WSSN Stories

Filmmakers of the future from across the country, ages 14-23, participated at this year’s 2^nd Annual Real To Reel Global Youth Film Festival. The festival producers were excited at the results and are working to gear up for next year. The film festival was spearheaded by Better Youth executive director Syd Stewart and 23-year-old program director Johna Rivers, an emancipated foster youth from the community of Watts, California. Better Youth is an urban technical and media arts development agency for youth ages 12-24 to develop technical skills through mentoring and media arts training. The youth who participate in the program are at risk or victims of incarceration, gang violence, and abuse. Better Youth is committed to helping urban youth by cultivating multicultural experiences through digital media arts; in addition to fostering life skills, character development, creativity, leadership skills, advocacy and civic engagement.

Real To Reel Global Youth Film Festival is created for youth by youth providing an amazing platform for youth filmmakers to tell their own stories and highlight issues of importance from a youth perspective. The festival was free and open to the general public thanks to its sponsors The National Endowment for the Arts, The Los Angeles Film School, City National Bank, United Nations Foundation, Final Draft, NAMAC, Girl Up, Trader Joe’s and Film Freeway.

The event took place at the Los Angeles Film School on Saturday, October 8^th where filmmakers, celebrities and VIP guests enjoyed an afternoon of panel discussions, screening films and celebrating the winners of this year’s film festival. Panel discussions about the importance of media arts and the power of youth voice in cinema were presented by executive director Syd Stewart, youth producer Johna Rivers, producer/writer Meg DeLoatch, TV writer Shawn Boxe and City National Bank’s Portfolio Analyst, Andrea Collins. Other scheduled events included an acting workshop with actor Melvin Jackson Jr. and a media literacy discussion with actress Monique Coleman.

Celebrities and VIP guests included Monique Coleman of Disney’s High School Musical, Melvin Jackson Jr. of BET’s The New Edition Story, Kacey Spivey of FOX’s Glee, Jax Malcolm of CW’s Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Chloe Noelle of HBO’s True Blood, Justin Tinucci of Cartoon Network’s Incredible Crew, Sara Barrett of CBS Criminal Minds,Meg Deloatch creator of UPN’s Eve, Shawn Boxe a TV writer, along with a special performance by Enny Owl and Raquel Wilson. A representative from Congresswoman Karen Bass office was there to present executive director Syd Stewart with a Congressional Certificate.

This year’s film festival winners included:

BEST FOREIGN FILM: Shivangi Mittal (“Tremors”)

BEST DOCUMENTARY: Ghandi Bridgade Youth Media (“Juvenile Justice”)

BEST DOCUMENTARY: James Williams (“Victors Not Victims”)

BEST DOCUMENTARY: Niajea Randolph (“Poems Protests & Power”)

BEST BIOGRAPHY: Rosalind Krabill (“Little Girl”)

BEST BIOGRAPHY: Maya Suchak and Darian Henry (“Finding Strength”)

BEST BIOGRAPHY: Lauren Rothman (“Embargo On Love”)

BEST BIOGRAPHY: Sergio Conriquez, Tommy Cabral and Jacob Lout (“Into Sergio”)

BEST ANIMATION: Gracie May (“Deadpan”)

BEST ANIMATION: Azure Allan (“One Day On Carver St.”)

BEST DRAMA: Spencer Muhlstock (“Wheels”)

BEST DRAMA: Jayden Gillsepie (“Slide”)

BEST DRAMA: William Leon (“Attached At The Soul”)

BEST DRAMA: Whitney Stephenson (“Dreamkeeper”)

BEST SOCIAL CAUSE: Maya Hinkin, Nicole Kim, Tarin North and William Park (“Daughters Of Cambodia”)

Concluding the event was a special awards presentation to individuals who support Better Youth and the Real To Reel Global Youth Film Festival. Award recipients included:

THE CRYSTAL AWARD FOR DEDICATED SERVICE: Actors Monique Coleman and Melvin Jackson Jr.

BEST PRODUCER AWARD: Johna Rivers, Ruben Garcia, Tynisha Lewis, Kaija Johnson, David Vera and Olympia Auset.

