FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) –
The Fort Wayne Mad Ants are celebrating Black History Month. In January, the
team announced an essay contest.
The team challenged area students to write about prominent African American figures that have ties to Fort Wayne. Purdue Fort Wayne’s Black Student Union selected two winners, one from middle school and one from high school.
“It’s an opportunity for us to get some of the youngsters from the boys and girls club out to listen to some of the minority leaders that have done amazing things in our community and what the path to success is,” said Tim Bawmann, Team President for the Mad Ants. “It’s a great way for us to celebrate Dr. King and celebrate some leaders in our community.”
The high school winner is Kaedon McCuistion. Kaedon, 16, is a student from Snider High School. She wrote about Laura Jackson, the first female African American officer for the Fort Wayne Police Department. She learned of Jackson from a genealogy website, and said reading about her gave McCuiston a new perspective on racism.
“It gave me insight because racism in society is still here, like racial bias and stereotyping and I feel like it’s kind of my responsibility to make other privileged people understand my situation,” said McCuiston.
Kaedon’s essay:
Laura Jackson was the Fort Wayne Police Department’s first African-American female officer, starting in October 1928. There aren’t many details about Ms. Laura, but a Fort Wayne genealogy document stated that she worked with women and young adults, which we can imagine presented many challenges. As a young black woman during that time, these challenges were heightened. Ms. Jackson was a black woman who presumably embraced being a police officer that actually understood where troubled black adolescents and black women were coming from. There isn’t a record proving how amazing Laura was and how she impacted the community, but I believe that she supplied many people in the black community a sense of accomplishment. To serve as a positive influence like Laura Jackson, I plan to maintain a lifelong goal of calling out racism and bigotry of all types in order to make my school and my community a safer environment. I also plan to raise awareness about racial bias and other minority issues that we still see today. As a future goal, I plan to become a biomedical engineer and to help people no matter their skin color, sexuality, gender, religion, or income. Some of the lessons I learned from simply knowing that Laura was a black woman on the force include but are not limited to: you can do whatever you set your mind to, being a minority isn’t something to be ridiculed about, and motivating yourself is key to being successful in life. It is unclear why she left the police department in 1931 but, there’s a good chance that it had to do with racism, sexism, or a mixture of both and that is what I’d like to expunge in my community. Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of blacks in U.S. history. Even though Laura didn’t have a documented and specific role in ending racism, I believe that she provided an immensely important part in the anti-racism movement in Fort Wayne.
Kaedon McCuistion
Olivia Scavo, 13, is the middle school winner. She attends school at Canterbury. She wrote about organic urban farmer Ephraim Smiley, Jr. Scavo visited Smiley’s garden on a field trip two years ago. She said the visit has stuck with her ever since.
“I wrote about this man named Mr. Smiley and he really inspired me because he’s a gardener,” said Scavo. “He plants food and once the food is ready he gives it to food banks and people who are in need of food for free.”
She said he has even inspired her to try her hand at organic farming.
“This summer I’m planning on making a garden myself and I’m planning to attend his garden just to see his ways that he’s done.”
Olivia’s essay:
Every Quarter, we have one day where we do a day called “Link Day”. The teachers come up with fun and educational classes that we get to choose from. One class that I choose was a field trip to Mr. Smiley’s garden. A long time ago, he decided to create a garden so he could create food that didn’t have any chemicals. Since he didn’t use any harmful substances to keep things away from the plants, a lot of animals would sneak in and eat all the plants. Mr. Smiley didn’t give in and kept on trying. Another predator were weeds. Weeds would eat up all the plants and he couldn’t use them anymore. He still didn’t give up. During the field trip, he showed us how he kept up with the plants and even taught us how to make salsa. He improved our community by showing us that there can always be a way around difficult things and nothing is impossible. I can use the lessons learned from him by not giving up even when things seem impossible. I plan to start my own garden and use the same techniques Mr. Smiley taught me that one day, and improve our community. Also to stay positive just like Mr. Smiley.
Olivia Scavo
Both
students received a tablet, courtesy of 3Rivers Federal Credit Union, a prize
pack from the Mad Ants. The chance to join us on TV at WANE 15.
The pair
will also be part of a Community Conversation hosted by the Mad Ants. A
panelist will discuss issues with children from the Boys & Girls Club. WANE
15’s Terra Brantley is part of the panel.