Month: April 2021
Moments in Black History
Moments in Black History
By Emily and Mairin
Ruby Bridges was born on September 8, 1954 and became one of the first African American female students to go to an all-white school in Louisiana. In 1954, the US Supreme Court ruled in the case of Brown v. the Board of Education that segregated schools (separate schools for black and white students) had to end. Southern states did not want black students going to white schools.
In 1960, a federal court ordered Louisiana to desegregate, and Ruby and her mother began walking to the school with four federal marshals every day that year. She had to walk past crowds of white people screaming names at her, but she was brave and never missed a day at school Ruby says she was only scared once when she saw a woman holding a black baby doll in a coffin!
Ruby spent her first day in the principal’s office, but then she started going to class with Barbara Henry, a white teacher from Boston who was the only teacher willing to accept Ruby as her student. Because angry white parents pulled their children from school, Ruby was a class all alone. She ate lunch alone but sometimes played with her teacher at recess. Ruby Bridges was strong, brave, and smart.
Today she still inspires many young children by making the world a
better place through her speeches. Ruby Bridges inspires people of all shapes and sizes. You can help make change like her. Join the fight to help give Africans Americans a fair and equal education.
Youth in Action
Community Events
& How YOU Can Help
By Georgiana & Nora
Youth in Action: Conversations about Our Future: This is an online celebration of earth day where you can hear from young Indigenous activists as they discuss the role of traditional ecological knowledge plays in their work as young farmers and entrepreneurs. The struggles because of COVID-19 and the pressing issues of climate change, investing in sustainable agriculture and food production is more important than ever. Native youth are offering innovative alternatives to these challenges and creating a future of farming that will feed generations to come. This program is part of the museum’s Living Earth Festival, which features Native experts who work to create innovative, robust, and ecologically sound food systems and agriculture businesses. The date is Thurs April 22, 2021. The cost is free.
Here in the entrance link: Click Me For Entrance Link
Alexandria Walk for Change
Date: Saturday April 17, 2021 at 11:00
For over a week, a group has been meeting outside Misha’s Coffee in Alexandria for daily walks to demand racial justice. On Friday, the group was small, but their message was heard by Old Town residents and drivers. Participants in Friday’s Walk for Change held signs and chanted as they walked on King Street, Washington Street, Henry Street and other local roads. The route took them past notable landmarks, including the place where the Confederate Appomattox statue was removed in early June at Prince and Washington Streets. They went past the historic Alfred Street Baptist Church, which held its own rally in DC and displays a Black Lives Matter banner. Angie Sanchez, who lives south of the city in Huntington, has observed well-organized protests in DC with people wearing masks, and items like hand sanitizer and snack packs on hand. She says the Alexandria walks intend to share the same demand heard at large protests: defund the police. “I think it’s important we carry that message outside of DC,” she told Patch.
Participants received honks of support and comments from passerby, both positive and negative. One of the responses directed at protesters was “all lives matter.” Taylor Cheski of Alexandria believes there is a misunderstanding about saying black lives matter versus all lives matter. For her, it acknowledges the inequities and injustices black people face in criminal justice and more. “Yes, all lives do matter, but black lives are being discriminated against,” she said. The walks are among numerous Alexandria protests held in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death in police custody on May 25. There have been marches in Old Town, a protest outside Alexandria police headquarters and a vigil outside Charles Houston Recreation Center. The Walks for Change are scheduled through at least June 25, a month after Floyd’s death.
(Credit goes to Patch.com)