Rent-a-Roman: We Need a Reckoning, Not Revisionism

Mock slave auctions are part of NJCL’s recent history. Releasing statements and simply moving on does a disservice to Latin students and Classics as a whole.

Choregos and actors, Roman mosaic.

The longtime readers of this blog and those of you that have been engaged in the ongoing discussion of promoting social justice within the Classics are likely familiar with the horror of the mock slave auctions under the name “Rent-A-Roman” held at Junior Classical League Conventions for over 60 years.

For those of you who don’t know, Rent-A-Roman was a mock slave auction held for entertainment and fundraising. Student attendees would volunteer to be “sold” to their peers and would then perform the commands of their “master.” It should be obvious that this event is not only completely dehumanizing, but is also symptomatic of the systemic racism that is pervasive within NJCL, the American Classical League (ACL), other Classical organizations, and the field more broadly. It is must be noted that students participated in these events because of the National Junior Classical League (NJCL), and, because of NJCL’s inaction, students have been cut off from engaging with this issue. Rent-A-Roman and similar events have been normalized because of NJCL’s failure to appropriately address its extremely problematic and racist nature in a meaningful way.

By enacting this revisionism of the Junior Classical League’s shameful past, they fail to provide reparations to those that have been harmed by Rent-A-Roman, and they participate in a system that is often used to cover up the experiences of those that have been oppressed.

In 2019, as a student member of the Junior Classical League and newly elected state officer, eager to learn more about the organization that I had become so enraptured with during my first two years of high school, I attended a colloquium session at the national convention at North Dakota State University entitled “History of JCL.” I loved hearing about the events of bygone Conventions, the origins of the JCL song (an incredibly problematic aspect of the Junior Classical League itself), and the old, arcane traditions of the organization. However, as I would later discover, one such tradition was not included in this presentation. My thirst for knowledge about JCL history didn’t end there, and I spent months doing research in my free time, whether it be by talking to the adult members of my state chapter, digging through the archives of the IJCL website, or just by looking up “Junior Classical League,” or “Junior Classical League History,” on Google and scrolling through pages of content to see if I could find something I didn’t know.

There has been no meaningful reckoning for these events. Instead, they have been scrubbed from public memory.

In early 2020 I finally found something. An event called “Rent-A-Roman,” which was halted at some state JCL conventions following public outrage after a story about a mock slave auction at the Illinois Junior Classical League’s annual state convention had gone viral. It wasn’t until 2019 that the ACL finally condemned Rent-A-Roman, as well as other mock slave auctions held at JCL events (though “condemned” may be giving the ACL more credit than they deserve for their initial lukewarm statement that glossed over the horror of this activity). It is worth noting that these events have still not been officially banned.

There has been no meaningful reckoning for these events. Instead, they have been scrubbed from public memory. I recently learned that, following the events of the Illinois Junior Classical League convention in which a mock slave auction was performed, the Indiana Junior Classical League, my state chapter, scrubbed all records of Rent-A-Roman from our website and all documents. I can only assume that this sort of Damnatio Memoriae occurred within other state chapters of the NJCL because there is no mention of Rent-A-Roman on their websites with few exceptions (the California Junior Classical League has included a statement on their website).

The statements NJCL does release are incredibly hollow and typically only distributed to sponsors. They do not reach the 40,000 student members. Most of the people involved with the organization aren’t aware of these issues, nor are they able to engage with them in a meaningful way. As a student, the only reason I have seen these messages is because I expressed interest to a sponsor within my state that was willing to share these messages with me. If the NJCL wants these statements to be available to the public, why is it so difficult for the vast majority of the organization to have access to them?

The reason for this is simple: to protect the posterity of the JCL and to further insulate it from outside criticism. By enacting this revisionism of the Junior Classical League’s shameful past, they fail to provide reparations to those that have been harmed by Rent-A-Roman, and they participate in a system that is often used to cover up the experiences of those that have been oppressed. Unfortunately, this is only one of the approaches the NJCL utilizes to maintain its status quo.

I heard the same thing over and over again: “It felt wrong, but it seemed like everyone was having a good time, so I said nothing.”

The NJCL response to their failures in terms of Rent-a-Roman has done a disservice to students and, more broadly, the field. How could an organization that I loved so much host an event so blatantly racist and wrong? This one thing created so much cognitive dissonance that I didn’t know what to think. The National Junior Classical League’s response to Rent-a-Roman has left students to navigate this part of its legacy on our own. Unable to find an official, meaningful response and trusting an organization in which I was deeply invested, I convinced myself that it wasn’t that bad. As a JCL member, I deferred to their judgment. Simply put, I thought that since they didn’t seem to think it was an issue, it must not have been. I — and the rest of NJCL members — should be able to trust that the organizations decisions and judgements are sound. Obviously, that has not been the case.

