February Newsletter: A Note from our Executive Director

Dear Friends:

We call Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray many things. Chief among them should be “historian”. 

As we celebrate Black History Month, we simultaneously honor 100 years of Black History Month commemorations. Pauli Murray herself held history, and specifically the histories of everyday Black people, in high regard. Pay close attention, and you’ll find that much of Murray’s activism, legal theory, and faith-based and creative work is grounded in (Black) history. In fact, a piece of “creative historical non-fiction” held Murray’s attention for over two decades, outlasting careers, personal ambitions, political administrations, and world events. 

Pauli Murray sketched the bones of what would become their sweeping genealogical memoir, Proud Shoes, in 1933 as a twenty-something, underemployed college graduate, artist, and labor organizer during the Great Depression. Murray completed her memoir somewhat feverishly against the backdrop of the budding Civil Rights Movement and the McCarthy Era, determined to ground her fight “...against all forms of inequality…” in the tradition of her own family. 

This decades-long journey strengthened Murray’s ideals in a way that transformed her approach to activism. Her deep archival research gave life to Black people that had previously been rendered anonymous. A penstroke here, a church record or census entry there; the mundane served as evidence that Black folks existed in the past, even in an era where they were considered ⅗ of a human. For Pauli, this fostered a stronger sense of personal identity, and reinforced her whole-humanness. Her genealogical mapping reinforced that what Black people have created cannot be disputed. Murray’s lineage consisted of “the lowly and the great”: the farmer and the trader; the dressmaker and the pharmacist. Each of these people were shaped by “...communities, institutions, politics, and personalities…” that they themselves contributed to. Weaving together multiple generations helped Murray to understand her family history as a blueprint for survival and worldbuilding, albeit a complicated one. Murray came from people who survived the Civil War and the chaos of Reconstruction; from people who were ambivalent towards slavery; and from people who found the capacity to fall in love, create families, and be in community during the “...[low] ebb…” of the early Jim Crow Era. 

In writing Proud Shoes, Murray came to understand that their grandparents, specifically, influenced their ideals around liberation and reconciliation, shaping their decision to become a civil rights activist and later, an ordained minister. Living into these ancestral traditions, Murray offered, was “...the ultimate measure of [her] existence.” Through Proud Shoes, Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray teaches us that you cannot build a just future without understanding, deeply, the past.

Therefore, we must reject efforts to intentionally erase Black history; obscure the contributions of Black people; and render Black people anonymous. The same goes for all folks that have been pushed to the margins. Instead, we resist by honoring, documenting, preserving, sharing, and amplifying Black history in the spirit of Saint Pauli Murray. 

Because the Black Past: 

• Forces us to interrogate what lies beneath injustice

• Teaches us how to navigate facism

• Shows us how to organize, build movements, and protect our neighbors

• Guides us to understand ourselves

• Invites us to understand our tangled, complicated relationships to one another

• Enriches and enlivens our communities

• Creates pathways for a more humane society

• Offers a blueprint towards a just future

Onward,

Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

January Newsletter: A Note from our Executive Director

“I love America…”
-Pauli Murray, interview with Genna R. McNeil, PhD, February 1976

Happy New Year, Friends:

This year, Americans commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States. As I grapple with this against the backdrop of our current political landscape, I’m reminded that Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray’s activism is grounded in her Americanness. 

Murray writes and talks about being an American, and her patriotism, pretty consistently. Her thoughts around her American identity are compelling. 

In Proud Shoes, Murray describes placing a Union flag atop their grandfather’s grave (against the backdrop of Confederate flags) as a youth as an act of defiance and pride. 

In a 1976 interview with historian Genna R. McNeil, Murray shared how labor organizing across class and racial lines during the Great Depression sparked their radical ideals, and fueled their patriotism. 

After graduating from Howard University School of Law, Murray boldly declared “I am an American” in what many consider to be their personal mission statement, “American Credo”.

Murray recounts in her penultimate memoir, Song in a Weary Throat, that teaching in Ghana in the 1960s reinforced that America is “home,” and that Black Americans were born of survivors. 

Murray’s Americanness served as the foundation for their activism and radical ideals. They understood that freedom and their American identity were not something that should be withheld, nor something that should be earned; rather, they were part of Murray’s inheritance based on how their ancestors built America, what their ancestors sacrificed for America, and how they survived and resisted in America. A child of the Jim Crow South, Murray rejected the notion that Black Americans were inferior, and called out segregation, discrimination, and prejudice as anti-American. Murray used this to craft a vast vision: that all people living in the United States should be protected legally, and treated with dignity socially, no matter their race, color, gender, or nationality. This, Murray felt, would create a pathway for America to fulfill the prophecy that all are created equal. 

