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Today, when it seems as if the world is on the brink of a cultural divide, it is important to recognize the accomplishments and the valuable history of others. On Feb. 27, Saint Leo held its annual Black History Month Celebration in the SCC Boardrooms from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
“We hold Black History Month every year for approximately the last 10 years. And every year we get more and more people that are involved and that come to enjoy our celebration with us,” said Karen Hannel, assistant professor of fine arts.
In keeping with the year’s “Revolution” theme, this installment of the popular Black History Month event celebrated African-American artists, musicians and leaders from the 1960s. Students, alongside members of Green Dot and faculty from the school of arts and sciences, came together to create beautiful and inspiring displays, interactive activities and insightful PowerPoint presentations.
“We have a really cool installation that Megan [Orendorf] did here this year. It has to do with a mattress and a mask and listening to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech and taking that in in a different way,” said humanities instructor Pamela Decius. “We also have displays of portraits of fabulous black women from the sixties. We have ‘The Hero’s Journey’ worked through black characters from stories, films and comics.”
This event is always an important one to the students and the staff of Saint Leo.
“We’re absolutely committed to the diversity here at Saint Leo and we believe that this is one of the best ways to honor the past and to dream wonderful visions of the future,” said Hannel.
“I think that [Black History Month] is a tremendous part of our culture,” agreed University President William Lennox. “And if you don’t understand black history, or some of the other histories, you miss American culture overall. It’s so important, especially nowadays, that we understand each other.”
The school of arts and sciences once again successfully united the students of Saint Leo with their empowering event. Participants learned that, when it comes to creating a unified campus, recognizing our similarities is key, but it is just as important to embrace our differences, and that we must take a lesson from the past to shape a successful future.
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