My lack of critical engagement with these issues and deferring to the NJCL’s judgement was a failure on my part and is indicative of my own privilege as well as my willful ignorance at that time. And, I know I am not alone in this inaction and flawed thinking. From talking to former JCL members and sponsors that attended conventions where Rent-A-Roman was held, I heard the same thing over and over again: “It felt wrong, but it seemed like everyone was having a good time, so I said nothing.” Students and sponsors don’t have to deal with the problems of Rent-A-Roman because the NJCL has normalized it by holding the event for so long and only addressing it in a superficial way. As a white student, I still feel incredibly guilty for not acting sooner to call out the lack of response from the NJCL, as I’m sure the many who attended conventions with Rent-A-Roman, feel guilty about not working to put a stop to it. Unfortunately the collective guilt of every white member of the organization is not going to solve its glaring problems. In fact, the overwhelming whiteness of the Junior Classical League, as well as the field of Classics itself, is one of the engines that perpetuates the problem. Action is needed, not pity. Unfortunately, we rarely see positive action coming from the JCL.

Statements like this, repeated over and over to these young students, promote a deep sense of pride for the Junior Classical League, in a manner that borders on propagandistic.

It is imperative to note the environment that the Junior Classical League creates that allows this inaction to continue to happen. Most students come into the JCL in middle school or early in high school, with very little knowledge of what to expect from this new club they’ve joined. Typically, the first introduction these students will have as to what the JCL is all about is through the recitation and singing of the JCL Creed and Song at the beginning of each General Assembly at Convention. The creed and song extol the virtues of the organization through language such as “We affirm the JCL experience develops responsibility, fosters brotherhood, promotes enthusiasm, encourages competition, inspires dedication and enriches our total growth.” Statements like this, repeated over and over to these young students, promote a deep sense of pride for the Junior Classical League, in a manner that borders on propagandistic. Furthermore, the JCL song ends with, “And forever we’ll hold to the Purple and Gold, of the Junior Classical League,” a pledge to remain with the Junior Classical League forever. For young students, this consistent reinforcement of the importance of the JCL creates a chauvinistic view of the organization. This causes a devotion to the Junior Classical League that leads to the inaction we see now. It seems that the JCL is so devoted to marching on “in Rome’s proud steps” that they have created an environment that bears uncanny similarities to imperial Rome through their use of revisionism and propaganda.

The system perpetuates itself. Many of the adults that sponsor JCL chapters, serve on JCL boards, or even chaperone JCL events were at one time students in the JCL. These adult members of the organization were subject to the same processes that are still used on students today. They are, in a sense, victims of the system that have become so entrenched in it, that they themselves sustain it. This shouldn’t absolve them of guilt. In fact, it is the responsibility of the senior members of the JCL to do the work necessary to provide justice to the people that have been wronged by the organization and to actually promote “Classics for All,” for its members.

It may not seem like it, but I still hold a lot of love for JCL, and for what it has done for me. Junior Classical League has provided a community of friends that are just as geeky and weird as me from all across the country and has given me educational opportunities that I could have never found elsewhere. The organization has a lot of merits, but what the leaders of this organization need to realize is that the good that they create does not erase the bad. Swift, direct action must be taken to ensure that justice is provided to those that have been harmed by the organization’s previous actions, as well as its current inaction, and it must work to uplift marginalized voices at every level of the organization.

If you would like more resources or a discussion on promoting equity within the Junior Classical League, please reach out to me at aidanjeff@gmail.com. I have also compiled a list of action steps that both students and teachers within the JCL can pursue to work towards this goal.

1. JCL Chapters should issue apologies for Rent-A-Roman, slave auctions of any kind, or any appropriation of Roman slavery such as mock gladiatorial combat that they held. The NJCL should expand on the apology that was already made and make it much more easily accessible and easy to find. Furthermore, the organization should provide teachers with materials to help them talk to their students about these issues.
2. State & Local chapters should institute bans on the events listed above. The NJCL, as well as most, if not all, State JCL chapters have no language within their Constitutions, Bylaws, Handbooks, or other official documents banning these events. It is not enough just to halt them, there needs to be an official ban.
3. State & Local chapters should create a standing committee devoted to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. This step isn’t exclusive to JCL sponsors. I co-founded the Indiana Junior Classical League’s Equity Committee as a student, so this is accomplishable. The NJCL should promote the development of such committees and provide them with resources. Furthermore, the NJCL must work harder to make decisive actions within their own Equity & Inclusion Committee, rather than releasing hollow statements.
4. Students should elect officers that are committed to creating positive change within the organization. Adult members of the Junior Classical League & American Classical League should elect ACL officers that make similar commitments, and appointments to the NJCL committee should be made with diversity, equity, and inclusion in mind.
5. The NJCL & ACL should create information and resources for learning about racism and white supremacy within the Classics and distribute that information to students and teachers.

Aidan Gregg is a senior at Crown Point High School in Crown Point, Indiana who has been a member of the Junior Classical League for 4 years. Aidan has served as Indiana Junior Classical League Editor and 1st Vice President and was recently elected Indiana Senior Classical League Historian. He will be attending Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana in the Fall as a Classics Major.