Pauli Murray’s vision for mankind is rooted in her American identity. As we celebrate 100 years of Black History Month commemorations, let’s also be reminded that Murray’s vision is distinctly birthed from her lived experience as a Black American from the U.S. South.

Onward,

Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director 
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

December Newsletter: A Note from our Executive Director

Thank you, friends. 

When I wrote to you at this time last year, I celebrated that the Pauli Murray Center was poised “...to accept Murray’s charge to march endlessly towards justice.” Never did I imagine what this call to action would require of us in 2025. 

Overall, we gained much more than we lost this year. We welcomed new partnerships, rich relationships, and generous resources. My team, board members, and I are moved by the way that you have shown up for the Center. In April, I offered up the consequences of our terminated federal funding. I also invited you to advocate for us, share financial gifts with us, and visit us in Durham. You responded mightily. 

Your advocacy created a pathway for us to deepen relationships with state, county, and city decisionmakers. We have engaged with county and city officials through site visits, programs, and intentional conversations. Our state lawmakers continue to explore pathways for capital, programmatic, and operational support for the Center. 

Your financial support enabled us to fill most of this year’s gaps. Many of you shared generous offerings with us: $5.00 to help us purchase water for our volunteers; $50.00 to support programming staff in guiding folks through the Center; $100.00 to activate our space for name and gender marker change clinics; $350 to open our space to organizers on the frontlines of responding to crises in voting rights and immigration; and more. We celebrated one-time gifts, and were grateful for recurring contributions. Corporations and foundations demonstrated their commitment to our progressive and “diverse” work, standing firm in their values in a wobbly socio-cultural landscape. Our business community offered creative support: proceeds from Bright Black.’s “Pauli” candle, Common Market’s sandwich sales, Queeny’s mugs, and The 360 Approach’s “Amplify” fitness experience served as valuable reminders that small businesses are critical to our community care ecosystem. Our neighbors held poetry readings and sing-alongs in their living rooms to gather their resources to support us, too. 

Your visits remain the joy of my year. We welcomed folks from across the country – from Wyoming to New York – and from across the globe – from the Netherlands to Germany. I delighted in meeting Wilhelmina (or rather, “Princess Willa,” as she introduced herself to me), and connecting her child energy to Pauli Murray’s own childhood in our space. I enjoyed standing with Rev. Ingersoll upon our grounds, and marveling at the sacred energy of Murray’s ancestral land as her husband relaxed on our porch and her dog frolicked on our lawn. I was moved by hearing from JoRose and Susan who, after walking tours, understood their performing artistry and spirituality, respectively, as tools for activism. I was energized by connecting with students like Cecile, who turned to Rev. Dr. Murray to deepen her understanding of how human rights work can manifest. I relished my conversations with Simon, a scholar who has spent a decade exploring how Murray’s trans and queer identities influenced their civil rights activism. I was thrilled to introduce my child to Paola, a steadfast volunteer, activist, and budding occupational therapist who offered me warmth, joy, and practical guidance as I navigated a challenging pregnancy. 

The depth of my gratitude to you all cannot be quantified. So again–thank you, friends. 

I look forward to next year, which will continue to be met with challenges, but most certainly be filled with abundance. In 2026, we look forward to: 

1. Continuing to build sustainable scale as a newly-opened space. This means offering more opportunities for you to connect, from tours to programs; caring intentionally for my staff; and raising funds to keep our doors open (it costs about $1 million annually for an open PMC to run!).  

2. Moving through a strategic plan. It’s been a little over a decade since we had a concrete strategic plan, and we want to be intentional about what it means to be a “center for history and social justice” today.

3. Transforming our outdoor greenspace. We’re working to purchase Rev. Dr. Murray’s ancestral land outright, and we’ll be collaborating with our partners at Perkins+Will to transform it into accessible, functional gathering and programming space. This is a big change for the Center, and a valuable opportunity for our neighborhood, the West End. 

We hope that you’ll stay on this journey with us. 

Onward!

Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director 
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

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November Newsletter Reflection: A Note from our Executive Director

Dear Friends: 

We are facing strong headwinds. 

