Claudia Page - Blog 4: Tamara Lanier V. Harvard

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Blog #4 - Tamara Lanier v. Harvard for Daguerreotypes of Enslaved Ancestors

“It's time for Harvard to stop doing the same to our family.” - Tamara Lanier

Tamara Lanier with her mother and photo of Papa Renty (via Hyperallergic, courtesy of Lanier)

Tamara Lanier grew up hearing her mother tell countless stories about their family history. She remembered specific stories about an ancestor referred to as Papa Renty. He was a slave who was able to gain access to Noah Webster’s Speller, or the Blue Back Webster. At this time, slaves were not allowed to have this book, and owning one was illegal. Papa Renty worked all day, and studied the speller all night. He was remarkably intelligent and charismatic, as he taught himself to read and spell, and then taught others. 

Lanier remained extremely close with her mother up until her passing. While she was dying, Tamara promised her mother that she would put together documentation of their family’s ancestry. Shortly after her death around 2010, Lanier found someone to help her with the research about her family history. A man she knew put together a packet of information about her ancestors, but more specifically about her Papa Renty. He told Lanier that in his research he discovered daguerreotypes online of Papa Renty and other enslaved ancestors. The photos live at the Harvard Peabody Museum. According to Lanier’s friend’s research, these portraits were commissioned and given to Harvard by a man named Louis Agassiz. His intentions for the photos and gifting to Harvard were to spread his White Supremacist ideas. The photos were tucked away out of the public eye at Harvard until their rediscovery in the 1970s, in which they were believed to be some of the earliest photographs of American enslaved people. 

When Lanier saw the photographs for the first time, she said she felt as if they were looking at each other. The connection between herself, Papa Renty, and her other ancestors deepened instantly. She mentions at first wishing that she found them sooner so she could have shown her mother, but knew it would have destroyed her. Lanier also knew her mom would have fought to have the photos in her possession, though, so she knew she needed to fight for them in her honor. Lanier says that Harvard initially ignored multiple requests to meet and go over the research her and her friend had put together. Her research was thorough — filled with names, dates, places, and solid proof. All she wanted was for Harvard to acknowledge her research and tell the true story of Papa Renty, and they were not receptive. Harvard was actually profiting off of the images, as copies of the daguerreotypes were put inside of a book being sold for $60 — a book that included an easily disproven false narrative of who the slaveholder was, according to Lanier. The slaveholder’s name was Benjamin Franklin Taylor. 

As a result of her research, Lanier found a descendant of Taylor, his great great grandson. He invited Lanier to his home in South Carolina. He sat and ate with Lanier, telling her that “the table and chairs you’re sitting at were hand carved from the Taylor family carpenter.” She knew that her ancestors were referred to as the family carpenters. Lanier shares that it was interesting to hear a lot of the same stories she heard from her mom, but this time from the slaveholders perspective.

In March of 2019, Lanier filed a lawsuit in Massachusetts to obtain the rights to the daguerreotypes. Lanier argues she has the right to these photos as generational inheritance, comparing the photos to the chairs and table passed down in the Taylor family. The judge ruled in favor of Harvard, saying the photographs are property of the photographer. Lanier appealed, and the arguments were heard in front of the Massachusetts Supreme Court on November 1, 2021. The podcast episode itself does not offer many details about the trial with Harvard or appeal. 

 

“Slavery has robbed people of their right to generational inheritance” - Tamara Lanier

According to further research, Lanier and her attorneys are still fighting for justice. The court allowed her to pursue the case that Harvard’s initial lack of response and alleged dismissal of her claim of being a descendant caused her emotional distress. However, the court remained firm in that the photos are not her property (Hawes). Lanier and her attorneys are still actively suing Harvard, but It seems their argument now has shifted to be more about the emotional distress Harvard has caused Lanier, her ancestors, and countless others in similar situations. 

I thought this podcast episode / court case was interesting to cover, as I also researched the fight against the Harvard Peabody Museum for the Standing Bear Tomahawk to be returned to their tribe. It was interesting to compare the two, as in the Tomahawk situation Harvard dragged their feet and ignored initial requests, similarly to what happened with Lanier. The difference between the Tomahawk and the daguerreotypes is that Harvard agreed the Tomahawk should be returned, but in Lanier’s case argued the photos should not be considered her or her ancestor’s property.

Works Cited

Hawes, Jennifer Berry. “Woman Seeks to Gain Control of Harvard Museum Photos of Enslaved People.” ProPublica, 9 Oct. 2023, www.propublica.org/article/harvard-photos-enslaved-people-tamara-lanier. 

Vartanian, Hrag, host. “Tamara Lanier’s Fight for the Photographs of Her Enslaved Ancestors at Harvard.” Hyperallergic, episode 97, 21 April. 2022, https://podcast.hyperallergic.com/episodes/tamara-laniers-fight-for-the-photographs-of-her-enslaved-ancestors-at-harvard.