EASTHAMPTON — An event that explores the history of African American and Indigenous slavery and Black life after emancipation in the Connecticut River Valley is set to occur on March 27 at 6 p.m. on the second floor of Easthampton City Hall.

The event, titled “Slavery and Emancipation in the Connecticut River Valley,” involves a talk and discussion with Dr. Ian Delahanty, an assistant professor of history at Springfield College. According to the event flyer, Delahanty will draw from scholarship and community-based research on Black lives in the region.

In an interview with Reminder Publishing, Delahanty said that the origins of African American and Indigenous slavery in New England will be discussed, as well as the impact of slavery on the region’s economy at that time.

“There was very little in the way of good-paying and stable employment available to the Indigenous and African American population,” said Delahanty, of that period following emancipation. “This was generally true across the region.”

Delahanty said he is mainly trained as a historian of the Civil War era, focusing on the intersection of immigration, slavery, and emancipation in the 19th century. As an assistant professor at Springfield College, he has also focused on teaching the history of slavery in Western Mass. and New England since those topics are generally understudied.

“My research has still primarily focused on the 19th century,” said Delahanty. “But there’s been a lot of new scholarship that’s come out the last decade that has brought a light on the history of slavery in New England.”

This event is happening during a moment in time where many local communities across the country are investigating racial harms against Black residents as part of a nationwide conversation around reparations for these harms.

In Easthampton specifically, the City Council voted to support the passing of the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act of Congress.

The goal of this commission would be to examine slavery and discrimination in the colonies and the United States from 1619 to the present and recommend appropriate atonement and compensation for slavery.

Among other requirements, the commission would identify the role of federal and state governments in supporting the institution of slavery, as well as the forms of discrimination in the public and private sectors against freed slaves and their descendants. The commission would also identify the lingering negative effects of slavery on living African Americans and society.

The resolution to support this bill was introduced by City Council President Homar Gomez and At-Large City Councilor Koni Denham.

“It’s time to acknowledge, condemn and express regret for the role past residents throughout the Pioneer Valley played in the enslavement of Black individuals, and recognize the ongoing detrimental impacts experienced by the Black residents of Easthampton as a result of the enslavement of their ancestors,” Denham and Gomez said, in a letter to the rest of the council. “It’s important for us to condemn what happened before and send a clear message that we can do better in our society. The enslavement of Black people was and is horrendous and we all should be condemning it.”

Additionally, the Northampton City Council recently approved the formulation of a commission to study reparations for Black residents who have lived in the city.

The resolution from the council states that the mayor and sponsoring city councilors “shall present to the full council, no later than March 30, 2023, a plan specifying the charge and composition of the commission, as well as an approximate timeline for its work.”

Amherst, meanwhile, has already dedicated an entire fund to pay reparations to Black residents. This fund was accepted back in 2021.

Delahanty said he hopes people will use this upcoming event on March 27 as one of the data points to consider when arguing in favor of reparation, but not the only one.

“I think some of the more convincing cases that have made for reparations have actually not focused on the lingering effects of enslavement but have been focused more on 20th and 21st-century policies with respect to education or inequitable housing prices,” said Delahanty. “I think you need not just a historical point view, you also need a sociological view on it.”

Readers can also access the meeting through a Google Meet link: https://meet.google.com/xvp-viqx-kso?.