Reflection Resistance…this word often brings up images of angry mobs, fists raised in the air, faces of people glaring, and words that make demands. Whenever and wherever oppression exists, there is resistance to break free from that oppression. However, a flower exists because the seed covered by soil must resist the very thing that nourishes it, to break free and grow, bud, procreate, and bring beauty into the world. A butterfly must resist the cocoon that kept it safe during its metamorphosis and make its wings strong enough to bear its weight as it takes flight. To obtain maturity and purpose, we must resist the negativity and strive to make our dreams reality. Resistance is only a threat to those who refuse to change and grow. The ground gives way to the constant pressure of the seed to grow and still provides sustenance and support to the new life of the plant. The soil is in no way diminished but enhanced. The cocoon’s husk, although no longer of use to the butterfly that emerged, becomes part of the soil that produces another plant that sustains another caterpillar’s journey into metamorphosis. Our journey begins at the literal beginning of all things. We grow and transform demonstrating that the information that we obtain is taking root and creating space for our creative brilliance. The contributions and accomplishments of people of African descent is not a threat to the contributions of others. In fact, our contributions make them better. Ask Thomas Edison if his light bulb would work as well if it weren’t for the better filament made by Lewis Latimer. Ask any of the researchers conducting any kind of medical research how far they would have gotten if it weren't for the HeLa cell line from Henrietta Lacks. How many traffic accidents did you avoid because of the traffic light invented by Garrett Morgan? How many more privileges do you enjoy because of the Civil Rights movement? Black History is not only American History, but World History. This month serves as a reminder that the pinnacles of civilization, victories, struggles and resistance that the people of African descent have achieved and endured throughout the ages and continue to experience today serve as the ever evolving chrysalis from which each generation emerges into the light of acknowledgement, respect, and the celebration of our contributions. To be seen in the light of who we truly are... fearfully and wonderfully made. Cynthia D. Fryer Cynthia D. Fryer, MA Black History Committee Advisor
Our Speaker Glenis Redmond is a performance poet, a Kennedy Center Teaching Artist, and a Cave Canem alumni. In October of this year, Glenis was selected to be the City of Greenville’s first poet laureate. She has authored six books of poetry: Backbone (Underground Epics, 2000), Under the Sun (Main Street Rag, 2002), and What My Hand Say (Press 53, 2016), Listening Skin (Four Way Books), Three Harriets & Others (Finishing Line Press), and Praise Songs for Dave the Potter, Art by Jonathan Green, and Poetry by Glenis Redmond (University of Georgia Press). She is presently working on a seventh collection, Port Cities: Portals of the Second (Domestic) Middle Passage. In 2020 Glenis received the highest arts award in South Carolina, the Governor’s Award and in 2022 she was inducted into the South Carolina Academy of Authors.
Our Speaker Glenis was born on Shaw AFB in Sumter, South Carolina. She presently resides in Greenville, South Carolina. She was the founder of the Greenville Poetry Slam in the early 90’s. She confesses she is Bi-Carolinian as she lived in Asheville, North Carolina for seventeen years and was a vital leader in the poetry scene in the 90’s. During that time, she was a Southern Fried Slam champion of the individuals twice and ranked twice in the top ten at the National Slam. Glenis was awarded the WNC Best Poet through the Mountain Xpress so many times, she was placed in the Hall of Fame. Glenis is a North Carolina Literary Fellowship recipient and helped to create the first Writer-in-Residence program at the Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site in Flat Rock, North Carolina. She received her MFA in Poetry from Warren Wilson College while touring full-time as a poet and mother-of-twins, Amber, and Celeste Sherer. She is now a Gaga to three grandchildren Julian, age 7 and Paisley age 1 and newborn, Quinn. Glenis has spent almost three decades touring the country as a poet and teaching artist. She served as the Poet-in-Resident for the Peace Center in Greenville and the State Theatre in New Brunswick, NJ. As a Kennedy Center Teaching Artist, for seventeen years, Glenis has created and facilitated poetry workshops for school districts across the country. Since 2014, she has served as the mentor poet for the National Student Poets Program through Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. In the past she has prepared these exceptional youth poets to read at the Library of Congress, the Department of Education, and for First Lady Michelle Obama at The White House. Her poetry has been showcased on NPR and PBS and has been most recently published in Orion Magazine, story South and The New York Times, as well as numerous literary journals nationally and internationally. Glenis believes poetry is the mouth that speaks when all other mouths are silent.
