1980 to 1990

By OTTO DO and MAXINE PARK

Staff Writers

Content Warning: Articles in this series depict specific instances of racial violence and aggression against Black and other non-white people. Racial epithets, though censored, are included.

This article is part of the multi-part series Since 1878, a project undertaken by the 142nd Board of The Exonian. The principal objective of this series is to examine the paper’s coverage of racism at the Academy and, by extension, in the country as a whole. This series will not provide a complete overview of racist events over the years in question. Additionally, research draws heavily from The Exonian’s archives, which present a biased depiction of racial dynamics at the Academy. Instead, the articles will offer a portrait of The Exonian, the Academy and the nation, decade by decade, by highlighting pieces published in the paper.

In Since 1878, The Exonian will follow the National Association for Black Journalists’ recommendations, referring to the n-word as [n-word], censoring n-gro in most contexts and capitalizing Black, in line with our updated style guide.

Regarding privacy, there are individuals named in these articles who are still alive today. Their statements represent their views as minors in the middle of their education. Most high schoolers do not write for publications like The Exonian, which archives every issue. The editors of the paper understand this unique situation and that views often change over time, particularly those held during high school. Additionally, every article represents more than its writer. Pieces in The Exonian go through editors and advisers, reflecting an institutional history.

However, Since 1878 uses their names to ground itself in the tangible and proximate. In Since 1878, the editors choose full transparency over perpetuating ambiguity and obscuring our history of racism.

During the 1980s, the Academy debated whether it had become a “post-racial” institution. Exonians clashed over whether racism at Exeter warranted the continued existence of such cultural groups as the Afro-Exonian Society (AES)—or whether they effected “self segregation” and “reverse racism.” 

The Academy also grappled with racial violence both domestically and internationally. The death of Edmund Perry ’85 at the hands of a white police officer sent the Academy—and nation at-large—into a period of mourning. Abroad, Exeter accomplished divestment from apartheid South Africa. 

The decade concluded with the revelation that Rockingham County Sheriff's Department staffer Thomas Hermon was a member of the Ku Klux Klan. Hermon’s Klan affiliation plunged the town into controversy; students criticized the Academy for its failure to condemn Hermon and the Klan. 

Coverage

Edmund Perry 

Just days after his graduation, seventeen-year-old Edmund “Eddie” Perry ’85 was killed via gunshot by twenty-four-year-old policeman Lee Van Houten. The shooting occurred in New York City on June 12, 1985. According to The New York Times, Perry and his brother, Jonah Perry, were both unarmed but had allegedly attempted to mug Van Houten. Van Houten, who was dressed in civilian clothes, then pulled out a gun and shot Perry in the stomach. Perry was pronounced dead later that night.

A funeral with around two thousand people in attendance was held on June 18 in New York City, with many Academy community members, including Board of Trustees President Michael V. Forrestal, present. A decorated student, Perry had graduated with honors from Exeter and had been accepted into Stanford University for the fall of 1985. According to The Exonian’s coverage of the event, “The circumstances of Perry’s death were met with anger and disbelief. Because of Perry’s achievements, many could not understand his apparent involvement in a crime.” 

Perry’s death sparked a series of shootout protests in New York City. However, Van Houten argued that the attack was warranted since Perry attempted to mug him. He was found not guilty. According to The New York Times’ June 15, 1985 coverage of the tragedy, Perry’s family and lawyer maintained that the shooting was “unjustified and racially motivated.”

“The death of Edmund Perry raises painfully troubling questions,” an opinion in The New York Times on June 23, 1985, read. Indeed, in the years following, Perry’s death seemed to raise a heightened awareness of racial tensions on preparatory school campuses. Exeter students, in particular, honored Perry’s contributions to the dialogue surrounding race at the Academy.

A memorial service was held in his honor on Sep. 14, 1985 in Phillips Church, where students discussed his impact on the students at Exeter. “Eddie Perry died in a way that inevitably draws much of our attention to the last night of his life,” Perry’s friend and English Instructor David Weber said, “(but) the exact truth of that night will be an incomplete version of the life Eddie lived and left to us.” 

