine his loss to Mr Biden in 2020.

Analysis: Trump doing his best to undermine Biden as outgoing president tries to polish his legacy

Biden takes credit for Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal

Mr Biden also took credit for the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas that will see the release of Israeli hostages for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

“This plan was developed and negotiated by my team, and it will be largely implemented by the incoming administration,” he said.

“That’s why I told my team to keep the incoming administration fully informed, because that’s how it should be – working together as Americans.”

He made the remarks after Mr Trump claimed credit for the breakthrough in negotiations

During his farewell speech Mr Biden said: “It will take time to feel the impact of all we’ve done together, but the seeds are planted and they’ll grow and they’ll bloom for decades to come.”

Mr Biden beat Mr Trump to become president in 2020, but decided to run for re-election in 2024 at the unprecedented age of 80.

He was later forced out of the race following a disastrous debate with Mr Trump and his replacement, Vice President Kamala Harris, went on to lose every battleground state to Mr Trump.

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Healing racism: After 89 years, Coast Guard Academy, Springfield man use racist episode to teach a better future