BEST MENTOR AWARD: Syd Stewart, Tess Canfield, Stephen Canfield, Shawn Jackson, Miguel Coleman, Deborah Griffin, Jarvis Robertson, Phil Chiu and Matthew Farrell.

By Lue Dowdy

LUE PRODUCTIONS 2nd Annual Indie Artist Award Show “My Music, My Mic” is what it do this Saturday.

A night of honor, recognition, and love for music! Come out and celebrate with us! Event activities include live performances, a mini fashion show, and much more.

Entry fee is $20.00 before October 15 and $25.00 at the door. Tickets can be purchased via paypal.com under lue.info@yahoo.com. We hope to see you there at 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. at the National Orange Show Event Center in the beautiful city of San Bernardino. L’z!

By Naomi K. Bonman

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- From leaving the office to grinding all night in the studio, to street promotions, to doing shows from city to city, Indie Artists hustle and they hustle hard to be heard. On Saturday, October 15, LUE Productions will be acknowledging those hardworking artists at the second annual “My Music, My Mic: Indie Artist Award Show”. The award show will take place from 6p.m. to 11 p.m. at the Sports Center at the National Orange Show located at 690 S. Arrowhead Street in San Bernardino.

The night will be filled with photo ops, raffles, live  performances, vendors, a fashion show hosted by The Plug  and LUE Productions BBW models, and much more! To kick the night off and keep things upbeat, Comedian Anthony Stone, Big Dee,  BBW winner Dee Dela Cruz, and BBW model Porscha McCoy will be the hosts and announcing some of the hottest talent to emerge out of the Inland Empire.

The recipients that will be recognized this year include: Annyett Royale, Apple Watts, C LO, CNova, James & Jamal Moreno of The Plug, So Cal Street Team a.k.a. Squaaad, DCorfxtop, DJ Demico, DJ Mpress, D’zyl, Eugene Jones, King Dice, Krystal Yvonne, Nova of Heartbreak, Radio Base, Tipse Smash Gang, Noface the Shadowmen, Bernard Holmes a.k.a. BJ, Fitz Taylor, Rowdogg, Skater Dee, Staxx Hughes, and Tinigi Star. In addition to the artist award recipients, there will also be special community recognitions of individuals and companies that will be receiving The Allen Award for their hard work, dedication, and commitment that show in the community and for the support that show indie artists. These individuals include: 5 Cent, Angel Baby, Curtis King, Danny Alcarez, Edwin Johnson, Janet Kirtley, Johnny Lee Bell, and LaShaun Turner.  

In addition to the awardees there will be a special guest speakers. Terrance Stone of Young Visionaries and LaNae Noorwood of United Nations of Consciousness will be bringing their wisdom to the stage. There will also be a special performance from Inland Empire’s hip hop legend, Dirty Birdy.

This will be an epic night that you don’t want to miss out on. The Inland Empire will stepping out in their best and latest attire. Early bird tickets are $20 before October 1 and $25 after and at the door. Tickets can be purchased via PayPal and sent to Lue.info@yahoo.com. For more information, please call (909) 567-1000, (909) 496-2151, (909) 556-7637, or (714) 833-3196. 

Lou Coleman

By Lou Coleman

“Many times we talk about being hurt and broken, and we believe the saying that time heals all wounds, we believe that a few comforting words, a little sympathy will make everything alright, and we don’t understand when people don’t seem to bounce back from something the way we think they should or as soon as we think they should. We believe that time should have healed their hurt by now, but what we fail to understand is that there is a difference between being hurt and being broken. And since we don’t understand that, we cast judgment on them and say things like they just need to get over it; let it go;…..Hmm… I’m going to be direct and even a bit cynical at points. But I really want to get my point across.

Children are growing up in a society that has pushed them aside, cast them off, and rejected them as normal, acceptable, and viable members of the social order, they have even classified them as being called “Generation Z and Generation Alpha” the unknown. They are becoming adults that have no direction in their lives, wondering aimlessly, bound, confused, and perplexed. Some have been mentally, physically, and sexually abused. Feeling rejected, dejected, and alone, they are hopelessly waiting to die, imagining that everything will be over if what they have experienced to be life would just cease from being.

