Nearly 60 first graders at Belle Sherman Elementary recently staged a peaceful protest march and led an anti-racist assembly with the school’s students, families, staff, and administrators.
The first graders marched around Belle Sherman holding signs that said, “Stop Racism,” “Black Lives Matter,” “Enough is Enough,” “No to Prejudice,” and “Peace, Now!” while waving lit candles and singing “We Shall Overcome.”
“There is hope for the future,” one parent, moved by the protest march, remarked.
During the all-school assembly, the first graders recited “Dreams” by Langston Hughes, read their own anti-racist and human rights poems, played the cornet in honor of Louis Armstrong, performed a scat song to celebrate the Harlem Renaissance, and sang and danced to “Stand Up,” a stirring song about the bravery of Harriet Tubman.
The march and assembly were the culminating activities of lessons about the lives and struggles of peacemakers like Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Ruby Bridges. Through these lessons, the students learned that one way to speak up against racism is to march with signs carrying powerful messages of peace, equality, and justice.
They also learned about the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, when Black culture and identity through art, music, and literature came into full creative display. Langston Hughes,
Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Cab Calloway were among the writers and musicians that influenced that period. The first graders also drew inspiration from the courage of Harriet Tubman, who helped free slaves from bondage through the Underground Railroad.
Original Poems Read at the Assembly
I Say, “No!”
By Channah
I say, “No!” to fighting.
I say, “No!” to racism.
I say, “No!” to discrimination.
I say, “No!” to segregation.
I say, “No!” to injustice.
I say, “No!” to unfair laws.
I say, “No!” to White Only signs.
I say, “No!” to Black people
being judged by their skin color.
I say “Yes!” to Enough is Enough
and Black Lives Matter!
I Say, “Yes!”
By Juniper
I say, “Yes!” to kindness.
I say, “Yes!” to respect.
I say, “Yes!” to loving hearts.
I say, “Yes!” to protesting.
I say, “Yes!” to freedom.
I say, “Yes!” to treating
Black people fairly.
I say, “Yes!” to spreading love,
peace and justice among all!
I say, “Yes!” to standing up
even in the hardest times.
I won’t give up until
PEACE
brings people together!