Challenges to voting rights. Shameless gerrymandering. Federally-sanctioned bounty hunting of our friends and neighbors. The list goes on. 

Frankly, if you’ve been paying attention, you saw much of this coming. I recently reminded a colleague that large-scale oppressive agendas are piloted and refined in local communities. For example, last spring Human Rights Watch rang the alarm when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed discriminatory voting maps drawn in South Carolina in 2021 to be upheld; noting that other state legislatures would follow suit in the absence of further federal protections. 

“I told you so” isn’t helpful, however. I recognize that the oppression we are bearing witness to (and in some cases, experiencing) is more swift, inhumane, violent, and senseless that some could have anticipated. As is my practice, I’ve turned to Saint Pauli Murray for answers. 

Saint Pauli doesn’t offer us on-the-nose solutions for our hyperspecific issues. However, they guide us through how to think and move through them. I’ve been wrestling with this idea in these terms: Pauli isn’t here to build our house, but she has left us blueprints. 

In the last decade of her life, Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray shared with Dr. Genna Rae McNeil that “liberation” was her priority: Pauli was “...radical to the extent that [they wanted] to see the individual human being as free as is possible to fulfill [their] creative potential”. 

So, what does it mean to do liberation work in the face of violent oppression? Pauli pursued direct, immediate action. They mounted sit-ins, launched letter-writing campaigns, founded organizations, organized marches, participated in protests, crafted groundbreaking legal resources and more. When it was not possible for them to act, Pauli wrote poetry: “...when I could effectively act, I did not write. When I could not act, when I was blocked from acting, it came out in words.” Finally, Murray took the long view. For example: much of Pauli’s civil rights work took place years, even decades, before the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Their work from the 1930s to early 1950s served as a strong foundation for activists, organizers, attorneys, and policymakers to build upon in the 1950s and 60s. They had the courage to be “on the frontier” of shaping an equitable society for oppressed people. “When there was a principle which I felt I ought to act on, I did not stand in fear of consequences,” said Rev. Dr. Murray in her conversation with Dr. McNeil.

So, I believe Saint Pauli Murray’s message is this: don’t let the headwinds topple you. Stand firm. Take action, and respond to (local) issues that concern you. If/when you can’t do this, create; art is a form of activism. Finally, take the long view. We are in the midst of another great nadir. But liberation movements are born in the face of oppression. They also take years to bear fruit. Let’s hold on.

Onward, 
Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director 
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

October Newsletter Reflection: A Note from our Executive Director

Dear Friends:

In the last few weeks I've returned to the Center after taking leave to have my first child. Early motherhood has been transformative. I have felt raw, tender, and more human than I have ever felt in my life. I also have a deep reverence for the human experience, and humanity, overall. In these ways, I also feel more connected to Pauli Murray. Like you and me, Pauli was "just" a human. Rev. Dr. Murray also cared for others so deeply that they committed their life to building a foundation for a nation in which every person simply belonged. This, too, is our work.

In an era where you may feel overwhelmed, defeated, or enraged, I'll offer you the following reminder. Pauli, too, lived in a time when American democracy hung in the balance; when racial terror violence was a threat to Black lives; when it was dangerous to exist as a member of the LGBTQ community; when women’s rights were under attack; when the world was inflamed with global conflict; when technology and the environment were rapidly transforming; when the political system failed to meet the needs of most. And still she persisted. For humanity.

Onward,
Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

September Newsletter Reflection: A Note from our Executive Director

Dear Friends:

It is my great joy to celebrate one year of a publicly open Pauli Murray Center with you! It requires grit to open a community space; a talented team to activate it; and passionate stakeholders to sustain it. I’m glad that we have access to all of these things.

In the last year, I have been struck by the sheer number of people that enter our space carrying something: overwhelm, despair, anger, hope, curiosity, excitement, and so much more. By the time folks leave us, they almost always feel grounded, and catalyzed to do something to shape an equitable, just community. That is the power and possibility of Pauli’s work and legacy, as it is activated in the sacred space that is their childhood home.

Thank you for being on this journey with us. We look forward to shaping meaningful change with you in the years to come.

Onward,
Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

August Newsletter Reflection: A Note from our Executive Director

Dear Friends: 

In the last few months, I have been interrogating what it means to “be in community.” I hear this phrase often, but have a great deal of curiosity around how this takes shape in people’s lives. 

