This past Sunday, Feb. 26 at eight in the morning, around 60 members of the Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) community departed for Washington, D.C. on a day trip to see various sights and museums relating to African American history. It was the first time an EMU group had been able to make such a trip since before the pandemic. The group, comprised of EMU undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, students from the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding, and middle school students from On the Road Collaborative (a local nonprofit), visited locals such as the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial and The National Museum of African American History and Culture, where roughly three hours of the day were spent. They also visited the National Portrait gallery to see the presidential portrait of former president Barack Obama and the “I Dream a World” photography exhibition, and the Martin Luther King Jr. Public Library, where there is an exhibit “sharing the story of Emmett Till and his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, challenging visitors to make a ripple for justice in their own communities.” (Description from the MLK library website)
Deanna Durham, a social work professor at EMU, wrote that she found the “Emmitt Till exhibit the most moving, sobering and motivating,” saying she “walked away feeling like there is still so much work we must do to create physical and emotional safety for so many people.”
EMU’s Black Student Alliance (BSA) helped get the word out about the trip and was instrumental in gathering interested students. Senior Merry Yirga, one of the BSA co-presidents, said she “enjoyed the trip thoroughly.” “I was grateful for the chance to expand my knowledge and the opportunity to truly appreciate the ways in which Black people in America have fought for and preserved such rich and important culture and history,” said Yirga, who also listed the National African American History Museum as her favorite experience of the trip.
“I had been there once before,” she continues, “but that was over 4 years ago so I was really glad to go back. There is quite a lot to see in that museum, it definitely requires several trips. I can’t stress enough how important it is to be in an environment where Black people’s culture and history is centered and shared because we live in a society that often attempts to erase these stories. Not only was it extremely educational, but it was beautiful and painful and necessary to be in that space.”
Nardos Haile, BSA’s other co-president, was “excited to be able to get back to [D.C.].” She also acknowledged the importance of the National African American History Museum saying “with certainty that [she’s] am in awe every time [she] visits].” Haile continued, writing that “learning and relearning about the history of African Americans with my fellow BSA members was extremely meaningful, and I was grateful to have had this experience. Although a lot of the art in this museum showcased traumatizing events and stories of the history of African Americans, seeing the perseverance and resilience in all the people that came before me, and the change they were able to make, gives me hope that we can create that change as well!”
Durnam said that she saw a direct effect come from the exposure to such a space, saying she “heard students also talking about what they can and will do on campus, in their communities and all over the world.”
Haile also saw such an effect, writing that “it was also really cool to see how engaged other students that attended were.”
