Every February, people in the United States celebrate the achievements and history of Black Americans as part of Black History Month.
“Black History Month focuses on the contributions of African Americans to the United States,” said Ms. Mullings, a 6th grade teacher. “It honors all Black people from all periods of American history, from the enslaved people first stolen from Africa in the early 17th century to the Black Americans living in the United States today.”
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was one of history’s greatest speakers and social activists. His leadership in peaceful protests helped end segregation during the American civil rights movement.
“In Crew, we created Freedom Collages to honor Dr. King’s legacy by sharing our own dreams for the world,” shared Efehi from Crew 6E. “My collage was about my dream for better gun control so that less people get hurt.”
“Creating the Freedom Collage was interesting because it made us think about what we wanted to see in the world,” expressed Ava from Crew 6E. “One of my dreams for the world is for people to treat each other equally and not judge each other by their race or gender identity.”
While some students created collages about their dreams related to ending social injustices, other students created collages to express their dream to increase environmental protection or support for health and safety in our communities.
Another way we celebrate Black History Month at MAELS is participating in Black Lives Matter at School Week. The goal of Black Lives Matter at School is to spark an ongoing movement of critical reflection and honest conversation in school communities to engage with issues of racial justice. On February 4, 2022, the MAELS community started a week-long exploration into the BLM at School movement and its 13 guiding principles.
“There are a lot of misconceptions about the BLM movement,” expressed Sophia from Crew 6F. “One of them is that a lot of people think that it means that only Black people matter, but that’s not true. Of course, all lives matter but Black people are experiencing something traumatic and they need support from the community,”
Nora from Crew 6F added, “This movement does not mean that Black lives matter ONLY. It means that Black lives matter TOO. It’s not possible for all lives to matter if Black lives don’t matter as well.”
“During BLM Week at School, we learned about the different 13 guiding principles,” said Erica of Crew 6F. “One of the principles is empathy, which is when you put yourself in other people’s shoes to understand their feelings or point of view. It prompts us to think about how other people would feel and encourages us to ask questions to understand other people. You don’t have to be Black to understand these guiding principles. You don’t have to be Black to understand the importance of empathy.”
When asked about how BLM Week in School Week affected the way they will interact with their community, Seth from Crew 6G expressed appreciation for the work that the school community has done around Black History Month.
“Engaging in all of the lessons during Black History Month was one of the best things that we did because it allowed everyone to understand the Black community as a community of humans,” expressed Seth. “It was important to me that my peers and teachers understand the pain that Black people are going through and why BLM exists, rather than just respond negatively to the movement.”
“We had very deep discussions during class time with our peers and teachers,” shared Brenda from Crew 6I. “I feel that having these discussions with my class changed their perspective and also corrected misconceptions and stereotypes about Black people.”
Ms. Yoga, who also participated in the BLM in School Week lessons expressed that the young leaders were very curious and engaged in this learning. “I don’t think these conversations changed students’ minds about anything. Rather, it normalized having important conversations about social injustices and racism in our community,” said Ms. Yoga. “I observed students being vocal about things that they have seen and experienced. It was very powerful for sure and I’m happy we have conversations about race at MAELS.”
“I hope to see less discrimination in our community towards Black people and other people of color,” shared Seth. “As a Black person, I always feel alienated. Representation is the best thing possible in our community because although our classes are diverse, there are not a lot of Black people in our classes or in our school. I’ve experienced a lot of racism in my life and it becomes very confusing and makes it hard for me to settle into a community.”
To all of our Black community members at MAELS, we want you to know that we hear you, we see you and we value you!
Written by Dr. Michelle Ng, Director of Equity
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