In an event to mark the 200th anniversary of his birth, the legacy of Frederick Law Olmsted was honored. Olmsted, the landscape architect who designed Buffalo's park system, emerged from a 19th century commitment to social justice and public health. On Tuesday, calls were made to bring Olmsted's vision to all people.
"Our city--a city within a park--is the first connective system to feature major parks, green parkways and smaller landscape spaces," said Stephanie Crockatt, Executive Director of Buffalo's Olmsted Parks Conservancy which organized the gathering near Soldiers Circle. The system encompasses 850 acres and includes six primary parks, seven parkways and eight traffic circles.
"It took leadership to bring Frederick Law Olmsted to Buffalo and his legacy here is everlasting. We are very proud to work with the city of Buffalo and so many other leaders in stewarding these valuable spaces," Crockatt said.
On a chilly, breezy day standing along Chapin Parkway, much of the discussion focused less on Olmsted's landscape architecture and more on what drove his vision.
"It was his experience as a journalist and that of a public health worker that he realized the healing power of parks and the importance of it relative to social cohesion," said Congressman Brian Higgins who offered his remarks along side those of Buffalo Council Member Joel Feroleto, Deputy Mayor Dr. Ellen Grant and Erie County Legislature Chairperson April Baskin.
"Olmsted held the Democratic value of our capacity for nature to unite people and to improve public health in high accord. Olmsted was a fantastic landscape architect, all while fighting for equality and improving public health," said Baskin. She recounted Olmsted's undercover travels through the South in 1852 for a firsthand look at slavery. He called for its abolition in three books published between 1856 and 1860, Baskin said.
"Let's keep the spirit of Mr. Olmsted alive throughout our region."
Tuesday's event, one of many planned for the 200th anniversary of Olmsted's birth,also featured the public debut of a work from Buffalo Poet Laureate Jillian Hanesworth, "Paint My People Green."
Inspired by the work of Olmsted, the poem also addressed other issues.
"A lot of the work that I do is rooted in the principles of justice. And I think it's really important that even in celebrating his work, we remind the community that we have to take some ownership over this land, we have to sustain it," said Hanesworth.
"The idea of painting our 'people green' is reminding all of our people that ecological justice is racial justice," Hanesworth said.
"Look at what's happening on the East Side with the amount of lead in the water."
When asked about her favorite spot in the Olmsted system, Hanesworth was quick to respond, "Oh, MLK is 100 percent." She likes the area around the MLK bust and the nearby exhibit house.
Does she agree with assertion that parks are society's most Democratic institutions? A nuanced response was provided. As an example, she points to Delaware Park,
While it's a "beautiful park" in a "really beautiful neighborhood,"
Hanesworth reminds of some uncomfortable realities.
"Depending on who you are, if you go over there, you might have to tell the police why you're there, or if you get too loud, they're gonna come and shut it down," Hanesworth said.
"So, I think even in making sure that we're operating these spaces Democratically, we have to make sure that all the systems that enforce the space are operating Democratically."
