Two From Wisconsin are Honored with NEA Awards

Two Wisconsin residents have been honored with the NEA's Human and Civil Rights Award. WEAC member E. Cristina Diaz-Arntzen, a teacher at Rose Glen Elementary in Waukesha, and James Cameron, founder of America's Black Holocaust Museum in Milwaukee, are among 11 people who will receive the award this year.

NEA President Bob Chase will present the awards at the 36th annual Human and Civil Rights dinner in Dallas, Texas, on July 1, 2002. Recipients will receive their awards in honor of a prominent human and civil rights leader or NEA activist.

Although she lives in Waukesha, Diaz-Arntzen considers Chichicastenago, Guatemala, her second home. Since 1988, she has traveled to the city several times and has helped raise $20,000 to provide books, educational materials, and a library. Diaz-Arntzen will receive the George I. Sanchez Memorial Award for her work in advancing educational and civil rights for Hispanics.

Diaz-Arntzen immigrated to the United States as a migrant worker and earned her degree in education from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has been teaching for 28 years. Last fall, WEAC presented Diaz-Arntzen with the Richard J. Lewandowski Memorial Award for her work to promote racial and ethnic equity in education.

Seventy years ago, James Cameron was almost lynched by an angry mob that left two of his friends dead. The mob left him badly beaten after he and his friends had been charged with allegedly killing a white man and raping a white woman. Cameron served four years in an Indiana prison for being an accessory before the fact in the alleged crimes.

Instead of a life of bitterness, Cameron decided to devote his life to civil rights, racial unity and equality for all. He has worked for the NAACP, served as director of the Indiana Civil Liberties Union, and was a supporter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1988, Cameron founded America's Black Holocaust Museum, which attracts 50,000 visitors each year. The museum displays one of Cameron's most prized possession - a pardon and apology from the state of Indiana.

Cameron will receive the Carter G. Woodson Memorial Award, which is named for the African American scholar and his role in increasing the appreciation of African American heritage and history.

Last October, WEAC President Stan Johnson honored Cameron with the Great Schools Hero Award during WEAC's Convention. "James Cameron is an inspiration to us all," Johnson said. "He has made us confront injustice and eliminate it. He has led the fight for equality for all, creating opportunities for all children to attend great schools. He has made our world a better place, helping all children, no matter who they are or where they live."

Posted June 12, 2002