Many people in society are being incarcerated mentally, physically, and spiritually. Although free from the human judicial system, are regretfully imprisoned in a far crueler and ultimately eternal prison. They are sentenced with a life sentence of emotional emasculation, depression, anxiety, low/no self esteem, and phobia’s; some are on the habitual death row of deadly narcotics, alcohol, and careless, unsafe, and uninhibited sexual activity. Others have been placed in a solitary confinement of physical pain, discomfort, and disease. They are being held captive behind these seemingly impenetrable bars and inescapable walls, being made to believe that this is all there is to life. Mentally messed up, emotionally emasculated, and spiritually lost, they are aimlessly wandering through life busted, disgusted, and broken.

Their lives are shattered, their dreams are non-existent, their hope is gone, they are being battered by the angry sea of sin, tossed to and fro, bouncing from relationship to relationship, being drug down through the gutters of degradation. Their self respect has been broken, their esteem has been broken, their reputation has been broken, and their innocence has been broken. They are disappointedly unable to see that God has a far more excellent and abundant life. They are struggling trying to break free unable to come into the freedom that is promised to them. They are unable to understand that the price of their freedom has already been paid. And people who try to encourage those who are hurting can’t seem to say the right thing. So how do you begin to heal? How can the hole in your heart that is gaping open begin to close?

First and foremost, understand that it’s okay to hurt. Secondly, realize that each new day of your life is a gift from God that He wants you to live fully. But know that if the pain you’ve suffered in your past is still impacting your life now, you can’t fully embrace the new life God offers you because you’re stuck in a frustrating cycle of brokenness that leaves you feeling hopeless. So just like you tell a doctor your symptoms, tell God how much you were wounded and need His healing touch. He will hear the cries of the broken. [Psalms 56:8], tells us that God was so aware of David that He even collected his tears. Ask God to break the hold that your past has over you and show you what useful lessons you can learn from it so you can begin moving forward. I tell you, God is much more powerful than your history, and when you trust Him, God will start to transform your pain into healing and wisdom in your life.

Lots of people are hurting in our world, including God-fearing, Bible-believing, Jesus-loving Christians. I hope you are not hurting right now, but if you are, be encouraged. God wants to give you His fellowship, His forgiveness, and a fresh start in life….“Broken but I’m Healed” [Byron Cage Lyrics]

By Avis Thomas-Lester, Urban News Service

Evalyn “Evie” Johnson has traveled the world to share the hair care techniques she’s honed over 20 years as a stylist. 

She’s taught natural hair styling in Los Angeles and hair-loss prevention in Australia. She’ll be featured in New Zealand next month at the International Association of Trichologists’ Hairdressing Conference. 

“I do a lot of speaking engagements, so I travel a lot,” said Johnson, 38, of Bowie, Maryland.

It is ironic that travel plays such a significant role in Johnson’s life now as a celebrated stylist and co-owner of the E&E Hair Studio in Mitchellville, Maryland. She and her family were once so poor that her parents, Julius and Elizabeth Peterson, couldn’t afford to send Johnson or her 11 siblings on field trips around Washington, D.C. 

“We were homeless,” Johnson said. “We slept in cars sometimes. We ate syrup sandwiches and mayonnaise sandwiches. We lived where there was no power…I knew there was so much money out there, but we couldn’t get any of it. I didn’t understand.”

Johnson attributes the family’s poverty largely to her father’s heroin abuse, which led to his incarceration at D.C.’s prison in Lorton, Virginia. In his absence, the Johnsons lived on public assistance, she said.

When she reached adolescence, little Evie rebelled. At 13, she got pregnant by her boyfriend, Antonio Reed, Jr., then 15. They both lived at the city’s homeless shelter at 14th and Park Street, NW.

Her mother dispatched her to Lorton to inform her father, the only time she visited him behind bars. Julius Peterson made her promise not to get pregnant again until marriage. In return, he promised to kick heroin.

When her son, Antonio Reed, III, was 2 months old, he became ill with Kawasaki disease, which causes inflammation of blood-vessel walls. He spent seven months at D.C. General Hospital.

Each day, Johnson attended school, then took Metro or two buses to the medical facility, where she studied and nurtured her baby.

“It was important for me to do well for him,” Johnson said. “I didn’t want him to think that his mother wasn’t smart.”

