Town of Reading reckons with racism and its past as it looks to honor Celtics great Bill Russell
December 18, 2023
WBUR
Irina Matchavariani
In the 1960s, NBA legend Bill Russell faced racism, bigotry in the town of Reading, located 13 miles north of Boston, where he and his family settled. Despite initial gestures of friendship, such as a banquet held in his honor in 1963, the Russell’s encountered racist attacks, including a petition to block them from moving to an affluent neighborhood, racist graffiti at their home, and a disturbing break-in during which vandals defaced trophies and left feces in their bed. In the wake of Russell’s death in 2022, a nonprofit group called “CATO - The Coalition of Us” is pushing for the town to recognize and address its troubled history by establishing a permanent Bill Russell Day. The proposal, presented in a town select board hearing, includes an annual celebration, a scholarship program reflecting Russell’s values, and official acknowledgement of the mistreatment the Russell family endured. While there is support for celebrating Russell, some board members are hesitant to address eh town’s past, leading to ongoing debates and discussions.
Despite a 2022 proclamation honoring Russell, the town has yet to take substantial action, prompting CATO’s call for a committee of residents to plan events around honoring Bill Russell’s legacy. The proposal aims to kick-start conversations about Black history in the town, providing an opportunity to address historical racial disparities. While some board members suggest a volunteer-led approach focused solely on Russell’s athletic achievements, CATO members argue the town needs to take responsibility for acknowledging and rectifying the racial mistreatment Russell and his family endured. The town select board is set to vote on the formation of a committee on January 9, determining the future of permanent programming honoring Bill Russell’s legacy and the town’s commitment to recognizing and rectifying its troubled past.
