Jane Collins-Colding, the newest member of the Maplewood Township Committee and its sole Black representative, read the town’s Black History Month Proclamation at the TC’s meeting on Feb. 3.
“To know Black history is to better understand America itself, and to recommit ourselves to a future rooted in truth, equity, dignity, and shared humanity,” read Collins-Colding, concluding “NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT PROCLAIMED that I, Jane Collins-Colding, Member of the Township of Maplewood, and all the Members the Maplewood Township Committee, do hereby recognize February as Black History Month in the Township of Maplewood and urge all residents to recognize, reflect upon, and celebrate the achievements, resilience, and enduring contributions of African Americans to our nation’s history.”
“That was well done,” said Township Committee Member Dean Dafis. “Now that’s how your read a proclamation.”
Mayor Vic De Luca took the opportunity to recognize the first African Americans to serve on the Maplewood Township Committee. “Our government was formed in 1922 as a separate community and it took until 1991 for the first African American to be seated on this Township Committe and that J. Harry Smith,” said De Luca.
Smith, a Republican, first served in 1991 and was elevated to Vice Mayor in 1992. Smith also served as the first Black president of Essex County College. De Luca also recognized Ken Pettis, a Democrat who served as Maplewood’s first Black mayor in 2008.
Watch Collins-Colding read the proclamation here:
PROCLAMATION
Black History Month
WHEREAS, the story of America cannot be told without the story of African Americans a story of resilience born from bondage, creativity forged through struggle, and generations who labored, dreamed, organized, and believed their lives would shape a freer future; and
WHEREAS, in the early twentieth century, at a time when Black history was largely erased from classrooms and public memory, historian Dr. Carter G. Woodson, joined by educator, minister, and philanthropist Jesse E. Moorland, took up the responsibility of preserving truth founding the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History and establishing Negro History Week in 1926, so that Black children and Black communities might see themselves reflected with dignity in the nation’s story; and
WHEREAS, they chose the second week of February to honor the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, not as symbols alone, but as reminders that freedom is won through struggle, courage, and collective action; and
WHEREAS, through decades of teaching, organizing, worship, scholarship, and community celebration, Negro History Week was carried forward by elders, educators, students, and faith leaders until in 1976, during the nation’s Bicentennial, it was formally recognized as Black History Month, affirming that Black history is not a footnote, but a foundation of American life; and
WHEREAS, the African American experience spans every corner of this nation, where Black Americans have built families, led movements, advanced knowledge, created culture, defended democracy, and reimagined justice and possibility; and
WHEREAS, Black history lives not only in famous names, but in everyday acts of care and courage in parents and elders, workers and artists, organizers and entrepreneurs, teachers and healers whose contributions continue to shape our communities and pass strength from one generation to the next; and
‘WHEREAS, the Township of Maplewood proudly marks its Ninth Annual Black History Month observance, and the 2026 Black History Month theme, “A Century of Black Commemorations,” continuing a local tradition of reflection, education, and celebration that affirms the enduring impact of African Americans in our community and reinforces our shared commitment to equity, inclusion, and historical truth; and
WHEREAS, Black History Month is both remembrance and responsibility, calling us to honor the past honestly, celebrate Black excellence fully, and confront the inequities that persist in health, education, housing, economic opportunity, and civic life; and
WHEREAS, to know Black history is to better understand America itself, and to recommit ourselves to a future rooted in truth, equity, dignity, and shared humanity;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT PROCLAIMED that I, Jane Collins-Colding, Memberof the Township of Maplewood, and all the Members the Maplewood Township Committee, do hereby recognize February as Black History Month in the Township of Maplewood and urge all residents to recognize, reflect upon, and celebrate the achievements, resilience, and enduring contributions of African Americans to our nation’s history.