GTCHS Black History Program Wednesday, February 15, 2023 Moment of Silence in Memory of Tyre Nichols Welcome………………………………..………….Tyana Roper (‘24) Introduction of Performances…….. Derrick Durham (’25) ”Lift Every Voice & Sing”…..Olivia Clark & Taylor Lawrence “I Am Here”…………………..…...….Quentyneshia Milton (‘23) Introduction of Performances…… Kaelan Robinson (‘25) Performance……………………………….…….“Uncut” Step Team Poem…………………………………...………….Jayda Sullivan (‘25) Introduction of Speaker……...……….Courtney Brooks (‘23) Sennett Seglah (‘24) Speaker……………………………………….………Glenis Redmond Word of Thanks & Special Presentation………………...Samira Wideman(‘24) Closing Remarks………………………………Mary Nell Anthony Principal https://anyflip.com/cmilu/bisc/
Lift Every Voice & Sing By James Weldon Johnson Lift every voice and sing Till earth and Heaven ring Ring with the harmonies of Liberty; Let our rejoicing rise, High as The list'ning skies, let it resound loud as the Rolling sea Sing a song full of faith that the Dark past has taught us, Sing a song full of The hope that the present has brought Us; Facing the rising sun of our new day Begun, Let us march on till victory is Won. Stony the road we trod, Bitter the Chast'ning rod, Felt in the day that hope Unborn had died; Yet with a steady Beat, Have not our weary feet, Come to the Place on which our fathers sighed? We have Come over a way that with tears has been Watered, We have come, treading our path Through the blood of the slaughtered, Out from The gloomy past, till now we stand at Last Where the white gleam of our star is Cast. God of our weary years, God of Our silent tears, Thou who has brought us thus Far on the way; Thou who has by thy Might, Led us into the light, Keep us Forever in the path, we pray Lest our feet Stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee, Least our hearts, drunk with the wine of The world, we forget thee, Shadowed beneath the Hand, May we forever stand, True to our God, True to our native land
Black— 2022 Medium—Digital By Taylor Lawrence
Durag UNITY—January 2023 Medium - Acrylic on Canvas By Samira Wideman
Acrylic on Canvas - January 2023 Medium—Unknown A Teacher’s Submission
You so Black, You so Black! When you smile, the stars come out. You so Black when you born the God come out black as night. Black when its wrong and Black when its right Black is pyramids and mathematics Black is melanised and magic Black is televised in the need of drastic Black advancement Black enhances Black with chances Black with privilege Black with pride Black on purpose on the Black hand side Black and beautiful Black and blessed and highly favored, praise the Lord Black and blessed Black and so much more Black and nothing less. Black and educated Black is brilliant Black is strong Black is resilient Black is song Black is infinite like Hip Hop, or space Black is grace Black is love Black makes babies Black babies grow up Black is tough Black is hard to do. Black is me Black is you Black is not something we get to choose but it is something we get to cherish. It’s something we get to wear and we get to rock this with honour I’m black like my granddaddy and great great great great grandmamma Black is that gift every boy can sing Black is that letting your freedom ring and resound Black is adjective adverb color and noun. You so Black, Ooo! You so Black! When you smile the stars come out Baby, you so black when you were born the God come out. Theresa tha SONGBIRD
We’re the Same You & Me Part 1 - January 2023 Medium — Water Color & Waxed Colors By Zaria Jones
We’re the Same You & Me Part 2 - January 2023 Medium—Ink By Rachel Jue
My Name is Harry By: Mohammad Rasasi My name is Harry Ready to start my day with A heart full of hope Greeting the neighbor See her smile oh so brightly As her daughter waves I ask for money The teller was very nice Service was superb Went down for a bite I was brought to my table And ordered dinner People on the street All very trusting and warm Like I’m family Saw woman on street Her milky eyes desperate Asking for money Reaching out to her With ten dollars in my hand She stared but soon smiled She then asked my name And with a smile I replied My name is Harry
