The University of Iowa enters day four of Human Rights Week promoting the creative work of black Hawkeyes past and present.
By Aja Witt
As a part of the African American literary movement, poet Margaret Walker is best known for her 1942 collection For My People. It chronicles black history, examining the grave social injustices black Americans have suffered and continue to face, the “power of resilience,” and the author’s “hope” for societal change.
Using a play on Walker’s title, the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts & Sciences, the Division of Student Life, and the UI Museum of Art hosted an event titled “For Our People: Artistic Intelligence of Black Hawkeyes” Thursday night in the IMU Main Lounge.
Tabitha Wiggins, the UI Student Life’s assistant director for equity and inclusion, organized the event, which featured a public address by artist Dianna Penny and artistic presentations of Walker and Elizabeth Catlett, all of whom are former black Hawkeyes, as a perfect display of how art affects social justice, equity, and inclusion.
“Art creates conversation,” Wiggins said. “And this is the premier time to have those difficult conversations … I think art is a way to central the conversation and have a starting point.”
The event began with the reading of two of Walker’s poems, the aforementioned and “Address to America,” by Tempestt Farrar and Brooke Kimbrough, followed quickly by a biographical presentation of Catlett by Kathy Edwards, the senior curator for the Art Museum.
Catlett, a graphic artist and sculptor, attended the UI during the 1930s and created art that, like the times, was simplistic and urgent for black Americans. Thirty of her art pieces currently reside at the university’s Art Museum and are a testimony to her unyielding courage and perseverance.
“She broke barriers of all kinds,” Edwards said. “Racial and gendered and went on to become one of, if not the, pre-eminent African American artist of the time.”
The event concluded with a transformative spoken-word display by DynamIX that emphasized a lesser concern for fear in the present-day and a greater reliance on strength.
Alexis Colvin, a DynamIX performer, said she sees a lot of value in Human Rights Week, which has been celebrated at the UI since 1995, and she believes it provides information where there might otherwise not be any.
“I think it’s something that’s very valuable for black students, especially, at Iowa,” Colvin said. “I didn’t know a lot about Elizabeth Catlett, so I was astonished to hear some of her quotes.”
Quotes by Catlett that featured themes of black womanhood, and children’s rights to food, health, and an equal education were passed around event and read by current students, UI staff, and active members of the community.
The UI has plans to open Elizabeth Catlett Residence Hall this fall, honoring the inspirationally brave alumna.
Other events this week included a presentation on Diversity and Inclusion on Wednesday and a Monday Martin Luther King Day of Service, which has now been postponed until Feb. 18.