The Exonian reported on this memorial on Sep. 21, 1985. The article heavily cited the eulogy of Tamara Horne ’85. “I am not here to speak of his (Eddie’s) innocence, nor his guilt, but to speak of Eddie as a person at this Academy,” The Exonian reported her saying. “He was like a bird trapped in a cage.”

Horne highlighted Perry’s advocacy at Exeter. During his time at the Academy, Perry had recited Thee Smith’s “I Am a Black First,” previously covered in Since 1878, in the Assembly Hall. 

“Many people at the Academy thought that this was reversed racism,” The Exonian reported Horne saying. “But those who knew Eddie could not believe that Eddie could be… racist, but a young man who was not afraid to say that he was black… Edmund Evans Perry, I know that when you stood before God on the judgment day, he said, ‘Job well done, job well done.’”

For his eulogy, Weber quoted an essay of Perry’s. “We must… speak what we feel, not what we ought to say,” Perry had written.

“May out memory of him prod, unsettle, challenge, and confront us in the rich, healing, open, and deeply human way that he himself would have wished,” Weber said.

During the memorial, Perry’s alleged mugging was not discussed. “It was good because it didn’t talk of his innocence or guilt because we can never be sure just what happened,” one student told The Exonian. Still, the memorial could not ignore the broader racial tensions in the country at the time. “At Exeter, we escape the realities in the world,” Student Activities Director Barbara James said. “And in his death he has brought them here.”

The service, however, centered throughout around Perry himself. “Eddie cared more about… honesty, dignity, understanding… than about making things socially comfortable,” Weber said. “Eddie knew that race prejudice that exists here is usually unrecognized, and he tried very hard to raise issues, especially racial issues, in a way that took others’ attitudes and good will and their unconscious condescension into account… Beneath his challenging manner lay fairness, patience, sensitivity, readiness to love.”

Best Intentions

Three years after Perry’s killing, former Exeter parent and journalist Robert Sam Anson published Best Intentions: The Education and Killing of Edmund Perry. Anson’s son, Sam Anson, had written The Exonian’s coverage of the Perry memorial service. On Sep. 26 1987, The Exonian offered a lukewarm review of the book. “After three years, the death of Eddie Perry '85 and the questions it raised about Exeter are still sensitive topics in this community,” The Exonian read. “Anson, whose son attended Exeter for almost two years, explores Eddie’s personality, his family background and his eduction thoroughly. Interviews with relatives, friends, and teachers present a multi-sided and often conflicting picture of the Stanford-bound PEA graduate. Eddie's mentor from Wadleigh Junior High, Edouard Plummer, his mother Veronica, and close friend from Exeter, Kennett Marshall, all hail him as a young man who had enormous promise, sensitivity, and insight. Although no one interviewed ever disputed his potential, many of his teachers and former dormmates from McConnell Hall described him as angry and hostile, especially towards whites.”

“However, the book becomes tedious by the end because many of the interviews begin to repeat themselves: the speaker almost always makes him out to be either a hero or a troubled McConnell drug dealer. Best Intentions ends up raising more questions than it answers—not than Anson or anyone who knew Eddie could offer a smooth explanation for what apparently overwhelming evidence proves that he did,” the review continued.

Since its publication, Best Intentions has been criticized for its seeming acceptance of the New York Police Department’s version of the killing, as well as its use of racially-charged tropes or stereotypes in depicting Edmund Perry.

The book did, however, raise questions about the role of minority students on campus. “To those in the Exeter community especially, Best Intentions becomes thought-provoking and disturbing as interviews describe the position of minority students on this and other prep school campuses,” The Exonian’s review read. “One former prep school student explains that minorities are ‘a twenty-four-a-day cultural attraction,’ for whites. ‘By God, their kids are going to be well-rounded, they're going to have Rossignol skis and Lang boots and a ‘black roommate for ‘an experience’.’"

Ku Klux Klan 

As The Exonian reported on Oct. 7, 1989, the town of Exeter was reportedly in uproar when news reports linked 27-year-old Sheriff’s Office staffer Thomas Hermon to the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). Students, in particular, were upset by the Academy administration and Town Select Board’s response. 

Then-Director of Communications David W. Johnson said to The Exonian, “According to news reports there was no direct threat to the Academy. We didn’t want to put ourselves in the middle of an issue in which we were not directly involved, but at the same time we wanted to let the town know that we were concerned.” Johnson added that the Academy made a “clear stance of opposition,” but many students found the Academy’s “opposition” unsatisfactory.

