ONTARIO – For 17 years, the annual soul food dinner celebration at the Ohio State University at Mansfield has celebrated important people associated with the Civil Rights Movement, but the traditional dinner had never focused on women before Thursday.
Dozens of individuals gathered Thursday evening at the Ohio State University in Mansfield to watch presentations and musical performances about women like Coretta Scott King, Sybrina Fulton and Mamie Till-Mobley.
“I think it’s important to understand that women have been such a vital part of the civil rights movement, and they don’t often get the credit they deserve,” said Renee Thompson, OSU’s director of diversity and inclusion.
“Historians are only just beginning to acknowledge the critical role that women have played in the battle for racial equality.”
The presentation, entitled “Beside Every Great Man… Woman” featured seasoned Renaissance Theatre performer Condrea Webber’s acting, the musical talents of musical director and keyboardist for Alter Ego Alice Bond, and OSU students James Davis and Mike Sims.
Webber portrayed many great women through song and via interviews in order to “share their stories.”
“We’re going to celebrate those stories that define us, and that’s what black history month is all about,” Thompson said.