My name is Harry Ready to start my day with A heart full of hope Greeting the neighbor She scowls and with her body She blocks her daughter I ask for money The teller was hesitant His eyes suspicious Went down for a bite Waiter refused to serve me And asked me to leave People on the street Don’t know nothing about me They just know my skin Saw woman on street Her milky eyes desperate Asking for money Reaching out to her With ten dollars in my hand She stared but soon smiled She then asked my name And with a smile I replied My name is Harry
Lifted Medium: Digital Using Procreate - January 2023 By Rosalyn Marte
Uncut logo - December 2022 Medium—Digital By Taylor Lawrence
African American Cameo Necklace - December 2022 Medium—Mixed Metal & Stones By C. Fryer
Maybe by Autumn Channer Written for GTCHS Black History Month February 2020 Many years have my people been chained and forced into hard labor of service to their oppressors But now too many black bodies are incarcerated In a cruel system of injustice and violence against their complexion Many black men are beaten and murdered by prejudiced police officers While amber alerts are silent when another black girl disappears and everyone is unsure of where she has gone Why must my people live in a world that we were brought into filled with people that wanted to take us out? Life doesn't have to be this way Maybe we can all live in peace and everyone respects each other's culture Maybe I can write profound stories and poems filled with metaphors like Maya Angelou and Toni Morrison Maybe I can help the people in my country like President Barack Obama Maybe I can lead my people to the freedom they deserve like Harriet Tubman and Nanny of the Maroons Maybe I can be the best soldier Haile Selassie ever lead like Bob Marley and sing my justice Maybe I can bring light to the world like Lewis Latimer Maybe I can become one of the strongest feminist for women of color like Ida B. Wells Maybe I can give empowering speeches like Martin Luther King Jr, Marcus Garvey, Malcom X Maybe I can be an entrepreneur slash philanthropist slash social activist slash business woman who makes hair care products for kinky hair like Madame CJ Walker Maybe I can be a major general of the Union and serve 5 years in Congress like Robert Smalls Maybe I can say "No" like Rosa Parks Maybe I can speak with eloquence and sophistication without being told to act my complexion Maybe I can raise my hands to the Lord and scream "All Lives Matter" without being shot down by devils We can't succeed because our oppressors say we can't But maybe if we all stood together in unison, fought for each other, And loved one another We can succeed
Uncut Step Team Shaniqua Johnson-Woodberry Sukira Duck Derek Durham Pamela Guѐ Zoie Harris Marina Horin Taylor Lawrence Seanna Medlin Lia Paul Cassandra Smith GTCHS Board of Directors Rev. Dr. Zackary Johnson - Chairman Chris Loewer - Vice Chairman Erik Knutson - Treasurer Uta Samuel - Secretary Shaun Blake Mary Brantley Bob Ground Jennifer Medlock John Molloy Chandra Snyder Lasonia Williams Thank You
Nicholas “Nic” Blume Courtney Brooks Jasmeen Chuku Olivia Clark* Kaybron Daniel Lathan Fleming* Danatika Danner-Williams Bella Defoe Sukira Duck* Derrick Durham Hana Elbaset Cinaya Frazier* Pamela Guѐ Zoie Harris* Zaria Jones Sophia Jones Taylor Lawrence* Daizhanna Manuel-Jeter Maris McKinley* Seanna Medlin* Quentyneshia Milton* Mikayla Morrison Lia Paul Kaelan Robinson Tyana Roper* Sennett Seglah Zakari Smith* Cassandra Smith* Suhani Srivastava Jordan Staples-Bias* Jayda Sullivan* Samira Wideman Special Thanks Taylor Lawrence for designing the logo for the T-shirts, Step Team T-shirts, banners and yard signage. Thank you to the Members of the Black History Planning Committee your hard work and dedication will pay off in ways you cannot yet imagine. The students, faculty, staff, administration & parents & friends of GTCHS Black History Planning Committee Advisors - Cynthia Fryer & Shaniqua Johnson-Woodberry *Denotes Members of the Inaugural Black History Planning Committee