New London — The New London NAACP on Thursday held its annual Freedom Fund Dinner where the theme focused on celebrating history while new history may be around the corner.

The event, held at Port 'N Starboard at Ocean Beach Park, coincided with the 400th anniversary of the first slaves of African descent coming to Virginia, the first permanent British colony in North America. The night focused on the need to educate on the past so that new leaders can help forge a better future.

That theme came to a head, as the featured keynote speakers were Joshua Koskoff and Benjamin Crump, two lawyers involved in Norwich resident Tamara Lanier's lawsuit against Harvard University over pictures of her enslaved ancestors. Crump told The Day that he thinks that the case will be historic, and believes in it to the point he is willing to take it to the Supreme Court if necessary.

"I honestly believe that this case is landmark in every aspect of the word," Crump said. "It really is precedent-setting. This is the first case in history where a descendent of slavery could get reparations from an institution that advantaged from slavery. It will be taught in history classes. Harvard says law is on their side, but that law is from 1850 when we were enslaved. Certainly, the law is not on their side in terms of ethics and humanity."

Crump says that one factor he thinks will help their case is that the descendants of the racist scientist at the center of the Harvard case have come forward in Lanier's support.

In addition to discussing the possibility of new history, the NAACP celebrated the old history. Master of Ceremonies Lewis Allen began the night by reading out trivia, tables all were named after different moments in civil rights history and NAACP New London Branch President Jean Jordan announced that in the last year, the agency provided 1,000 booklets on Black History Month to local schools. Lanier said that her case was helping push the need for more teaching of black history.

Connecticut passed a law requiring black and Latino history to be taught in schools that was signed by Gov. Ned Lamont on June 21.

The New London NAACP gave out two lifetime achievement awards, one for Rev. Wade Hyslop for his work in the Connecticut state legislature and his 40 years of service as a pastor in the New London community, and the other to Rev. Joseph Coleman, who founded the nondenominational St. John's Christian Church in the city.

The NAACP also gave out an educational award to New London teacher Linda Pfeiffer for her work creating an ethnic studies curriculum that the NAACP says should be "replicated and offered in every high school in this state."

"This is a great opportunity to showcase mandatory black history in schools as well as the court case," Lanier said. "I majored in history at the University of Connecticut, but I am just learning history. The history I was taught does not tell the whole and true story on slavery and that is what I am fighting for."