Religion Instructor Kathleen J. Brownback, one of the Academy's ministers, said at the time that “there was a definite concern on the part of the faculty and a feeling that this situation needed an active and quick response of opposition. The fact that a Klan office is not illegal means that it needs immediate moral pressure.” 

“It is up to each one of us to register our moral opposition,” Brownback continued. 

Responding to Hermon’s affiliation with the KKK, the Exeter Select Board stated, “Let it be known to all that the Town of Exeter supports the precepts of racial and ethnic equality for all the constituencies who reside within its bounds.” The Select Board’s statement came after a meeting with Principal Kendra Stearns O’Donnell.

After this meeting, O’Donnell said, “I am delighted that [the Selectmen] followed through so quickly on our recommendation. It is reassuring to know that we are part of a community which shares our values and our attitudes.” 

Despite the declaration of “unified opposition” towards the KKK and its values from both the town of Exeter and the Academy, Hermon remained in a position of authority as part of the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Department.

Efforts were made by the faculty, the paper reported, to quell rumors that Exeter had become a national base for the KKK. “It’s not clear to me that New Hampshire is a particularly fertile ground for racism, but everywhere there are potential seeds for racial hostility, and it is a mistake to assume that because we are in New Hampshire the seeds could not possibly grow. That is why the faculty members were concerned,” Brownback said.

Existence of the Afro-Exonian Society

In an op-ed titled “Exeter Anachronism,” published in The Exonian on Jan. 21, 1983, then-senior Zachary Gleit ’83 argued for the dissolution of the African Exonian Society (AES). As a white male student, Gleit voiced that AES was targeting whites at the Academy and enforcing a culture of “reverse racism.” While Gleit acknowledged that racism was “immoral and unquestionably wrong,” he felt that AES was contributing to a movement where “racism in the other direction, against whites, for instance, wasn’t so bad.” 

“Race, ideally, is irrelevant, for race only determines the way one looks, not the way one thinks. But organizations such as the Afro-Exonian Society treat race as culture,” Gleit said. “Oppression, though, does not make a culture.”

Maintaining that “race connotes nothing more than genetic makeup,” Gleit argued that AES should be abolished since “the method the Afro-Exonian Society uses to eliminate racism is to tell us constantly that we are racists, whether or not we realize it. It offers no real solutions to the racism problem. Too, I have found that many of the examples of racism that the Afro-Exonian Society cites are dubious.”

“If, after two months, black students still have trouble operating in a mostly white environment, perhaps they should seek professional help individually,” Gleit concluded. “After all, they’ll have to learn to cope eventually, if they are ever to associate among other white people. Racism is not so prevalent at Exeter that black people cannot function well, and it is certainly not so prevalent as in the real world.”

Gleit directly attacked Consetta Brown, then-president of the AES, in his op-ed, calling her usage of quotes by civil rights activist Malcolm X “offensive to anyone with knowledge of his beliefs.” Gleit described Malcolm X as “an extremist, militant activist, whose anti-white bigotry rivaled the anti-black bigotry of the racists.”

On Feb. 4, 1983, Brown issued a response: “I am president of the AfroExonian Society and am writing this in response to the woefully uninformed attack upon the Society by Zachary Gleit.” 

Brown stated that AES was open to students of any race—in fact, the President the year she joined was white. She also noted that the AES sought to foster dialogue, not division. “If Zach had taken the time to read page 51 of the E-Book he would have realized that being black is not a prerequisite for membership of the Afro-Exonian Society nor is it a guarantee of the same.”

“The AES accepts equally the ‘descendant of the North Carolinian slave’ and the ‘Haitian immigrant’ just as the bigot discriminates against both,” Brown continued. “The AES doesn’t stop there though, we accept people of Irish descent, English descent, German descent, and of Slavic descent; we accept anyone who wishes to join.” 

“You contend that the AES should be abolished,” Brown said. “Can I assume that you also wish to rid the campus of the Armenian-Hellenstic Society? The Jewish Students Organization or the Female Awareness Club? Exeter brings together many different kinds of people and I hope we can be ourselves and learn [from] each other. I dread the day we become the faceless, homogenous mass you seem to want.”