The Washington Post highlighted Johnson in 1994 for graduating with a 4.0 GPA from then-Kelly Miller Junior High School. She was 15. 

“I was on Cloud Nine,” Johnson said. “I was accomplishing things…It was a matter of proving – against the odds and what people said – that I could accomplish everything that I was supposed to accomplish.”

Johnson had dreamed of becoming a stylist since she was very young. She braided her sisters’ hair, kept her brothers shaped up, and styled her mother, relatives and friends.

After beauty school, Johnson worked at area salons before she and Earlisa Larry, who met as stylists at a J.C. Penney salon, opened E&E Hair Solutions in Largo in 2006. They moved a few blocks to the current salon earlier this year.

Johnson specializes in natural styles, hair bleaching and hair loss reversal.  She co-founded Stuart Edmondson Hair Loss and Restoration, which makes products to improve thinning hair.

Johnson also is a master stylist for Mizani, a L’Oréal hair products company, and works as a platform stylist at hair shows. She has coiffed such entertainment notables as Tasha Smith, Ari Nicole Parker, and Trey Songz. She has styled artists for the Grammy and BET awards.

Johnson was scheduled to be a featured stylist at the Washington/Baltimore Area Beauty Expo on Sept. 26 at the Martin’s Crosswinds banquet center in Greenbelt. The program was emceed by Johnny Wright, First Lady Michelle Obama’s hair stylist. 

“I love Evie!” said Wright, who toured several cities and educated stylists with Johnson as the “Dynamic Duo.” 

“She is a premiere educator and very talented at her craft,” Wright said.

Clients also sing Johnson’s praises.

“If I had enough time, I’d come twice a week,” said Shaina Taylor, 41, of Upper Marlboro, admiring her “wheat blonde” faux hawk moments after Johnson styled her hair recently. “I get tired of people stopping me talking about my hair.”

Johnson and her husband, Joe, a transportation project manager, have four children in their blended family: Taquan, 24, a writer and actor; Antonio, who recently graduated from the University of Pennsylvania; Taleya, 17, a high school senior who answered phones at the salon one recent afternoon; and Jordan, 15, an accomplished basketball player. 

Johnson said memories of the hard times keep her moving forward.

“I’m excelling, but I’m still growing,” she said.

Keith Magee

By Keith Magee

For the last four visible years America has endured, once again, the polarizing effects of racism and injustice. Yet, instead of the perpetrators wearing white sheets and lynching African Americans and with coral ropes as they did decade’s prior, they now wear blue uniforms and use issued firearms.

The loss of Trayvon, Eric, Tamir, Sandra, Freddie, Korryn, Alton, Terence, Keith, and all of the others we name, came not because their assassins feared them but, because they believed their lives didn’t matter. Secretly, I’ve wept at my core when I hear the news that they have taken another life. Even when I’m driving my car with my 2-year-old Zayden, I pray that our lives will matter.

As the numbers of African-American lives continue to be disproportionately taken, many onlookers (primarily Millennials), have come with demands and questions about whether those in power believe that #BlackLivesMatter. And if so, why is injustice prevailing in the loss of these lives? The Black Lives Matter movement does not assert that other’s lives do not matter. It aims to draw attention for the need for understanding if those who enact, execute, frame and inform the law also value Black lives.

In my youth, every evening we had to offer a scripture, after prayer, before we could partake of supper. We would all eagerly go for “Jesus Wept” because it was the easiest to remember. As I sit most evenings unable to eat, sickened to my stomach, praying and searching the scripture for meaning, I ponder why did Jesus weep.

The scriptures have three recordings of Jesus weeping. The most notable is because he loved Lazarus, and Martha and Mary. Even in knowing that Lazarus would be raised again, Jesus’ human nature and pain mourned, both in relation to their present pain and even their unbelief. Jesus also wept when the chosen people failed to keep the city ‘holy’ and set apart from other world powers …He saw the city and wept over it. The other prominent presence of his weeping is found in a garden. Jesus wept sweat “…like great drops of blood,” as he prayed to his Father, knowing his time had come to die for a humanity that might never get it.

Why did Jesus weep? Was it because he was fully human and, yet, fully divine, feeling the spiritual and nature pain of the people? Was it from his humanity and divinity, where he felt love, disappointment, loss, grief and sadness-every human emotion that evokes tears from the heart?

