COOLBAUGH TOWNSHIP, PA — Marching in solidarity, more than a dozen school-aged children from Pocono Services for Families and Children in Coolbaugh Township honored the sacrifices of African Americans who helped shape our nation.
Children used art, song, and dance to let their voices be heard.
"We were hearing that all the schools weren't teaching about Black history, and we felt like it was our responsibility to inform the children," said Jean-Michael Mathuris, an assistant teacher at PSFC.
Students have been working on art projects for Black History Month. Kids tell Newswatch 16 one of the main messages they've taken away is to just be a good person.
"It's nice to be fair and nice and not mean," said Alexandria Robbins, a second-grader.
"We've been learning about different cultures of people, different colors. It doesn't matter what color you are," said Sevante Thomas, a first-grader.
"To be honest, without history, we wouldn't be here. We wouldn't be who we are," Mathuris said. "Sometimes people are afraid to discuss history because they're afraid to be offensive, and I think that's the issue. It should be that we do express history. It's OK that we made mistakes. The whole point is to talk about the past and the present to shape the future. And that's what we're trying to do is just teach the next generation that empathy."
Mathuris says while the kids may be too young now to understand what went on back then, they do understand that everyone is equal.
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