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NEW BLACK RENAISSANCE
MAYA WHITFIELD
FEATURES EDITOR
MWHITFI1@SCMAIL.SPELMAN.EDU
With social media being an integral part of most
young peoples' lives, it has become natural to paint an ide
alistic picture of how one wants to be portrayed. In efforts to
stay connected on all fronts, it's simple to feign vague inter
est in pop culture, sports, and politics after exposure to a few
retweets and Instagram reposts. The downside of this hyperac
tive connectivity is trying to sort through the facades that users
adopt across their virtual presence. It is difficult to sort through
those sincere about their interests amongst the “slacktavists”,
“bandwagoners", and those just trying to add depth to their
perceived character.
According to Spelman sophomore Annisah Agnew,
however, art is one passion that can't be perpetrated.
“Art is culture. That’s how we know about our ancestors and
that’s how we know about the things that happened through
out the world,” Agnew said. “It's all because of art. Everything
is art.”
Agnew is one of the several pieces in the inventive
puzzle that is Luminary Vessels. Comprised of a small handful of
AUC students, Luminary Vessels is a newly founded organiza
tion centered on fashion and artistic expression and how it all
relates to the experience of college students. With "The New
Black Renaissance” as the coined slogan, Luminary Vessels
seeks to illuminate the AUC, Atlanta, and the world with black
art and fashion.
“It’s a new organization where we’re trying to promote
black excellence through art and fashion,” Agnew said. “The
members that are a part of Luminary Vessels are people who
are very into fashion or do some kind of art form.”
The creators and visionaries behind Luminary Vessels, Spelman
sophomore Cheryl Smith and Morehouse sophomore Steve
Fisher, asked Agnew to be a part of the movement last semes
ter.
"We just started this. There’s like fifteen of us at most,”
Agnew said. "We have a blog with a few posts on there, and
we're getting into the process of becoming a RSO and getting
permission from local high schools fo talk to their students.”
When it comes to membership, Luminary Vessels values quality
over quantity with its general body. The selectiveness is not out
of vain and actually reflects the genuine nature of the organi
zation. When asked about the criteria for joining, Agnew nar
rowed it down to one fundamental principle: passion.
“You have to have a passion for it,” Agnew said. “We'll
ask whoever we see has a passion for any part of the fashion
or art world to be a part of Luminary Vessels to promote what
they do. We’re not blocking people off, we just want people
who are strictly into these types of art forms.”
Luminary Vessels plans to extend its outreach far
beyond the perimeter of the AUC. The agenda for the orga
nization is purposeful and goal-driven, with one of their key
ambitions being to reach out to children in neighboring com
munities in Atlanta. The members plan on traveling to different
schools and neighborhoods to mentor young aspiring artists,
promote art, and cultivate creative expression in grade school
aged kids. With arts funding being in jeopardy over the past
few years in several Atlanta counties, the most recent being
Fulton County this current school year, Agnew believes that
supporting and putting emphasis on the beauty of artistic
communication is crucial.
"I remember they [cut art funding] one time in New
York for a minute, and they don’t understand that art is an
escape for people,” Agnew said. “The great artists we have
now and have had years ago... that’s how they spread the
way they felt and what was going on in the world. So to cut
a generation off from art, that's not promoting culture. That’s
something that can’t be done.”
For Agnew personally, fashion is as essential to her
daily life as the blood running through her veins. Along with
fashion, Agnew also models. As a model, she considers herself
a blank canvas to showcase designs and express emotion.
These are a just couple of the myriad of different varieties of
art that Luminary Vessels plans to cultivate, teach about, and
showcase throughout the AUC and their potential mentees.
“Fashion is a very big part of my life just because it’s way more
than clothes,” Agnew said. “I feel like fashion is such a big part
of everyone's lives... What you wear reflects who you are.
That's art—like you can draw on a canvas, what you wear is
your personal canvas."
Luminary Vessels has hit the ground running in turning
the vision for the organization into an influential reality. The
club members are busy executing future plans, which include
art shows, receiving sponsorship from local museums, a fashion
show, cojlaborating with different AUC art clubs, spreading
the organization to other Atlanta universities, and much more.
The depth and weight put behind all art forms from photog
raphy to music will expand the minds of those who listen to
embrace the different forms of creativity on campus and
beyond.
SAHIM WALLACE
STAFF WRITER
SAHIMWALLACE@YAHOO.COM
This week’s Winners Circle features Aimee Sanders, a junior English major at
Spelman College. Sanders is the campus manager of WHISPER, which is an app as
Sanders describes “Where anyone can be their true authentic self.”
WHISPER is an anonymous social network, and allows people to express
themselves and connect with like-minded individuals. Anyone can anonymously
share their thoughts and emotions with the world, while also building relationships.
