SCHOOLS: Lockport High School celebrates black history

By Joe Olenick<br><a href="mailto:joe.olenick@lockportjournal.com">E-mail Joe</a>

Langston Hughes. Martin Luther King Jr. Michael Jordan.

They all have something in common, Buffalo City Schools Superintendent James Williams told Lockport High School on Thursday.

“They did not accomplish what they did by sitting back and waiting for something — they worked hard,” Williams said. “Young people, work hard.”

Williams was the guest speaker at the Lockport High School Black History Club’s “Remember the Time, How Far We’ve Come” event Thursday. The event, the club’s annual black history celebration, was highlighted by a number of student performances. Club advisers, Lockport teachers Anna Barrett and Monica Harling, said the members wanted to do something a little different this year.

“They wanted to present a historical timeline,” Barrett said. “Everything has been written and researched by them.”

Some of the student performances included junior Kyle Davis, who played the piano and sang “Lift Every Voice and Sing.” Davis also played when sophomore Nia Washington sang “What A Wonderful World” a signature song of Louis Armstrong.

The high school Royal Lions drill team performed with snippets of two Michael Jackson hits, “Beat It” and “They Don’t Care About Us.” Each member wore a white glove, a well-known Jackson trademark.

The night was divided into time periods: slavery, Harlem Renaissance, Civil Rights and post-Civil Rights era. Each period had a student narration, followed by a performance. Toward the end of the night, Felicia Brown, a sophomore who moved to Lockport a year ago, gave a presentation on her native country of Jamaica. Fellow sophomore Rachele Finley gave a presentation on Michael Jackson.

One of the highlights of the night was a performance by the African American Cultural Center Dance Company of Buffalo. Complete with drums and dancers, plus an impromptu dance by Barrett, the performers excited the filled-up auditorium.

Black history observance started in the 1920s, when historian Carter Woodson started a “Black History Week.” The week would eventually grow to a month-long event in February. Woodson chose the second week of February for the black history celebration because it marked the birthdays of President Abraham Lincoln and abolitionist Frederick Douglas.

“We have a rich tradition here at Lockport,” Principal Frank Movalli said. “It’s important to celebrate black history, because it isn’t just history, it’s the foundation of American history.”

The theme of the night was inspired by a poem written and recited by sophomore Ramel Robinson. The poem showed the difference between slavery and freedom, reminding people that while there may still be some work to do, “look how far we’ve come.”

“Let’s rise as a nation and look, look how far we’ve come,” Robinson read. “At last our battle is won, now look how far we’ve come.”

But in order to keep going, students needed the most important thing in the world, Williams said. Education.

“Graduation is not an option, it should be an expectation,” he said.

Williams said he was the son of a minister and a school teacher. Getting an education wasn’t something they discussed; everyone in the family went to school.

“That was not negotiated in our household,” Williams said. “Without education, you’re not going to progress.”

Last year, the club hosted a similar black history celebration, featuring student performances with the theme, “Everything you do matters.” Previously, the club hosted a panel discussion with educators, community advocates and students speaking on some issues affecting the community and society as a whole. A portion of the proceeds from Thursday’s event went to benefit the American Red Cross’ Haiti relief fund.

Contact reporter Joe Olenick at 439-9222, ext. 6241.

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