LeMoyne Center celebrates black history month
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Teyler Barnes, 11, tells Celestine Smith, of Washington, the reasons and meanings behind the art that the students at the LeMoyne Community Center created Wednesday in honor of Black History Month.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Amberly Alene of Havana, Cuba ties a head wrap on Kieran Wormsley, 9, of Washington, during a Black History Month event at the LeMoyne Community Center in Washington.
Holly Tonini/Observer-Reporter
Kindergarten and first-grade students sing “This Little Light Of Mine” during a Black History Month program at the LeMoyne Community Center in Washington.
The youth of Washington led a celebration of Black History Month Wednesday with music, dancing, poetry and an art show at the LeMoyne Community Center.
The theme for the sixth- annual celebration was “making the youth and the community better every day,” said Joyce Ellis, executive director of the LeMoyne Center.
Community members of all different ages and socioeconomic backgrounds were called on to answer the questions, “when did you realize you became better,” “who helped you or what motivated you to become better,” and “how are you helping to change the community or world now that you’re better.”
“The whole thing is just to empower our youth,” Ellis said. “Every year we try to do a different theme and format because our kids change too.”
Ellis said about 30 students participated in the months-long after school program to prepare for the event. They learned about black inventors and colored pictures of them. The students learned about recognizing and breaking down stereotypes.
“There’s so much bullying and political rhetoric going on in this world,” Ellis said. “We wanted them to see what people depict as stereotypes. Some of them were shocked and would say ‘I didn’t know people thought that.'”
Kate Brock-Beers, who’s worked at the LeMoyne Center for about five years, helped fourth grade through high school students make African masks out of found objects and recycled materials.
“It was a celebration of African art history and culture,” Brock-Beers said. “They based the designs off images that we studied and their own personal meaning and stories.”
The masks were displayed on a wall with the artists’ names and commentary for their work. Da’osha Brown, a sixth-grader, wrote that the sea shells on her mask represented “the afterlife.”
“Black people were whipped because of the color of their skin,” she wrote. “I made my mask to honor black people.”
Another student, Ja’Mya Brooks, wrote that “I put my heart into decorating my mask” with shells, pebbles and beads.
“Black artists and African mask makers use their minds to create awesome and fantastic things,” she wrote.
Amberly Alene, a photographer who was born in Baltimore but lives in Havana, Cuba, displayed a group of her photographs depicting black Cuban communities. There were also dance and singing performances, an African drum presentation, a debate about violence and a head and hair wrapping demonstration.