It takes the form of a celebrity parade in which pupils of the school are exposed to the lives and times of blacks in the Diaspora and in Africa .During the latest celebration held at the Marina international high school hall in Bakau new town, the head teacher of Marina international High School, Musa Sanneh said:
“The celebration of the black history month is dedicated to celebrating the contributions made by blacks in advancing the pace of development in not only America but also the world at large. It is a day to honour all blacks in America and anywhere in the world who have made their mark in the overall development of the world in the areas of science, arts, music and sports. In America the month of February is dedicated to that kind of celebration.
We are celebrating in honour of black celebrities in America and their contributions to the development of America from ancient times up until now and by extension blacks elsewhere in Africa. That is why you have people like Nelson Mandela. Any black who has made a mark deserves to be honored and celebrated”.
He added: “In America, The Gambia and anywhere else in Africa what this means is for blacks to have confidence in themselves and to contribute to the development of our respective countries .It is also to contribute to the development of peace and international cooperation all over the world. That is what it is teaching us it doesn’t matter whether you are black or white. What matters actually is what contribution you can you make to improve not only your own life but the lives of your fellow citizens and the life of others in the world”.
For his part, head of humanities department Saidou Trawally explained:
“We chose black celebrities not because we want to be discriminatory, but because black history month is always celebrated in honor of African Americans for their significant contributions and achievements. We are aware of and deeply grateful for the immense contribution of all races to the development of human society. They have all in their various ways added to the advancement of human society. We therefore salute great men and women of all races and will in due course honor all of them in another program. We have also broadened it this year to add other blacks of note in the homeland who have also added fine colour to black celebrities’ achievements.”
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