One doesn’t have to be dead to grieve death and dying. Grieving calls us into an experience of raw immediacy that is often devastating. In A Grief Observed, a collection of reflections on the experience of bereavement, author C.S. Lewis reveals that “No one ever told me that grief was so much like fear.

Tears, the lachrymal gland, responds to the emotion of awe, pleasure, love and, yes, sorrow. They are the fluids that rest in the ducts that can cause you to lose sight and can run down into your nose, all because of sorrow not joy. And, when the heart weeps it is beyond the liquid into the small channels that flow into the tear sac. It is a pain that is likening to the sound of sorrow from the mothers, fathers, family members, who have lost their loved ones in the midst of these murders and executions. “I am not afraid, but the sensation is like being afraid. The same fluttering in the stomach, the same restlessness, the yawning. I keep on swallowing.” As an African American male, I can relate to Lewis because seemingly everyday my life is at risk. I swallow grief and fear that I, or one of my brothers, our children, or mothers, are next.

It was the sorrow of a suffering people that gave cause to ecumenical faith leaders becoming the catalyst for a civil rights movement for a “Righteous America.” These faith leaders used their sacred spaces to address the grave concerns for the least-advantaged among them. As an American society founded on a hunger and thirst for religious freedom was turning a deaf ear to the pleas of a marginalized people, certain that God’s creation suffered no stratification; these likeminded humanitarians, across racial identity, leading the charge for equality. They understood why Jesus wept, as did Jehovah, Allah, the Buddha, and many others spiritual leaders who wept too.

Recently, America lost an African-American male musical icon, Prince, though not at the hands of those in Blue. I mostly remember him for Purple Rain, in particular “When Doves Cry.” Though is it understood that these lyrics spoke to a failed relationship between two people, I purport that it speaks more to the sound of the doves. When doves cry, as they soar, it is a sorrowful song and yet in the sound we find a message of life, hope, renewal and peace.

Could the Prince of Peace be sending us a prophetic message that even in these moments of tragedy there is hope for better days? As we stand through our sorrow, will we be able to earnestly declare that #BlackLivesMatter too?

Keith Magee is a public intellectual who focuses on economics, social justice and theology. He is currently Senior Researcher of Culture and Justice, University College London, Culture; Director, The Social Justice Institute at the Elie Wiesel Center on the campus of Boston University, where he is a Scholar in Residence; and Senior Pastor, The Berachah Church at the Epiphany School, Dorchester Centre, MA. For more information visit www.4justicesake.org or follow him on social media @keithlmagee.

By Lue Dowdy

What an amazing night I had with my LUE Productions Fam on the Red-Carpet. LUE Productions had the opportunity to host the red-carpet and conduct live interviews. From the moment we walked in it was non-stop fun and laughter.

OMG! OMG! The host Comedian Brandon Wiley did his thang. He kept the audience lively and ready. Comedians, Miss Arkansas, Paul Smokey Deese, and Sherwin Arae made you crack the hell up. The funny and beautiful Lunell was the headliner for the night. The audience waited in anticipation for this Queen to step to the MIC with the funnies. She bagged on folks! She talked a lot about that mouth to mouth, and bedroom antics we deal with as older women. Let’s just say she got a lot of “I know that’s right.” I so love the fact that she’s not afraid to go all in. The audience was happy that Lunell came to the Inland Empire.

We saw familiar faces and met new ones. Local artists such as VCD, a female rap group here in the Dino blessed our ear-gates. We need more affordable events like this here in our city. I’d like to shout out Theo Evans of “Clowning on Earth Entertainment” for having us. I want to also shout out Deeveatva Foy, our BBW Queen Dee Dela Cruz, and BBW Model Ericca Cross, Robert of “ILondon Fog Productions”, Kyru of “Everythangnycce Productions”, and Freddie Washington of “FW Photography” for holding down the red-carpet and capturing the special moments. We all made an awesome TEAM!

Need us to host your next Red-Carpet Event? Contact us immediately! We have affordable rates. LUE Productions always come professional but is about that TU and having FUN! Make sure you catch our Indie Artist Award Show MY MUSIC, MY MIC on Saturday, October 15th. Until next week L’z!

