ALLENSWORTH, Calif. (KERO) — Community members gathered in Allensworth for active learning experiences that highlight the history of the central valley on Sat, Feb 11.
Sasha Briscoe, President of The Friends of Allensworth, says the organization partnered with the Fresno Unified School District to provide an opportunity for the community to learn about some of the cultural wealth of the Central Valley.
“We wanted to bring the kids out along with the seniors to talk about Black history, our history, and some of the things that we’ve been through yet we have endured and we’re still standing strong," said Briscoe. "We just want the kids to understand the history and how we got here today, understand the history of this place."
She says it is an event that has been going on for decades now, with a priority of educating future generations.
“As we all know in school, children are not taught that much about Black history," explained Biscoe. "They’re taught about history but not Black history. We come together to help educate the children about Black history because all history is important, but you can’t know yourself unless you know your past, you know your ancestors, and you know what they accomplished in spite of. You have more pride and know you can do anything.”
These thoughts are also shared by Kimberly Lewis from the Fresno Unified School District, who says knowing where one comes from is key in order to knowing how one can move forward.
“We are also celebrating, united through our history because of the importance of living in the Central Valley," said Lewis. "We have people from all over the world here. It's a melting pot. Why do we celebrate? When you are maybe nine percent or three percent of a community, it’s a challenge to see people like you. We want to illuminate and show the importance of knowing who you are, where you can from, and your culture."
Lewis adds there were also dozens of information booths allowing the community to learn about the resources that are available from local organizations.
“Not only are we celebrating our history, we are learning history through each booth. So all of our students, families, and participants here today have a passport," said Lewis. "We are celebrating community engagement. What we did is share with all of our guests a passport, on the passport all of our vendors got free vendor spaces and they got to tell what they do in the community. Being a part of the Central Valley, what you do in the community and how you give back that is community cultural wealth, which is a part of ethnic studies as well.”
