The song “All of the Lights” was blasting in the auditorium and students in the crowd turned on their flashlights and started waving their hands in the air with the beat. Soon after, the host Lem Washington came out with his flashlight singing along and getting the crowd hype. The Black Student Summit had begun.
The theme of the year was “Wealth in our Roots, Power in our Hands” and the day was filled with dancing, learning, talking and celebration of black culture.
The ceremony continued with a poem recited by Kingsway Preparatory Academy. The elementary school children recited the poem “Hey Black Child” by Useni Eugene Perkins. Dancing from the E-Squad, African Diaspora, Ethiopian Dance Squad and Varsity Pomkits followed to keep the energy up.
For crowd engagement the summit’s planners had the audience play Family Feud and Guess the Lyrics, including things like the lyrics to “ABC” by Jackson 5 and “What time do you show up to a barbecue if it starts at 3pm?
After the main entertainment, students split off into different workshops. These included Bars & Beats, Black Jeopardy, Crown and Glory, Cultural Jacked and many more. These workshops taught the students, through more interactive activities, to further appreciate black culture.
“It was a really fun experience and it was great to learn about more things that relate to me,” freshman Reign Wharton says. Wharton participated in the Crown and Glory workshop, which took place at The Aux, a black-owned wellness space on Washington Street. “It gave me a better sense of what I can use for my hair and skin.”
After, they served a family reunion styled lunch. With pork rib tips, mac n’ cheese, jollof rice, green beans, cake jars, bread pudding and other foodstuffs. Meanwhile, a DJ played music and students filtered into a photo booth or played games.
As a surprise guest, ETHS welcomed Brandon “Griot B” Brown, the voice of School Yard Rap, an educational music group, to rap about black history, specifically, to educate on black people who have invented many daily used items.
And to close the summit off, there was a party in Beardsley Gym. Students danced and enjoyed celebrating culture with peers.
“I thought coming together with other black students and sharing experiences and culture festivities were fun – especially with your friends,” Senior Nia Lewis shares.
A testament to the hard work the summit’s committee put into planning it, it was a success with hundreds of students participating and coming together to celebrate black culture. The direct engagement with Evanston’s black-owned businesses was an added bonus, having students participate in a community ready to accept and give back to them.