#LUEPRODUCTIONS @LUEPRODUCTIONS 909.567.1000 www.lueproductions.org.

Lou Coleman

By Lou Coleman

Why did you let this happen? Why did you let that happen? Why Lord, why? I tell you we are always quick to ask, “Why Lord?” ”Why Me?” when it seems like things is going bad and we need someone to blame. Well I want you to know that playing the blame game with God is always going to be a losing proposition. I tell you many of us blame God for everything! I wonder though, do we ever think about the flip side to that coin! Why don’t we look around for someone to blame when things are going good? I’ll tell you why… because when things are going good, were always the one to blame, or take the credit. I did it! It was me…! Hello! But what I want you to know is that the accuser, Satan is the one who is guilty of condemnation, that’s all he does and yet he usually gets blamed for nothing. You should be mad as Hell with Satan; because he is the one behind most of the problems you are having; Most of the fear, worry, doubt, guilt, in your life. I tell you some of us come to church Sunday after Sunday acting like all hope is lost. We behave like Israelites living in a strange land. We exhibit the same defeated spirit as the children of Israel when we declare: “Praise the Lord, O my soul”… as long as everything is going well for me and…, “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want”… as long as I have money in the bank…. Not to mention, I’m like a tree planted by living water”… when I have a good job and a loving mate… Oh, but when the storm winds blow against us and our money is in short supply, we quickly get a case of spiritual amnesia. We don’t want to hear the fact that the rain falls on the just as well as the unjust [Matt. 5:45]. We feel as if life has dealt us a bad hand and our lips utter the agonizing refrain, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me” [Matt. 27:46].

What you need to remember is that the hand of the Lord is always upon you to guide, strengthen and protect you [Ezekiel chapter 37]. The text goes on to say that the Lord’s Spirit deliberately set Ezekiel in the midst of a valley full of bones. Ezekiel was not in that horrid valley because he wanted to be. Rather, God placed him to that desolate place for a reason. Once, Ezekiel stood in the valley, the Lord asked him a penetrating question, “Son of man, can these dry bones live?” (v.3). In other words, God challenged Ezekiel to assess the situation and determine if anything could be done to improve it. Ezekiel studied the ground full of bones; no blood to sustain life; no muscle to enable movement; no vital organs; no attached limbs; no flesh to cover the body; nothing to indicate that life existed. “But the question asked of Ezekiel was, can these bones live?” How would you have answered the Lord’s question about the revitalization of dry bones? Ezekiel’s response to God’s question demonstrated his faith and wisdom. He answered, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord. So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and the bones came together, bone to bone. I looked, and tendons and flesh appeared on them and skin covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army. Then he said to me: “Son of man, these bones is the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’ Therefore prophesy and say to them: ‘this is what the Sovereign Lord says: My people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them; I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Then you, my people, will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.” ….. I tell you, you need to start prophesying to the situations and circumstances in your life and stop blaming God for everything bad. Start declaring and decrees what thus saith the Lord. Amen. It is finished! [Isaiah 55:8, 9] [James 1:2].

By Eric Easter, Urban News Service

The just-opened National Museum of African American History and Culture is a work-in-progress — in every way. Surprisingly, this is its best asset.

In one way, that description is literal. On Media Day, less than 10 days before its grand opening, the museum’s grounds still were littered with the cigarette butts, snack bags and other leftovers from the hundreds of construction workers who put the final touches on the building.

Inside, journalists scoured the space for stories to tell. They navigated around carts that carried pieces of exhibits yet to be nailed in and observed priceless objects amid handwritten signs whose installation instructions read “too tall” and “put nothing on top.”

Yet even with the museum finally open for business, it remains incomplete — by design. Six hundred years of African American history — and the culture that grew from centuries of struggle, pain and triumph — is too sweeping an epic to contain on a few floors. The only way to do so is to consider the museum not a permanent collection of  artifacts, but a living space that will evolve, shift, re-focus and re-invent itself — just  like the community it seeks to reflect.

The extraordinary effort to fund and build the new museum has overshadowed the even harder work performed by the museum’s curators. They gathered and edited the more-than-37,000-item collection into a coherent narrative.

