In a joint effort to get students involved with the Children Services Council’s 2019 Broward AWARE! Protecting OUR Children campaign: Growing the Voices of Our Future, the Westside Gazette will engage youth in a photo voice (photojournalism) project. The youth will tell their stories through the written word and through the lens of cameras they will operate as photojournalists focusing on but not limited to the Broward AWARE campaign.
Sistrunk Festival
One of Fort Lauderdale’s historic community events took place on Saturday, February 23, 2019, which was the Sistrunk Festival. This event was filled with cultural diversity, great music, delicious food, and plenty of fun. Many local schools, businesses, religious groups, fraternities, sororities, and community leaders were a part of the festivities. It was a great event for the community and more especially a great event that displayed the rich culture of the African American community.
African-American Research Library and Cultural Center
The African-American Research Library and Cultural Center is a truly amazing place. It sits on Sistrunk Blvd. named after the first African doctor in Broward County. It hosts many major events like polling location and field trips. In fact, many people who are supporting a certain candidate stand outside the building, attempting to influence people to vote for a specific person.
This place is the sixth largest library standing at 60,000 square feet including an auditorium, a business center, and an art gallery. The research and culture center hosts an event every Friday so people could learn about different cultures and ways of life for different African tribes. To many this place is a peaceful spot to do some homework in the well-known library. The center has presented more than 30 major exhibits and has shown these exhibits to more than 800,000 people. This library is well known because of these things as well as the children’s book series that received the Coretta Scott king award for its excellence.
Sistrunk Parade
The Westside Gazette truck at the Sistrunk festival. (Top Left). Everyone walking the streets of Sistrunk having a good time. (Top Right). Dillard High School band marching in the parade. (Bottom Left). Walker Elementary School band in the Sistrunk parade. (Bottom Right).
Sistrunk Historical Festival
Hundreds of people came to celebrate African American culture at this year’s Sistrunk Historical Festival. We danced, sang, ate and enjoyed the concert on Sistrunk Blvd. My family participated in the parade with several other businesses, marching bands, dance teams and other organizations. It felt great to see so many people there, enjoying that time together as a community.
