Gwendolyn Miller’s John Dickinson Plantation Visitor Center Speech
“Good morning, and welcome to the John Dickinson Plantation Visitor Center. Today, we celebrate what becomes possible when a historic institution and a community partner work together with trust, courage, and a shared commitment to presenting a fuller, more inclusive history.
My name is Gwendolyn Miller, and I am honored to represent the partnership between the Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice and the John Dickinson Plantation. Together, we have worked to bring forward voices too often absent from accounts of the Plantation’s past and to help create a public history that is more truthful, dignified, and complete.
For the past three years, the JDP team and the Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice Community Partner Committee have collaborated on the Addressing the Silences initiative, with support from the International Coalition of Sites of Consciences. The initiative brings forward narratives and experiences often overlooked in traditional historical accounts, helping the Plantation present a more inclusive history and engage the community more fully.”
“Through this partnership, we shaped a more inclusive, accurate, and community-centered approach—one that brings the experiences of historically marginalized communities into Delaware’s public narrative.
To carry out that commitment, we engaged community members, reviewed archival research and interpretive language, observed educational programs, tested emerging narratives, convened town halls, and ensured that community questions helped guide the process.
This collaboration produced immersive audio narratives grounded in archival evidence and community contributions. By restoring presence and individuality to the enslaved, free, and indentured Black people who lived and labored at this Plantation, the narratives invite visitors to encounter their lives and experiences with greater understanding, respect, and humanity.
The legacy of this partnership extends far beyond these grounds. Our work also contributed to the Addressing the Silences Toolkit, a national resource for museums, educators, and community organizations committed to more inclusive public history. Through this resource, the work begun here can help other historic sites tell fuller and more courageous truths.
Together, these achievements stand as a testament to the enduring value of shared authority and sustained community partnership.”
“It is therefore my privilege to extend sincere congratulations to the JDP team: Gloria Henry, Annie Fennimore, Vertie Lee, and Dan Citron. I also recognize the members of the Southern Delaware Alliance for Racial Justice Community Partner Committee: SDARJ founder Charlotte King; Alisha Armstrong; Hattie Bull; Gail Hecky; Chris Perry-Jacobs; and me, Gwendolyn Miller, chair of the committee. We are humbled and honored to have contributed to the John Dickinson Plantation and its new visitor center.
Through this collective endeavor, we honor voices once unheard, lives too often overlooked, and a fuller history that belongs to all of us.
As we mark this occasion, one statement captures the spirit of our partnership: A single voice can tell a story. Many voices can tell the truth.
Thank you.”
Gwendolyn Miller
John Dickinson Plantation Visitor Center Speech
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
October 10, 2026
