By Ainai Habtom 2025/2026 Power in Place Research Collaborator
In the summer of 2025, a commercial by Ralph Lauren swept the social media feeds of many in America. The advertisement was simple–a video montage of Black people in Oaks Bluffs, a predominantly Black, thriving community, donned in Ralph Lauren apparel [1]. It circulated for months and made waves in a majority-White, preppy fashion space. To me, the campaign was nothing less than monumental for the visibility of Black excellence in the general public. While most only got to see bits and pieces of the promotion through two-minute clips on their for you page, I watched the short film Ralph Lauren uploaded about the history of Oaks Bluffs aptly titled “A Portrait of the American Dream: Oak Bluffs.” The whole ad campaign was well done, but the film was incredibly thoughtfully crafted. It shined a light on how Black people in Oaks Bluffs constructed their lives in the wake of slavery despite widespread racism across the country [2]. The responses to the advertisement were overwhelmingly positive, and a common sentiment emerged: this aspect of the Black experience rarely receives mainstream recognition [3]. I second this notion, in that depictions of Black Americans have systemically ignored histories of Black perseverance in the face of adversity. Often, the history books portray Black Americans’ experiences up until the start of the Civil Rights Movement as a monolith. The narrative is wrought with strife. The writers give no room for success, no room for educational advancement, and no room to exist outside of the title of “America’s Underclass.” This is not to discount the very real generational trauma Black people have suffered at the hands of a country entrenched in racism. However, the notion that Black America before the mid 1900s can be accurately characterized by non-Black authors as solely one story has long deserved to be abandoned. It’s a chronicle that purposely ignores the extensive ways that Black Americans have continued to push for their own equality even before the Civil Rights Movement and focuses on White saviors. The victims of this historical erasure are more often than not those who are marginalized by society–namely, Black women. For this reason, acknowledging microhistories, like that of Harriet Davy Forten Purvis, becomes all the more crucial. Harriet Davy Forten Purvis was born in 1810, long before the national abolition movement took off in the 1850s, and certainly many years before the question of suffrage for women of color entered the minds of the public [4]. She was a changemaker, raised in a family that enriched and nurtured her passion for activism. Her father, James Forten, was a free man who fought in the revolutionary war and managed to create a wealthy livelihood for himself in Philadelphia. When the schools in Philadelphia refused to admit his children on account of their race, he created his own school for Black children [5]. The foundations of her lifelong career of activism were built in Black communities, in the city of Philadelphia which to this day is over 40% Black [6]. She learned within Black spaces, in all Black schools, and had an environment similar to that of Oaks Bluffs where she was surrounded by Black visionaries. She was a force to be reckoned with, especially when it came to her work in the abolition movement. She co-founded the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society in 1833 because the American Anti-Slavery Society did not allow women to join their ranks [7]. She and her husband housed runaway slaves in their home and paid for their escape to Canada before slavery was abolished [5]. Her work in the advancement of women’s rights in America was often deeply intertwined with her abolitionist work. She helped organize the Fifth National Woman’s Rights Convention with Lucretia Mott. Her work in both the abolition and suffrage movements meant her home was visited by people like Sarah P. Remond, Susan B. Anthony, and Daniel Alexander Payne, all revolutionaries in their own rights [5]. She joined Susan B. Anthony in the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA) to promote a women’s right to vote in the mid-1860s to early 1870s [8]. In 1866, she became an integral member of the American Equal Rights Association (AERA) and publicly sought the right to vote for Black people and women. During a time where the Equal Rights Amendment was often construed by abolitionist movers as solely for Black men’s rights to vote, she encouraged an intersectional approach [8]. Despite being so entrenched in the fight for civil rights of both Black people and women, her story has been mostly shelved for over a hundred years. Her name is often a passing remark in the story of her father, her husband, or her White peers within the suffragist space. She dealt with discrimination of both kinds–misogyny and racism–and fought against both with the same vigor. But, it’s the White suffragists she worked with, such as Susan B. Anthony, who get the credit. It’s her male counterparts whose speeches are transcribed and published, while hers are mostly inaccessible. I know the connection between her story and Oaks Bluffs may seem like a stretch, but they are deeply interconnected. After Ralph Lauren released their promotion on their Oaks Bluffs collection, I witnessed post after post from online viewers–shocked to learn that a thriving Black neighborhood has existed since the late 19th century. To many, it was unfathomable that Black communities could exist in a period of time fraught with intense discrimination. From my perspective, this discourse reflects the way that Harriet Davy Forten Purvis’ contributions to the suffragist and abolition movements continue to be unsung. That is, she defies our expectations of what a hero can be–neither white nor a man, but a trailblazing Black woman with a mission. Her life deserves to be honored, and so does the history of Oaks Bluffs and the families that made it into the refuge it is today. That’s why I want to urge everyone to watch the beautiful short film created by Cole Brown that chronicles the stories of many residents who made Oaks Bluffs the community it is today. We must continue to highlight the microhistories of those marginalized in history’s retelling, and watching this film is a step in the right direction. In the words of Reverend Dr. Otis Moss III, “Our African American stories are liberating, and we cannot allow the story just to be passed by osmosis. It has to be intentional” [2, 21:01].
References
References [1] Ralph Lauren. “Oak Bluffs.” July 24, 2025. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JtDFRqNwq1I [2] Brown, Cole; Ralph Lauren. “Polo Ralph Lauren | A Portrait of the American Dream: Oak Bluffs.” July 24, 2025. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOT8CUBpERE&t=34s [3] Jordan, Meagan; Rolling Stone. “How a Ralph Lauren Ad Sparked a Debate About Black Elitism” August 17, 2025. https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-commentary/ralph-lauren-black-elitism-1235407478/ [4] Sumler-Edmond, Janice; Oxford African American Studies Center. “Forten Sisters.” December 01, 2006. https://oxfordaasc.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780195301731.001.0001/acref-9780195301731-e-44149. [5] Commire, Anne; Amerman, Don; Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia, vol. 12, 2002 “Purvis, Harriet Forten (1810–1875).” [6] U.S. Census Bureau. July 1, 2025. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/philadelphiacountypennsylvania/AGE775224 [7] Smith, Jessie Carney; Wynn, Linda T. Freedom Facts and Firsts: 400 Years of the African American Civil Rights Experience (The Multicultural History & Heroes Collection). 2009. [8] Teborg-Penn, Rosalyn. May 22, 1998. African American Women in the Struggle for the Vote, 1850–1920.
Ainai Habtom is a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania, where she is majoring in Criminology and minoring in Legal Studies & History. She is passionate about the criminal justice system, the importance of literacy, and constitutional law. In her spare time, Ainai enjoys spending time with loved ones, writing poetry, and listening to music.