Black Religion Instructor David Daniels published a response alongside Brown’s, arguing that the assimilation of Black students and other minorities into white culture was not sufficient to address the issue of racism. “Since becoming an educated Black person does not mean becoming white, the Afro-Exonian Society is needed to ensure this truth,” Daniels said. “By sponsoring Assembly programs, lectures and art exhibits, the Afro-Exonian Society acquaints Black students with the richness of their own heritage and informs all Exonians of Black culture’s wealth.”

Racial Divisions at the Academy

“In the 1960s, the Afro-Exonian Society helped the school accommodate the increase in black students,” Dean of Students Paul R. Mahoney said. “Now that things have settled down, it faces a more complex task”—of finding a way to support black students and also integrate them into the community. 

During the 1980s, Black students remained a small minority. “The black population is severely underrepresented at Exeter, whereas a proportionately high number of Asians attend this school,” an article in The Exonian from Oct. 20, 1984, read. “Black students must, like other students, accustom themselves to tough academic standards; they also face hidden discrimination.” 

Given this numerical disparity, AES strove to “provide support for blacks who come from vastly different cultures and who find Exeter a bastion of unfamiliar white upper-middle-class values.” 

According to then-senior Horne, “It takes longer for black students to adjust to Exeter. There is no difference intellectually between black students and white students, but there is a big difference culturally.”

In early Oct. of 1981, AES held a seminar to “acknowledge problems blacks face at Exeter and try to solve them.” At this seminar, AES President Arnold Ward stated that the society’s “ultimate goal is to make it so that the Afro-Exonian Society isn’t necessary… We’re only here to ease racial tensions at the school.” 

During the seminar, students covered topics such as racial jokes and the question of where a “black at Exeter is a student or a ‘black student.’” Student Chris Storey expressed his frustration at having to represent “black opinion” to peers and teachers when he wished to be “just like anyone else here—a student.” The seminar concluded with a consensus that “‘nonblacks’ awareness of blacks’ problems should be increased” and that “it would be a hard task, and that it could only succeed if it were changed gradually.”

Allegations of "self-segregation,” however, continued. On Feb. 27, 1988, The Exonian republished a decade-old opinion by William McNally ’74, also covered in the 1970s piece in Since 1878.

“It appears Exeter has become a battleground for the black soul, a battle which one was compelled to become more aware of two weeks ago,” McNally wrote. “One might inquire as to whether Blacks at Exeter, by erecting a racial barrier are clinging to a pseudo-culture that has little application to academic life, and creating a social situation which is both unnecessary and destructive to everyone involved… Instead of transcending ‘racial barriers’ blacks at Exeter are doing the opposite.”

Asked about criticisms that AES fostered segregation at the Academy, Horne explained that “the reason we stick together is that we have something in common. It is just a matter of association and identity.” 

Overt Racism at the Academy

While racial divisions were often subtle, the horrors of overt racism also persisted. Debates ensued over whether specific incidents created a culture of racism at the Academy. In May and June 1982, The Exonian investigated student and faculty perspectives on racism at the Academy. 

The first article, “Racism Comes to Attention; Opinion of Severity Varies,” explored whether racism existed at the Academy. At the time the article was published, four overtly racist incidents had been reported to the administration. 

Interviewed students believed that the true number of racist incidents was higher but that most went unreported. The majority of Black students interviewed reported that they were called the n-word at least once during their time at the Academy, though some incidents involved town residents. Students and faculty generally agreed that, while the number of racist incidents was not necessarily increasing, there was a heightened awareness of racism and a desire for the Academy to address it.

Another article from 1982 addressed racism against “Jewish and Or--ntal Minorities.” The paper wrote, “Many Ori--tal and Jewish students disagree on the [severity] of racism at Exeter even though some have experienced racial slurs.” 

Then-senior Fred Lee, an Asian man, said, “I think racism exists to the greatest degree against blacks but otherwise I don’t think it’s that serious a problem.” 

Another Asian student, Grace Lee, recalled that she had “never encountered any racism at Exeter.”

