Faith Ross wasn’t sure there would be a Black History Month program this year.
There was a pandemic to consider, and the time, money and logistics of putting something together – even virtually – seemed, at one point, too great a lift.
But when Ross and her colleagues at Petaluma Blacks for Community Development reflected on the historic Black Lives Matter protests that rocked the nation last summer while kick starting local community dialogue, a decision was made.
Amid the nationwide racial reckoning, Ross’ nonprofit group, which she co-founded in 1978, stepped into a more visible role, taking part in numerous protests and spearheading community conversations on race and policing.
“We decided that because of that, we could not afford not to have our Black History Month program,” said Ross, referring to the annual program Petaluma Blacks for Community Development has hosted for more than four decades.
The national Black History Month theme is “The Black Family: Representation, Identity, and Diversity,” but Ross said after a trying 2020, she wanted this year’s celebration in Petaluma to include the whole community.
A community-themed Black History Month in Petaluma, where portraits of dozens of diverse local families adorn downtown storefront windows, will give way Saturday to a Black History Month Virtual Celebration.
The event, a first for Petaluma, starts at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27, and will feature music from Dorian Bartley of the Dorian Mode ensemble, entertainment from a Santa Rosa High School Art Quest dance group and storytelling from Oakland-based artist Diane Ferlatte.
Ross said she’s hopeful residents will embrace the overarching message.
“I hope they can put this program together with our exhibit downtown…families – they come in all shapes, sizes and colors,” Ross said, pivoting to reflect on the statements about the meaning of family from those featured in the program. “You take that into the community. And then, to have this program, that’s really about family…I feel like it unites the community in some ways.”
Ross calls the protests, and the tragic events of this past summer that sparked them, an awakening. And in the ensuing months, Ross said she has seen the community slowly, but surely step up.
In July, the city ceded its police-led listening sessions in favor of a Community Forum on Racism and Interactions with Police co-hosted by Petaluma Blacks for Community Development and the North Bay Organizing Project.
In August, local artists transformed Fairgrounds Drive, in front of the Petaluma Regional Library, into a 250-foot Black Lives Matter mural after gaining approval and $15,000 from the city council for the project.
And city leaders this month lauded the contributions of Ross and Gloria Robinson, of Petaluma Blacks for Community Development, for their “integral role in creating a community-wide celebration of Black History Month 2021,” a celebration the city helped fund to the tune of $8,500.
“For us, just having this ability to, you know, participate in a program that embodies our community, especially at this time – any little bit of energy and positivity and embracing of our community – it’s just such a crucial time,” said Peggy Flynn, Petaluma city manager. “We were really very thrilled that we had the opportunity to participate.”
(Tyler Silvy is editor of The Petaluma Argus-Courier. Reach him at tyler.silvy@arguscourier.com, 707-776-8458, or @tylersilvy on Twitter)