Activist Michael Schwerner, PMHS grad murdered by Klan in ’64, memorialized with plaque near street named for him
Editor’s note: This announcement was provided by the Rotary Club of the Pelhams.
A plaque honoring voter registration activist Michael “Mickey” Schwerner of Pelham who was murdered in Mississippi by the Ku Klux Klan in 1964 was an opportunity not only to remember a local hero but to inspire action by people who care about issues of today.
“Today, we stand here together to honor Schwerner’s bravery, sacrifice, and memory,” said Pelham Memorial High School senior Jamie Burke. “I want everyone present to remember that he spent his childhood right here in Pelham like I have and so many others here. It takes a certain type of person to fight against the majority and decide to dedicate their time to helping others and rally for what’s right. We all have a Michael Schwerner inside us full of courage, intelligence, valor, and compassion.”
Nevan Malwana, also a PMHS senior who worked with Jamie on the project to locate the Schwerner plaque, said: “Today marks 57 years since Michael Schwerner was murdered by the KKK. In those 57 years, we as a country have made great strides to work toward the goal Schwerner always imagined. But our work is not done yet. As we honor Michael Schwerner today, it is not as a mark of complacency to where his sacrifice has brought us, but rather, a point to draw courage from, inspiration from, and understand that the capability to have the same impact, influence, and progress that Mickey fought for lives within each and every one of us today.”
The most stirring speech at the dedication was by Pelham Village Mayor Chance Mullen, who recounted the days leading up to the murder of Schwerner along with two other civil rights workers—Andrew Goodman and James Chaney. He recalled that a Black church where Klansmen expected “Jew Boy” (a reference to Schwerner; he was also called “Goatee”) to be holding a meeting was burned to the ground even when they did not find him there. Schwerner was in Ohio training new recruits for Mississippi voter registration work. When Schwerner, Goodman and Chaney returned to Mississippi they were arrested, then released and then shot to death by Klansmen.
Concluding the recounting, Mayor Mullin said the next Mickey Schwerner may be in our midst in Pelham.
“If Pelham residents had known, at that time, the path that their ‘mischievous’ little Mickey Schwerner was on… If they had known that he would one day have a street named after him and a plaque in the sidewalk—what might they have done differently? What might they have said—or fought for—just to make sure there was no confusion about where they stood? What version of Pelham would they have chosen to give him… to remember? If they had only known they were living in the midst of future local greatness…”
“That’s the worst thing about having local heroes: Just as we memorialize them in our story, they memorialize us in theirs, and we never get to know which version of us will be remembered in the privacy of their final thoughts.”
“The purpose of this plaque is not just to remember Michael Schwerner. It’s to remember that the next Michael Schwerner might already be in our midst. Protesting in the park. Creating clubs in the high school. Watching us: our facebook fights, our elections, our school board meetings. They could be right here, right now, memorializing us in real time. And if that’s true—if we are living in the midst of future local greatness—what should we do differently? What should we say? What should we fight for? Just to make sure there’s no confusion about where we stand?”
“There will be another Mickey Schwerner. Probably a lot of them. There always is. When this ceremony ends, I hope we all choose to give them a version of Pelham that is worthy of being remembered.”
Jamie and Nevan worked with Donna Shirreffs, a member of the Rotary Club of the Pelhams, to explore locations for the plaque and contact elected officials for permission to locate the plaque at the base of a tree on Village of Pelham property near the street sign for Michael Schwerner Way (Harmon Avenue) near Fifth Avenue. The Rotary Club paid for the plaque.
Also speaking at the dedication were Superintendent of Pelham Schools Dr. Cheryl Champ, who reviewed in detail Schwerner’s extensive activities while at PMHS, County Legislator Terry Clements, Maura Curtin representing State Senator Alexandra Biaggi, Cathy Draper representing Assemblymember Amy Paulin, Town Supervisor Dan McLaughlin and Pelham Manor Trustee Breda Bennett.