“I haven’t been in a position to be discriminated against but I think what I’ve seen around me... is that many people end up being casted as stereotypes,” Student Council President Rafael Ongpin, who identified as Filipino, reportedly said. 

Jewish student Jon Newman, however, noted casual anti-Semitism around him. “Anti-Semitism at Exeter, in the form of jokes, is fairly common,” he said. “It’s surprising how many students who would never even think of telling a joke offensive to other ethnic groups, tell jokes about Jews. In this way, a specific racial prejudice considered ‘less prevalent’ manifests itself quite as often as a ‘more prevalent’ one, if less severely.” 

Several students commented on the prevalence of such ethnic and racial jokes. While some believed that these were “unintentional” and “not overt,” Asian then-upper Joyce Chang stated that “even if they’re joking just a little bit… there’s some truth to what they’re saying or they wouldn’t say it at all.”

An article entitled “Faculty Initiates Support Group to Find Solutions to Racism,” explored both student and administrative responses to racist incidents at the Academy. 

“The thrust… is to raise consciousness here,” English Instructor Douglas G. Rogers said.

Senior Arnold Ward of the AES suggested, as others had in the 1970s, that the Academy create a Cultural Center “to facilitate… the students’ ability to learn more about other cultures.” Ward advocated for the Academy to hold honest conversations about racism and how to support those who were victims of racist acts. 

Nevertheless, the community remained divided over the severity of racism at the Academy. The paper wrote, “Some students say racism is very bad at Exeter, while others say they have heard of none.” 

History Instructor Albert Ganley described two types of racism he believed existed at the Academy: “According to [Mr. Ganley], there is ‘overt racism’ and ‘naive racism.’”

“‘Overt racism’ involves actions by students that are racist,” Ganley said. “‘Overt racism’ is often deeply embedded in family history or regional culture.” Naive racism appeared to be the most prevalent form, he stated, as many students reported that racist jokes, or slurs intended as “jokes,” were not uncommon.

The administration also debated the necessity of disciplinary action following racist incidents. Dean of Students Paul Mahoney believed that racism was “an educational task, not a disciplinary one… It’s not an issue like alcohol.” 

Ganley disagreed. “I think the person guilty of racism should be required to withdraw … Exeter stands for goodness with knowledge,” he said. Others agreed with Ganley, believing that disciplinary action was necessary, but not to the extremity of expulsion. 

When addressing the issue of free speech, Ganley stated that he “does not feel that taking action against one who makes a racist remark violates one’s right of free speech.”

“I see a misconception of free speech,” Rogers added. “No freedom is absolute.”

Apartheid and Divestment

Arguments on divestment from South African continued during the 1980s. Exonians, however, were not unanimous on whether Apartheid should end.

Principal Stephen G. Kurtz addressed the issue of Apartheid in Assembly on Nov. 30, 1985. “The Academy opposes apartheid but has not developed a clear response to the policy.” Principal Kurtz said. “I can’t bear to watch this slaughter go on… We’ve just got to do something.”

Columnist Jason de Menil wrote a response in The Exonian: “Kurtz realizes that even if the trustees agree with him to disinvest in all companies that have bad records in South Africa, the action would have no direct effect on South Africa. It would be largely symbolic.”

Still, on Oct. 26, 1985, the Academy’s student-faculty Corporate Responsibility Committee proposed to the Student Council that investments be redirected from American companies with branches in South Africa. The Council voted 110-10 to endorse the proposal.

Despite the majority of students discouraging American businesses in South Africa, some community members favored Apartheid. In an article published on Feb. 8, 1980, Justin S. Simpson wrote, “As a citizen and resident of the Republic of South Africa, I am alarmed by the unfavorable and largely incorrect impression of my country held by many Americans and propagated by several ‘liberal’ newspapers. I believe that the much-maligned and little-understood system of apartheid (i.e.: separateness) is the only viable solution to the diverse and complex problems of South Africa today.” 

“Positive action recognition of the Homelands and establishment of trade links with them would go much further towards helping the black people, while withdrawing investments is undoing the work of the Government in trying to give the emergent nations a strong economic footing,” Simpson wrote. “South Africa has a lot to offer the world in terms of mineral resources, strategic value and technology; if ties with South Africa are cut, not only will the West lose in terms of finance and minerals, but also the unemployment caused by embargoes would hurt worst the very people the West is misguidedly trying to ‘help.’”

