“You know, dreamers belong in classrooms, and that’s where I guess I belong...”
Interviewed by Tamar Rubin on March 26, 2004.
Charles Twyman
Charles Twyman grew up in the Dixwell neighborhood during the 1920s, a member of the small African American community in New Haven that would grow tremendously in the 1940s. In the 1950s, he became a community activist. When Dixwell was slated for redevelopment, Twyman became chairman of the Dixwell Renewal Committee. Twyman describes the his disappointment in the results of efforts to create high-quality housing in West Rock for people forced to move from Dixwell during redevelopment.
Charles Twyman, fourth from right, pictured next to Mayor Lee, fifth from right, at the Dixwell Can-Do-Project Dinner, Winchester School, 1961. Courtesy Yale MSSA.
Public housing development in West Rock. Undated.