This February, art teacher Emily Benner has created a daily display on her classroom door in celebration of Black History Month.

Benner’s inspiration for the display comes from reading the book “Between the World and Me.”

“One of the things [the man in the story] talked about was growing up and only hearing about the same figures. People from the underground railroad and maybe up to the 1960s. People from the past that you feel disconnected from and you don’t understand how their life relates to you,” Benner said. “So I thought we could try to [show] people more relevant to our lives.”

The display is based on Benner’s belief in the necessity of representation.

“Growing up white, I was not necessarily aware that everyone I was learning about looked like me,” Benner said. “I think it’s important for everyone to understand that they have that privilege and that it needs to be extended to everyone else.”

Benner receives suggestions from Lafayette students and staff of community members or celebrities to feature on the door. Examples of those featured include former Lafayette custodian James West, Art McCoy, LeBron James and more.

Photography teacher Meghan O’Donnell nominated Bruce Franks Jr., an activist whose 2019 documentary called St. Louis Superman has been nominated for an Oscar and has won five other awards.

“I suggested Bruce Franks Jr. because he has made major positive impacts in my local community,” O’Donnell said. “I think Ms. Benner’s wall is a wonderful concept and a great way to highlight African American accomplishments that some students may not be aware of.”  

Junior Chandler Heman agrees with the significance of the wall, “I think Ms. Benner’s idea of the wall was smart and very powerful,” Heman said. “She is one of the only teachers I know doing this, and I feel like it means a lot to a lot of people at the school.”

Heman nominated Trayvon Martin to be featured on the wall. “I felt like this case made a big impact on the world. People like Barack Obama and [Donald] Trump got involved, and there were hundreds of protests and riots for him. Everybody wanted justice,” Heman said. “It’s important for people to be educated about these types of cases or situations that they might not have known [about] before.”

Benner believes that the impact of her wall has had a positive effect on her students and the Lafayette community so far.

“You can see that people are honored to have people who look like them mentioned more regularly,” Benner said. 

After specific people are featured on the wall, their display is moved to the library, where it will remain for the duration of Black History Month.