The Possibility of Renaming
Just over twenty years after the naming of Cooper Hall, the reasoning behind naming a dorm after Thomas Cooper, a pro-slavery supporter, is growing weak. Since Cooper's time and even since the 1990s, there have been quite a few successful and significant scientists. There have also been stronger anti-slavery supporters than McClintock. However, most importantly, Dickinson College has been diverse. While the greatest number of alumni of the school are white men, are not the impacts of African Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, women, etc. strengths of the diverse community of Dickinson College? When there are so many great scientists, politicians, and intellectuals who have attended or taught at Dickinson, why should the campus memorialize the name of a pro-slavery supporter who only taught at Dickinson for four years and who was not a namesake until over a century and a half after his death?
Renaming and tearing down monuments and plaques has been a recent political issue. On one hand, keeping dedications to pro-slavery supporters is problematic because they memorialize the oppression of African Americans. On the other hand, tearing down historical artifacts decreases knowledge of the horrors of these acts of violence and suppression and allows people to forget that these events happened and that people are still feeling the impact of them today.
Renaming and tearing down monuments and plaques has been a recent political issue. On one hand, keeping dedications to pro-slavery supporters is problematic because they memorialize the oppression of African Americans. On the other hand, tearing down historical artifacts decreases knowledge of the horrors of these acts of violence and suppression and allows people to forget that these events happened and that people are still feeling the impact of them today.
One possible solution to the issue of the naming of Cooper Hall is to rename it and commemorate it with a plaque at the entrance of the building. The plaque would be three short paragraphs long: one for a quick background of Cooper (with an inclusion of both his significance as a scientist and for his ties to slavery), one for the reason for changing the name (and why the new name was selected), and one for the new namesake of the building. The plaque then combats the possibility of losing history, the memorial of a pro-slavery advocate, and the "forgetting" of beliefs on slavery. At the same time, both the plaque and the renamed building would memorialize the diversity and/or inclusion that are so central to a Dickinson education.
Noah Pinkney would be a great namesake because he represents both diversity and was well-loved by the college. Noah Pinkney was a former slave in his early life. Moving to Carlisle, he operated an ice cream stand outside the East College gate and a refreshment stand outside of West College. He also owned a restaurant that Dickinson students often visited. Pinkney worked with Dickinson students for forty years, next to Thomas Cooper's four. Despite not being formally employed by the college, Pinkney played an important role in the lives of the students as their "caterer" and friend. His devotion to the college should be showcased by renaming Cooper hall in his name.
Noah Pinkney would be a great namesake because he represents both diversity and was well-loved by the college. Noah Pinkney was a former slave in his early life. Moving to Carlisle, he operated an ice cream stand outside the East College gate and a refreshment stand outside of West College. He also owned a restaurant that Dickinson students often visited. Pinkney worked with Dickinson students for forty years, next to Thomas Cooper's four. Despite not being formally employed by the college, Pinkney played an important role in the lives of the students as their "caterer" and friend. His devotion to the college should be showcased by renaming Cooper hall in his name.