The decision to start the museum’s story in pre-colonial, 15^th-Century Africa involved an “intense” process, said Mary Elliott, curator of the museum’s history section. She consulted noted scholars including Ira Berlin, Eric Foner and Annette Gordon Reed to help set the necessary context for the full museum. But Elliott soon realized that a full reading of that time would be “too dense” for the average museum-goer.

“We needed to start with the reality of a free Africa and its position as a center of trade,” said Elliott. “But we wanted to go much deeper into the stories of the Italian role in financing the slave trade, as well as a more in-depth look at conditions in Europe that set the stage. But that’s a lot to ingest for the average museum-goer.”

The need to add some things and delete others at times was “heartbreaking.”

Those decisions, no doubt, will cause some to quibble about the tone, length or depth of some exhibits. And some criticisms will be fair. The displays on Reconstruction and the role of blacks in the military seem especially short given the importance of those themes.

But those arguments don’t account for the realities of a museum audience raised on Twitter, Wikipedia and TV on-demand. The tourist who tries to squeeze in all of Washington’s 17 Smithsonian museums in a few days will lack the capacity to absorb generations of pain and progress in one fell swoop. Return visits will be a must.

Still, those who want to go deeper will get that opportunity. The museum offers a full-time staff genealogist to help families discover their roots. Scholars can enjoy the museum’s research rooms. Public programming and temporary exhibits will let curators breathe more life into subject matter and explore contemporary themes and issues via multimedia and assorted technologies.

As a full body of work, the museum is a treasure. Its existence tells a story and stands as a tribute to a culture that has triumphed amid adversity. The displays simply accentuate that idea through stories that are tragic, critical, objective and, ultimately, celebratory. It is a museum about American possibility, as told through the story of a people whose American-ness too often has been denied and questioned. This museum should end such doubts.

What visitors will experience is best exemplified in a moment that occurred during one of many pre-opening receptions.

Speaking at an event hosted by Google, former Rep. Susan Molinari (R – New York), who is white, shared her experience at the museum. She fought through tears as she recalled one section that particularly resonated with her. The mostly black audience reacted politely. Many of them later said that, because of their own families’ legacies, they might have reacted differently to the same moment.

That may be what happens to everyone who passes through the museum’s doors. What one sees and experiences will be very different — depending on the history, knowledge and perspective that one carries through the entrance. That, in the end, is the true power of the place.

By Higher Heights

Dear 2016 Presidential Candidates:

In an effort to hear what issues Black women are most concerned with this election cycle, Higher Heights asked Black women across the country (at events and online), what is the most important issue facing Black women and their families. 49 percent stated that economic security was the most pressing issue.  

No wonder this was the top response, considering Black women are paid just 60 cents to every dollar paid to a White man.  In addition to economic security, the other top issues included Education Equity (19%), Police Violence (16%) and High Quality Affordable Housing (14%).

According to 2013 U.S. Census data, 71 percent of Black women are in the labor force (69 percent for women overall).  Black women are more likely than women nationally to work in the lowest-paying occupations (like service, health care support, and education) and less likely to work in the higher-paying engineering and tech fields or managerial positions.  The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the percentage of Black women who are full-time minimum-wage workers is higher than that of any other racial group.  

The late Congresswoman Barbara Jordan once said, “What the people want is very simple – they want an America as good as its promise.”  Higher Heights is asking you, as a candidate for the highest executive job in the country, to pledge to make good on this promise by putting forward a comprehensive economic security strategy and plan at the top of your list of priority issues on which you will focus in the first 100 days of your administration, should you be elected.

Higher Heights is also asking Black women across the country to raise their voices on this issue at the ballot box this November.  We know that when you fire up a Black woman she does not go to the polls alone, she brings her house, her block, her church, her sorority, and her water cooler. For us, this election is about harnessing the power of Black women’s votes to ensure that you, as candidates feel compelled to address and support building economically stable communities and the other issues of the greatest importance to Black women.

It really isn’t that complicated.  Black women are voting this November and economic security is the No. 1 issue they care about. The next President of the United States will take office at a time of great opportunity for our nation. In the final weeks of the election, we encourage you to listen and devise a course of action to address the concerns of this very important constituency.