The WHISPER app founded “Your Voice," a non-profit organization dedicated to
raising awareness about mental health issues on college campuses. It provides
resources for college students who struggle with issues like depression, anxiety, eat
ing disorders, sexuality, and managing stress. Their goal is to eliminate the stigma
associated with mental illness and create a safe space for students to express their
struggles, however big or small, while knowing they are not alone.
Last summer Sanders came into contact with the campus coordinator of
WHISPER, who was looking to expand throughout college campuses. After hearing
their goals and missions, Sanders was motivated and excited to be a member of
their team. Since then, she has served as the campus manager for the app, and
has raised awareness of mental illness on campus, as well as hosted events on
behalf of the organization.
Last semester at Market Friday, Sanders had a table that provided informa
tion about mental illness and gave students an opportunity to win prizes by play
ing a game called “Purple Prize Pong”. She has collaborated with organizations
like PEPers and CHILL, which are the peer counseling organizations at Spelman
and Morehouse College. In October, she held an event that focused on relation
ships, and featured a panel with representatives from Greek organizations. The
topics included stress and relationship management. One of Sanders favorite
experiences is being able to talk to people about WHISPER. She feels that mental
illness is an important issue, especially in a college environment because many
students are stressed and overworked. Additionally, many students are also deal
ing with eating disorders, struggling with sexuality, or combating depression and
anxiety.
Sanders said that thus far, students have been very receptive to WHISPER.
Though the group she works with is not yet an official campus organization, she
still wants to let students know “we're here for you.” She is excited about bringing
something new to the campus, especially something that will help many students
overcome the challenges of various mental illnesses. Some of the organization’s
goals include expanding and having more students in the Atlanta University Cen
ter use the app, and to have an increased awareness of the aforementioned
conditions.
Currently, the group is working on plans for this semester; however, Sanders
did not reveal such plans because she hopes for the events to be a surprise. She
thanks the AUC for the support and encourages everyone to stay tuned for the
upcoming events this semester.
WATCH THE YARD:
A REVOLUTION IN BLACK GREEKDOM
AND THE BLACK COLLEGE EXPERIENCE
SAHIM WALLACE
STAFF WRITER
SAHIMWALLACE@YAHOO.COM
The Black Greek concept of the “Yard” has been digitized on
websites such as Youtube, however, not in the same degree as the newly cre
ated Watchtheyard.com. The website has been up and running since this past
December and in a span of four days broke 100,000 views. When asked about
the purpose of the website, Jonathan Rabb, its creator, explained.
“The overall goal of the website is to create a revolution in Black Greek-
dom in which all yards are connected,” Rabb said. “With it, ideas can be
exchanged, the culture can be nurtured and we can create social action. By
seeing these positive images, kids will want to go to college and be like the
people they see in the videos”.
Rabb, a graduate of the University of Minnesota and a member of
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc., came up with the idea while working at a top
digital creative
“I came across
feeling home-
to find ways to
the community
that was so far
Rabb said.
Watch-
features all
Organizations,
probates, step-
from HBCU's
country. There
that showcase
“The overall goal of the web
site is to create a revolution
in Black Greekdom in which
all yards are connected.
With it, ideas can be ex
changed, the culture can be
nurtured and we can create
social action”
lab in Germany,
this idea while
sick and trying
connect with
of Black Greeks
away from me,”
theyard.com
Black Greek
and includes
shows, and strolls
all over the
are even videos
Greek life from
as far back as 1987. The videos on the website are sourced from all over the
Internet, and also include submissions made directly to the website.
Building and managing an initiative like this is no easy task, which is why
Rabb is looking to expand his team to institutions that have black Greekdom,
but especially institutions such as Morehouse, which constitutes one of the
centers of Black College Life. Rabb expressed great interest in recruiting skilled
interns in the Atlanta University Center who would like to be a cameraperson
or host. His next goal for the website is to establish a group of student journal
ists from HBCUs around the country who will act as reporters and hosts for their
specific schools/areas of the country. The purpose of this is to give the viewers
a more in-depth perspective of the different cultures of Black Greek life that
exist on yards all around the country.
“This could be big for the reporters that get picked because they will be
globally seen as the representative of their yard and be able to show off their
skills and personality on a global platform,” Rabb said. “If you are interested
in this opportunity, please send your resume to watchtheyard@gmail.com”.
Indeed, watchtheyard.com transcends a simple collection of black Greek
videos, and presents to HBCU’s an opportunity to share an aspect of its culture
and truly revolutionize the black college experience.
“The overall goal of the website is to create a revolution in Black Greek
dom in which all yards are connected. With it, ideas can be exchanged, the
culture can be nurtured and we can create social action"