Here are the facts about the W.E.B. Du Bois Sculpture Project

To the editor:

The W.E.B. Du Bois Sculpture Project is a group of locals who have been working with the town of Great Barrington for a few years to site a statue of our most famous native son in front of Mason Library. We have sought and received public feedback for months. We have received the approval of the library, the Great Barrington Historical District Commission, and have support from the Selectboard. We have raised all our money through donations and have already begun assisting the town, both financially and with planning, to repair the library entry and steps that are currently condemned.

But now, at the upcoming Special Town Meeting on October 23, we have been met with a petition that seems designed to stop the project in its tracks. It is unclear why or what the problem is.

Here are the facts about the project:

1. No taxpayer money has gone into this project. It is a non-profit funded by hundreds of donations, and the entire project is offered to the town as a charitable gift.
2. Any changes to the Mason Public Library will be minimal: the placement of a life-size bronze of WEB DuBois seated on a curving bench, created by nationally recognized sculptor Richard Blake, the winner of our public contest.
3. The process has been transparent. Over the last two years there have been multiple public hearings: at the Trustees of Libraries, the Selectboard, and the Historic District Commission. The public has officially spoken and been heard more than six times.
4. The Sculpture Project has already contributed funds to the town, partnering with the Department of Public Works to ready the front of Mason Public Library, where the front steps are currently condemned and the lighting is broken.

These are the facts. There are also a few myths, all of them false:

1. Myth: The front of the library will be radically changed or paved. (False: It will remain the same, with lawn, center steps, and accessibility ramps.)
2. Myth: The Sculpture Project is some kind of “special-interest group.” (False: We are ordinary people who care, volunteers from all over the Berkshires.)
3. Myth: Taxpayer money is being “wasted.” (False: The sculpture project is a gift to the town.)

Knowing the facts leads me to wonder: Why all the myths? What is the problem here?

I certainly hope it’s not what I think it is.

Bobby Houston
Great Barrington