On February 4, the SHHS auditorium hosted a school-wide assembly to celebrate and learn about black history.
Student clubs Young Activists Coalition (YAC) and Black Students United (BSU) organized the event, which featured comedic skits, artwork, music, and dancing performances. This year’s theme was ‘Black History Month: Through the Decades.’
The hosts were seniors Jordyn Thurmond and Zoe Likely, junior Bailey Anderson, and freshman Bianca Blake. The four put on an entertaining and engaging show, weaving in facts on black history in America.
The assembly kicked off with an ode to the 1980s. Students performed Maya Angelou’s famous poem “Still I Rise,” mashed with Andra Day’s song “Rise Up.”
“Those are two of my go-to things if I’m feeling sad,” Blake, who wrote the arrangement, said. “I’ll listen to that song or read that poem just to tell myself that it’s going to be ok.”
The creative expression didn’t stop there, as freshman Cameron Dixon presented her Tupac and Malcolm X portraits.
“I’ve always wanted to be involved in some way with these assemblies and give students a chance to get more creative with sharing black history,” Dixon said during the presentation.
The heat turned up as BSU dance group ‘Sixth Sense’ took the stage and boogied to “Ju Ju on That Beat” by Zayion Mccall and ‘PUSH 2 START’ by Tyla.
As the hosts landed in the 70’s, Thurmond and junior Eli Graves sang a swinging rendition of “Blame it on the Boogie” by The Jacksons, the modern band backing them up all the way, leading the crowd to clap along.
After a game of Family Feud on influential black artists, in which senior Josiah Robinson-Leary convincingly impersonated Steve Harvey, performers pulled out all the stops with an ‘Old School vs. New School’ lip sync battle. The ‘Old School’ side brought out a few special guests as teachers and staff stormed the stage, producing no small amount of laughter from audience members.
“I love it,” junior Elizabeth Mboowa said. “It’s always fun to see how we can switch up different parts and come up with different acts.”
While it was lighthearted, assembly participants felt the event had more impact by spreading the message about black history and raising their voices within the school community.
“These assemblies, they obviously get kids out of class, but they also represent something more that people might not usually listen to or acknowledge,” Likely said.
The event rounded off with Likely reading a self-written poem titled ‘I Remember’ about her experience as a young black girl in America, which moved the crowd to silence.
Many students and faculty hope the Black History Month assembly will stick around for years and continue to be a creative outlet for student voices.
“This was the fifth year, so being able to keep that legacy going is a privilege in and of itself,” Likely said. “It’s something that the school needs.”
