Sidney Dearing

Dear Visitor,
 
I created this website in memory of my mentor and family member, Javon, who passed away unexpectedly in July 2020. Javon taught me to stand up for what I believe in and use my privilege to help others. The site was launched on June 6, 2020, and it's a work in progress. I want to acknowledge that there may be spelling, grammatical, and general typos on this website, but I'm committed to fixing them when I have the time.
 
The primary purpose of this website is to raise awareness of the systemic racism that has been deeply embedded in our community's history, which is often overlooked or unknown to many residents. I've noticed that the official history page of our town and all the past publications failed to mention for over 100 years any remorse or involvement with redlining, the KKK, and the Dearing family. I believe that it's essential to acknowledge our racially motivated past so that we can learn from it and prevent it from happening again.
 
It's important to note that a significant number of homes in the Bay Area were once sold with the despicable notion that "restricted to Caucasians" was a favorable influence when buying a home here. Today, I hope that the majority of our residents disagree with this notion. Our goal should be to promote diversity, inclusion, and learning about our history. By keeping the dialogue open in our community, we can understand why incidents like racial discrimination are highly insensitive and unacceptable, yet, they keep happening.
 
Lastly, I welcome any additional information that people can provide about Sidney Dearing, his family, or any other topic related to our community's history.
 
Thank you for visiting and taking the time to learn about our community's past.
 
Sincerely,
Meghan Bennett

We've gotten better.
We can do a lot better. We will do a lot better.
* Let's start by recognizing our roots with the Dearing family so we don't continue to repeat the past. *