Marianne Compere '26
In celebration of this year’s Black History Month, with the help of the Student Activities Council, DEI, and the Global Citizenship Club, we have developed a powerful and educational experience to pay tribute to the rich heritage, culture, and traditions of the African American community. Starting with an inspiring book exhibit to a professionally led presentation, the month serves as a time for reflection, learning, and discussion.
One of the highlights of this event is the carefully organized book display in the foyer, with a stunning collection of novels written by Black writers. Two novels I will highlight in this article are “Beloved” and “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison.
Toni Morrison is a great American literary giant, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for Literature in 1993. Her fiction brings great attention to the African American experience with such straightforwardness, grappling with issues of identity, history, and racial oppression.
Her fundamentally changing novel “Beloved” is the haunted story of Stethe, an escaped slave who is being tormented by the ghost of her killed daughter. The novel explores issues of trauma, memory, and the struggle for individual and collective freedom. The novel forces the reader to confront the traumatic past of slavery and is therefore a forefront book in understanding the history of African Americans and the struggles they’ve gone through.
Similarly, “The Bluest Eye” teaches about the troubling effects of racism and colorism on self-esteem among African Americans through the life of Pecola Breedlove, a young girl who longs for blue eyes in a society that degrades her for her complexion. Morrison’s handling of identity and beauty has broad appeal with readers of various ages, a strong provoker for discussion and self-reflection.
On February 27, 2025, we had a special occasion that educated our student body on the study of race and identity further. Dr. Timothy Eatman, an expert in social sciences, social justice, and higher education, was the keynote speaker at the assembly-themed “Character vs. Color” inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have A Dream” speech, and contributed a new perspective on this topic.
Dr. King’s message that individuals should be judged by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin, remains a powerful message in today's context and challenges us to consider how we can help build a more inclusive society where individuals are valued not for how they look, but who they are.
In addition to the presentation, we hosted a screening of “Hidden Figures” in the cafeteria directly following the assembly. The movie is based on the true story of three female African American mathematicians, Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson, who provided vital support to NASA’s space programming in the 1960s.
Despite facing racial and gender bias, they fought to break through barriers and pave the way for generations of women of color in the science and technology fields. Though times have surely changed since the 60’s, this story remains significant as gender and race biases are deeply embedded in our culture and many of us have witnessed and experienced it first hand.
Educating ourselves on the reality of these situations as well as honoring those before us who suffered and fought for all of our rights is extremely important.
Hopefully, this celebration of Black History Month will contribute to making our school a community where every student feels heard, seen, and valued.
Let us seize this opportunity to challenge ourselves, not just to see the significance of the month, but also to carry its lessons with us and practice it in our daily lives.
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