Per usual, Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray offers us guidance here. While we revere Pauli for all that they contributed to the world, please be reminded that they did not work or live in a vacuum. Pauli had rich relationships with her family; loving, depth-filled partnerships with women; lasting, vulnerable friendships (especially with Black women); and was integrated in community institutions — churches, civic groups, community organizing efforts, and more. 

So, I urge you to consider—what does being in community mean to you? And how might you put some of Pauli’s strategies into practice?

Onward, 

Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director 
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

July Newsletter Reflection: A Note from our Executive Director

Dear Friends: 

In late May, I had the privilege of offering the commencement address at one of our local partner institutions, Insight Colearning. Admittedly, I felt overwhelmed with the challenge of grounding and motivating high school seniors, embarking on a new life stage in an uncertain and volatile landscape. As is my practice, I turned to Pauli. Below, I've offered you a modified version of what I shared with these brilliant young folks. May my words -- as guided by Rev. Dr. Murray's spirit -- help you feel supported as you consider your role in shaping and building community. 

"Anna Pauline Murray – known to many of us as Pauli Murray – called the home that she grew up in “a place of ragged beauty.” This home is a National Historic Landmark that has stood proudly in Durham for over 125 years since 1898.

Pauli Murray – who, by the time they were a teenager, was an orphan being raised by a multigenerational family – learned many things in this home.

They learned from their Aunt Pauline that it is ok to be yourself.

She learned from her Aunt Sally that going against the grain and charting your own path is important…and that art is powerful.

She learned from her grandmother Cornelia the value of believing in something greater than yourself.

They learned from their grandfather Robert how to envision a community where everyone belonged, and had the resources to live good lives.

Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray gathered up these lessons and used them to guide her towards being one of the most profound and impactful civil, women’s, and human rights activists of the 20th century. 

Pauli Murray’s work built bridges for so many communities: Black people, women, faith leaders, LGBTQIA+ folks, artists, and more. 

You, too, are bridge builders like Pauli. 

As you move forward, hold onto these lessons that Pauli gathered in Durham:

• Be yourself.

• Chart your own path.

• Believe in something greater than yourself.

• Strive to shape a community where everyone belongs.

• Art is powerful.

These lessons will support you as you continue to shape and build equitable communities, especially in the midst of our current landscape."

Onward, 

Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director 
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

June Newsletter Reflection: A Note from our Executive Director

"We need not despair because we seem to fail or cannot see the fruition of our efforts on behalf of others. If we build with love and compassion, we can build with hope."

- The Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray

Dear friends,

We are heartened by the clear support of community members like you, in response to the ongoing impacts of federal censorship to the Pauli Murray Center. This summer, we will continue to “build with hope” as we work towards a $50,000 goal to sustain our work. Gifts of all sizes contribute to continual impact. 

What does building with hope look like at the Pauli Murray Center?

• $25 can provide discounted and free field trips for local K-12 Schools

• $50 supports new collaborations with marginalized artists and creatives

• $100 makes a new animated series about Pauli Murray for school-age children more publicly accessible

• $500 protects our continued collaboration with the North Carolina Bar Association for Name and Gender Marker Change clinics

• $1,000 can help sustain our Social Justice Teaching Fellowship and Firebrand Internship programs

Thanks to the generosity of Susan & Michael Hersfield, we’re also excited to share that gifts made to the Pauli Murray Center by July 31st will be matched 1:1 up to $30,000. Every donation – large or small – creates a significant impact.

In the spirit of Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray, we move forward with strength, compassion and most importantly…hope. 

Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director 
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice

May Newsletter Reflection: A Note from Our Executive Director

Dear Friends: 

Thank you for standing in solidarity with us as we continue to navigate the impacts of our loss of significant federal funding. It has been gratifying to observe you respond to our calls to action. Our lawmakers -- at the local, state, and federal level -- have taken notice of your outreach. We are also grateful for the ways in which you've extended your support through in-person site visits, making donations, and amplifying the work of the Center overall. 

As a result of your support, we will be able to: 

• Retain our Public Historian through the remainder of the year, and fund their research travel

• Compensate artists, educators, faith leaders, West End neighbors, and others for their contributions toward shaping new programs

• Design a new exhibition centered on Pauli's humanity, spirituality, and community

This is what grassroots strength and collective care looks like. I am grateful that our community has the courage to be like Pauli: courageous, action-oriented, and hopeful. 

Angela Thorpe Mason
Executive Director 
Pauli Murray Center for History and Social Justice