Lessons Learned at Black History Month Event

By Journalist Dr. Ms. Jones

NEWBURGH – On Friday, February 21st The Black History Committee of the Hudson Valley celebrated Black History Month at Mt. Carmel Church of Christ. The theme was “Words are Forever.”

“We have an inspirational program every February and we have the Dr. Martin Luther King program… But, being that this year we canceled it because of the weather, we just decided to combine them both,” said Evangeline Edwards, Treasurer of The Black History Committee of the Hudson Valley and one of the event organizers.

NAACP President Kyle Conway shared excerpts from Dr. Martin Luther King’s Letter from the Birmingham Jail. This letter was written in 1963 while he was imprisoned for nonviolent civil rights protests. It explains King’s views on following just laws and breaking unjust ones.

“I think this letter really resonates today… We could be the powerful few that impacts everybody else… It’s really not a game right now when you think about it. There’s a culture that’s saying, ‘There is no more racism.’ There’s a culture out there that’s saying, ‘Everyone who has brown skin is fine.’ The thing is, the people saying this haven’t experienced being Black, being discredited, being called names, being denied economic opportunities,” said Conway who is also a teacher.

The event featured a panel discussion on how we can protect our freedom, justice, and democracy in the Black community. It was moderated by Committee Member Gabrielle Hill. Panelists were Conway, Councilman RD McLymore, and Activist Corey Allen.

“They came up with a study on reparations… They have given money to every other group… I want to see more of us talk about Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech about going to get our check… Because I hear about the dream, right? That dream is turning to a nightmare for us… No one talks about that enough… We’re coming to get our check,” said Allen, who is the Neighborhood Revitalization Specialist at Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newburgh.

The event also showcased local Black authors in the Hudson Valley. Authors included Carrie Robinson, Glenda Faison-Crawford, and Mayor Torrance Harvey who each read passage from their books.

“Last year, I published a children’s book where I talk about learning systems, learning the federal, state, and local government systems, how they’re organized, how they function, and how we can engage those systems and get what we need to get from the government. Because if you notice what’s going on now, President 47 [is] trying to take away the services and social security… People are losing jobs at the federal level… But see, we don’t understand those systems. We don’t understand how is he able to make executive orders,” said Harvey who has written several books.

The next events presented by The Black History Committee of the Hudson Valley are a Juneteenth Breakfast and a Zoom Event on March 18 at 6:30 pm featuring Gabrielle Hill who is running for Orange County Legislator for District 6.

“I think running for Orange County Legislator [will] put me in the position of being able to speak for my people, who are often not spoken for… and make policy changes that are going to benefit the well-being of the citizens in the City of Newburgh,” said Hill whose campaign will be focusing on community issues like lead poisoning and transportation.

Journalist Ms. Jones