On February 6, the RWC community participated in the Seventeenth Annual African American Read-In. From 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the lobby across from the One Stop Center, visitors, faculty, staff, and students shared the gift the literacy while promoting African American History. What is the African American Read-In?
According to Dolores Straker, RWC Dean, it is an annual event created to share the importance and spread the gift of literacy among the African American culture, founded by Dr. Jerrie C. Scott, while Dean of Education at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio.
Darwin Henderson, Ed. D., Associate Professor of Education at the College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services (CECH), participated by reading the children’s book Beautiful Black, by Ashley Bryan. According to Dr, Henderson, his reason for choosing a children’s book was “to alert the listening audience that there is an African American aesthetic which is identifiable in children’s and adult African American literature.”
Author Sheila Williams, a native of Columbus, Ohio, shared passages from two of her books, Dancing on the Edge of the Roof and On the Right Side of a Dream. When asked why she decided to participate in the Read-In, Williams replied, “The Read-In provides an excellent format for illuminating the treasures” within African American literature.
Judith Spraul-Schmidt, Ph.D., RWC Professor of History, shared a piece about one of the most distinguished African American historians from the twentieth century, John Hope Franklin. Professor Spraul-Schmidt stated that participating in the Read-In “reinforces her commitment to the importance of moving beyond racism in America, on the RWC campus, and moving towards embracing cultural pluralism. “
Several of the readings by students were their own works. One dealt with the beauty of African American women. Another spoke of slavery, while another covered the emphasis on her knowledge of “white” history versus black history.
The goal was to come together and experience the various elements of literature and to make it a traditional part of Black History Month.
The National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and the Black Caucus of the NCTE sponsored the Read-In.