The Academy formally completed divestiture from Apartheid-supporting companies in April of 1986, after years of advocacy by students and adults alike. Divestment was based on the Sullivan principles, a set of guidelines written by Black civil rights leader Leon Sullivan to promote corporate social responsibility in addressing Apartheid. Months later, the Committee for Corporate Responsibility released a poll on the Academy community’s opinions on divestment. The Exonian reported “sharp division between old and young alumni” in its Nov. 8, 1986 issue. 

Asian Students

“Speak Chinese,” the title of an Exonian article from Oct. of 1989 read. The article concerned Exeter’s Chinese Table club, an organization devoted to Chinese language and culture. “There is a lot to learn from the myriad of culture of the student body,” the article read. “Certainly, one of the largest of these is Asian. The Asian population continues to grow every year. Almost 15% of the student body belongs to this minority.” The 1980s saw several efforts to build solidarity among the Asian community, including the founding of the Academy’s Asian Society in 1983.

In May 1987, the Academy’s Asian Society published “Discrimination Not An Issue” in The Exonian. In their article, the Society described itself in the article as an organization that “allows those interested in the Asian culture to appreciate and learn about their identity and heritage. An informal exchange of common background and values create an amiable atmosphere, thereby helping Asians adjust to the Exeter community.”

The Society acknowledged that Asians were initially “stereotyped as science / math oriented, unathletic scholars” but that, through the years, “many Asians have shown different talents and have broken this set presumption.” The Society’s members believed that “discrimination is not a major issue in [Exeter] society. As Asians, we do not consider ourselves ‘minorities’ since we feel there is no racism at Exeter… Our bi-annual Asian diners [sic] and periodical egg roll sales are well received by the whole student body. Exeter has been successful in forming a well diversified community of students.” 

The Society’s members did not view the organization as a platform to discuss issues of identity and maintained its informality. Senior Elaine Cheon reportedly stated, “We have no real goals to achieve something for minority groups in general. We do not promote Asian awareness... We’re just here to have fun.”

While the Society did not advocate actively for greater racial equity at the Academy, it did express a desire to see more “competent Asian faculty as they do for other minority groups.” As the Society’s adviser, Science Instructor Windsor Sung, had decided to depart, Asian students were concerned “because of the prospect of having no Asian faculty next year.” In the article, the Society urged the Academy to carefully consider the role of Asian faculty members in supporting Asian students on campus. 

When describing what they wished to accomplish through their hosted events, the Society said they preferred to “present our culture whether it be Asian cuisine or martial arts rather than to stress our differences… We believe that the Asian Society, along with the other minority clubs, are an integral part of the Exeter environment in achieving mutual understanding between students.”

Curricular Changes 

On Feb. 16, 1985, The Exonian reported a proposal from the Curriculum Review Committee to add a “required course in Bible study.” “Under the Committee's plan, all students except one-year seniors would take at least one semester of instruction in the Bible as ‘the cornerstone of western civilization,’” The Exonian reported.

The Exonian wrote in response: “While the Bible is unquestionably a major source of western culture, Exeter should not require it's study as a religious text unless it wishes to forfeit some of its student diversity and basic religious freedom… It will in effect impose the Christian religion upon them.” 

The 1980s also saw teachers advocate for a diversified curriculum. After winning the New Hampshire’s National Endowment for the Humanities and Reader’s Digest Teacher-Scholar for 1989 honor, English Instructor Douglas G. Rogers planned to use the sabbatical pay supplied to investigate the “significant works in American literature by women and minorities.” Rogers said that “such a study will enable me to incorporate a wider range of voices into the course I teach at Exeter, as well as share what I have learned with my colleagues.”

“The primary goal at Exeter is to offer our students a ‘liberal’ education; i.e., an education that truly liberates,” Roger said. “In teaching English, we are committed to giving our students opportunities to read and write about a wide range of materials. I want to be better informed so that my students and the colleagues of my students will have opportunities to sample a richer, a more diverse fare of American literature.”

Though strides such as Roger’s were made in this decade, the notion of a “post-racial” institution hindered the Academy from fully recognizing and addressing many areas of improvement.

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