North St. Louis City resident Tony Wingo just happened to be bringing his two grandchildren to play at O’Fallon Park playground when they saw four tables full of art supplies and a dozen adults ready to get kids crafting.
The “Youth Art Build” event was part of the Ferguson Commemoration Weekend Aug. 7-10, which includes the Aug. 9 anniversary of the Ferguson police killing Michael Brown Jr.
Wingo’s three-year-old granddaughter, Kylie, stopped at every art station – from making signs and buttons to prayer flags and earrings.
“They live in Ferguson, and they’ve been in many marches there,” Wingo said, “so it’s ironic that you guys were over here so they could participate.”
Wingo said outside of his doorstep, he’s seen murders and all kinds of crime.
“It’s more than just marching for Mike Brown,” he said. “All the violence in the city, it’s depressing sometimes. Everywhere it’s just working-class people with so much violence around them. Tries to drag you down, but as you can see I keep myself uplifted with my grand babies, doing positive things.”
Rodney Hickman, 10, made a button that he pinned to his shirt that read, “Fight 4 Me.”
“I want people to fight for me because Michael Brown died,” he told The St. Louis American.
“And it could have been you?” asked his sister, Shermale Humphrey, who brought him to the event.
“Yes,” he said.
Nabeehah Azeez, organizer with Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment, was also sitting at the button-making table in a bright yellow “United We Fight” T-shirt. Azeez sits on the Ferguson Action Council which planned the commemoration weekend.
“The whole purpose of today’s event and of the whole weekend is to promote family and community activities.” she said. “Because after you experience a tragedy or a loss, like we have been losing people all year, it’s really good to have a healing space with the people you love.”
She said many times children have a difficult time dealing with loss or communicating feelings.
“So having a healing space for children is always a good idea,” she said.
Jasmine Bell brought her son, Kai Mason, 6, because she said she wanted him to be around other children who are participating this weekend.
“I thought it was important to be around other like-minded people who are trying to make a difference,” she said.
Bell made a prayer flag alongside her son.
“I love that the adults are also creating,” said Elizabeth Vega, a leader of the Artivists activist group that orchestrated the Youth Art Build. “We think that art is just for the kids but I think the entire community gets something out of it.”
The weekend’s organizers have described themselves as a broad coalition of St. Louis organizations that came together following the killing of Michael Brown Jr., including Don’t Shoot Coalition, Hands Up United, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Ferguson Action, Missourians Organizing for Reform and Empowerment (MORE), Organization for Black Struggle (OBS), Operation Help or Hush, Socialist Alternative and Tribe X.
“It’s really been a collaborative effort,” Azeez said. “Everyone took different tasks so that we could create a weekend that was really beautiful and that everyone contributed to.”
