Time for a change?

Here’s why we are considering a name change.

Our current name stems from the formation of the National Audubon Society in 1905. Its name honored John James Audubon, an artist who illustrated more than 400 bird species and wrote about birds in North America. He lived in 1785 to 1851.

Our Vashon Island chapter, created in 1989, adopted the words “Audubon Society,” just as other chapters have done over the years.

Now, almost 35 years since the Vashon-Maury Island Audubon Society began, we decided to consider a different name for several reasons:

For one, our current name is familiar to our members but isn’t meaningful to many others.

Many people know little—or nothing—about John James Audubon. The term “society” seems formal and unclear. Our name doesn’t include the word “bird,” making it difficult for people to know what our organization is all about.

We think a name that would be clear, welcoming, and focused on birds would make more sense. And our very long name—Vashon-Maury Island Audubon Society—could be shortened!

And a major reason to change our name is this: John James Audubon was known for his deception, plagiarism and—most abhorrent—his history of racism and slavery.

“A tenuous balance between fact and fiction runs though Audubon’s life and work,” writer Ella Foshay said. [1] Some examples: In England, Audubon exhibited his painting of a huge North American eagle—but no such bird exists. He falsely claimed that he discovered Lincoln’s Sparrow, although others had done so earlier. Many of the backgrounds of his paintings were done by an assistant, and Audubon erased the helper’s name. [2]

Most disturbing, Audubon enslaved people. In the 1810s, he enslaved nine people, then sold them when he needed cash. Later he took two enslaved men down the Mississippi to New Orleans, where he left them after selling them. He acquired several more enslaved people during the 1820s. [3]

We think this shameful legacy is reason enough to drop the Audubon name. If we fail to acknowledge the disgraces of the past and rectify them when we can, our organization will lose its own respect and undermine our commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Rather than dwell on this notorious past, we believe a new, forward-looking name could take us into an important new era.

The number of birds in North America has declined by nearly 3 billion since 1970. More than one in four birds have vanished in the past 50 years.

Birds need us. They need us to reverse this catastrophic decline. A new name could invigorate our efforts to take action on climate and conservation, while welcoming more members and enjoying our beautiful Vashon birds. And while the National Audubon Society’s name hasn’t changed, to the disappointment of many, we will continue to partner with this critically important organization. 

Finally, we want to be clear that while we might make some changes, we’re not starting over. Our organization began with progressive leaders, outstanding members, and myriad accomplishments—and that will continue. We’re proud of what has been done and look forward to continually building a strong, creative, and welcoming organization.

Citations

[1] Quotation from Ella Foshay.

[2] Mattew R. Halley, Audubon’s Bird of Washington: unravelling the fraud that launched the birds of America (Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club, 2020). Halley wrote that Audubon’s diary transcripts were doctored to support his false claim of personally discovering Lincoln’s Sparrow.

[3] Gregory Nobles, John James Audubon: The Nature of the American Woodsman (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2027). Nobles is the author of www.audubon.org/news/the-myth-john-james-audubon in National Audubon, The Myth of John James Audubon.