Art For A Change, A Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

The Tolson Center for Community Excellence and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) will co-host “Art for a Change! A Celebration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Day” on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, 1:30–4:30 p.m. ET, at the Tolson Center at 1320 Benham Avenue, Elkhart, Indiana.

Participants at the event, which is free and open to the public, will be invited to explore the role of art in transforming society in the past, present and future. “Art was a big part of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement,” reflected Nekeisha Alayna Alexis, MA, AMBS Intercultural Competence and Undoing Racism coordinator and one of the organizers of the event. “Poets, writers, musicians, actors, storytellers, visual artists and other creators used art to uplift, inspire and spark imagination as they struggled against the brutality of racism and asserted the dignity and humanity of African Americans in the face of great violence and oppression. Rev. Dr. King also had a special way of using  metaphor and wordplay to convey the terrible realities facing his people and his vision for freedom and a new world to come.” The event will feature a screening of the 80-minute documentary What Happened at Benham West: African American Stories of Community, Displacement and Hope, which was coordinated by AMBS. The
documentary and an accompanying forthcoming book are part of a history project that has collected elders’ stories of Elkhart’s predominantly African American Benham West neighborhood and documented the process of the city’s eventual clearing of the neighborhood. “The Benham West documentary is leading to tangible and massive change that is in progress for the neighborhood around the Tolson Center,” Alexis said. “It’s very significant to be able to screen the documentary in this historic space, as well as for Tolson to showcase its programs and how they are making an impact in their community.” The Tolson Choir and Tolson Dance Team will be performing as part of a program that will begin at 3 p.m. According to Breanna Allen, EdD, Executive Director of the Tolson Center and an organizer of the
event, the youth choir was the first program to be offered by the center.

“Under the direction of David and Erica Gary, the choir is filled with youth with a passion for singing and music,” she said, adding, “The Tolson Dance Club has been a hit since its beginning, with 20 youth girls participating regularly. You can see performances from the dance club throughout the year at the center.” The event also will include two sessions for youth to create art related to what they dream for their community.

“The dream of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., continues to live on, especially through the impact of the Tolson Center for Community Excellence,” Allen said. “We are grateful to partner with AMBS to bring this amazing program to the community, celebrating MLK’s dream and showcasing ‘art for change.’ We encourage the community to join us in celebrating the legacy of MLK.” Participants at the event will have the opportunity to view a photography presentation by Daryck Barnett, who is a grandson of Golden Barnett, a photographer and former resident of the Benham West neighborhood whose photos are featured in the Benham West book. “Daryck Barnett is honoring us by sharing his grandfather’s photos of Benham West from the 1950s,” said Jamie Pitts, PhD, AMBS Professor of Anabaptist Studies and an organizer of the event. “These photos not only show forgotten aspects of the neighborhood but also reveal a local photographic artist at work. They offer a testimony to the community’s historic and ongoing creativity.”

Schedule
● 1:30–3 p.m. Screening of the 80-minute documentary What Happened at Benham West: African American Stories of Community, Displacement and Hope
● 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. Youth art sessions; photography presentation by Daryck Barnett; and more
● 3 p.m. “Art for a Change” program, including performances by the Tolson Choir and Tolson Dance Team