“ I work at being a feminist and I think it requires study and commitment , not just ‘ I care about women ,’ ” Rickman says , adding that he had three mentors as a teenager , and all were female . “ Everything I do is out of curiosity or my mother ’ s teachings .”
Rickman ’ s championing of Christiana Carteaux Bannister is “ emblematic of the extraordinary work he has done in Rhode Island over the past forty years to build bridges across racial divides by advancing equity ,” writes a nominator .
In addition to Bannister , Rickman has re-introduced numerous Black female artists from history into the modern lexicon , including sculptor Nancy Elizabeth Prophet and soprano Sissieretta Jones , through his nonprofit , Stages of Freedom , which also raises funds to teach kids of color how to swim . He ’ s served as deputy Secretary of State , director of the Providence Human Relations Commission , was the first Black president of the Rhode Island American Civil Liberties Union ( ACLU ) and was elected to three terms as a state representative .
Ray Rickman
LONGSTANDING CRUSADER FOR RHODE ISLANDERS OF COLOR , PAST AND PRESENT
Every third year of his life , Ray Rickman studies somebody . Back in the 1980s , he selected Christiana Carteaux Bannister .
“ I had choices , and I chose her ,” says Rickman , a public scholar who gave his first lecture on Bannister ’ s legacy in 1982 at Brown University ’ s John Hay Library . Of his Ivy League audience , Rickman says , “ They knew about her , but they knew nothing . You put her in the context of her time and she ’ s a fundraiser , she ’ s a philanthropist , she ’ s helping to recruit soldiers for the Civil War …. And she can go to a dinner party with the Metcalfs and hold her own .”
Rickman led the charge to save the Bannisters ’ home in Providence , which is owned by Brown and was under threat of demolition , and he pushed to rename a city street in their honor . He ’ s also raising funds for a headstone for Mrs . Bannister ’ s unmarked grave at the North Burial Ground .
Raised in Detroit , Rickman is an equal opportunity crusader . When he realized the State House lacked visual representation of women leaders , he chaired the Secretary of State ’ s commision to choose one from history for an artistic rendering . Elizabeth Buffem Chace , a white suffragist , garnered the most votes , while Bannister came in close second . Thanks to Rickman ’ s creative fundraising , bronze busts of both
“ EVERYTHING I DO IS OUT OF CURIOSITY OR MY MOTHER ’ S TEACHINGS .”
In late summer , Rickman announced he was running for office again . Previously , he says , he consulted with the ACLU about suing the Providence school district over violence at Hope High School . Rickman was advised that it was a matter for legislators . Then his own senator , Gayle Goldin , vacated her seat for a position in the Biden administration .
“ I never planned to run for public office again in this lifetime ,” Rickman says . “ If you asked me , I ’ d laugh at you . But the sea opened .”
In October , Rickman lost his bid for state senate in a packed Democratic primary . But , legislative platform or not , he ’ ll remain a resounding voice for equity and equality in Rhode Island .
Says one Bannister judge , “ He has that longevity .” stagesoffreedom . org >>
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