The Milan News-Leader
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Assembly was a learning opportunity
Brie Prusak
PUBLISHED: February 21, 2008
"Lift every voice and sing, Till Earth and heaven ring."
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This is the first two lines of "Lift Every Voice and Sing," also know as "The Black National Anthem," by James Weldon Johnson.
On the morning of Feb. 11, this anthem, preformed by Milan High School student Nigeria Hudson, preceded an assembly held in honor of Black History Month.
The assembly was organized by the leadership class, but it was largely put together by Erika Lindsey, a senior at the high school. Lindsey put together the Black History Month assembly last year, as well.
Since Lindsey will be graduating this June, she chose Cheyna Johnson to take over the planning for the assembly next year.
The event was put into motion when William Castleman was given the University of Michigan Credit Union and WAAM talk radio's Student of the Month Award, which included a plaque and $250. He gave the money to the school's elementary reading program because he believes that the program benefits a lot of kids.
The assembly was broken up into time periods to show how the African-American culture has changed. This change was shown through cultural music, poetry and dancing.
The songs that were preformed by students included "Amazing Grace," preformed by Tori Turner and Kira Turner; "At Last," originally by Etta James, was preformed by Kira Turner; "Respect," originally by Aretha Franklin, was preformed by Tori Turner; and "You're Gonna Love Me," originally by Jennifer Holliday, was preformed by Hudson.
At the end of the assembly, the local rap group G.M.C. also preformed.
Each of these songs were chosen because they were from a different point in history and showed the evolution of black music.
There were three poems that were also read at the assembly. One was an original piece written and preformed by a student, Andrew Swain. "7Flamez," an Ann Arbor Huron High School graduate, also presented a poem that he wrote. The last poem, "I'm not a Black Statistic" by Kirk Franklin, was preformed by William Castleman.
In addition, the Ypsilanti High School Dance Team preformed two dances during the assembly.
Although the entertainment was great, the most lasting part of the assembly was the speakers. Jeanne Kitzmann, a teacher at Bryant Elementary School in Ann Arbor, spoke about her childhood and how hearing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speak in Iowa changed her life. She talked about how when she arrived, the black community treated her very well and how she felt welcomed.
"I could be a part of what he was talking about. We were all one," Kitzmann said.
The other speaker at the assembly was Luther Corbitt, principal of Bryant Elementary School. He spoke about the predecessor of Black History Month, which was Negro History Week and took place in 1826.
He then went on to speak about the group of people called Little Rock Nine. This was a group of black students who were enrolled in Little Rock Central High School in 1957. They are even said to be one of the most influential groups in the Civil Rights Movement.
Students were glad to get a break during the busy school day, but this assembly was more than simply a break. It was something that students will carry with them for a long time.
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