Scharema Hannibal is a Waukegan-born musician and teacher with a focus on gospel music. Singing “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the Black national anthem, is special for her and she feels good every time she performs it. She is not afraid to ask others to join.

“I feel empowered when I sing it,” Hannibal said. “I also feel encouraged by it. I feel it helps us march on to victory.”

Hannibal was among the musicians, writers, poets and others using their art during the Waukegan Park District’s fourth-annual Back History Month event Saturday at the Jack Benny Center, celebrating the month by putting African American culture on display.

Ty Rohrer, the Park District’s manager of cultural arts, said showing African American art forms in a variety of media is a good way to celebrate the culture of a people in a month dedicated to their history.

“We’re showing the culture of the African American community through art forms, “Rohrer said. “It shows experiences in different ways. Art is a good way to showcase it.”

Joshua Randolph, a pastor at Jesus Name Apostolic Church in Waukegan, was the emcee for the event, as he has done in the past. He said the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made art and culture part of his effort during the American Civil Rights Movement.

Introducing the performers at the Waukegan Park District’s Black History Month event Saturday at the Jack Benny Center in Waukegan is emcee Joshua Randolph. (Steve Sadin/For the Lake County News-Sun)

“We’re celebrating the community through its art,” Randolph said. “By watching and listening, I want people to walk away knowing anything is possible. When you put  your mind to it, you can achieve your dreams.”

Born in Decatur, Gary E. Moore was a teacher of diverse learners for 20 years, helping children who he said faced many issues he had as a youngster. Influenced by the speeches he read of King and things he heard from former President Barack Obama.

Moore said his father was an avid follower of King and was present at the March on Washington where the civil rights leader delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. Now he lives in Chicago Heights, raising his family. He now writes and reads his poetry publicly.

As he read several of his poems, he finished with “A Dream Song,” which he said was influenced by King’s famous speech and things he heard Obama say. Though time can heal wounds, individuals must make it happen through their efforts.

Scharema Hannibal plays and sings “Lift Every Voice and Sing” during the Waukegan Park District’s Black History Month event Saturday at the Jack Benny Center. (Steve Sadin/For the Lake County News-Sun)

“I believe that time will heal our old wounds/When we seek the truth and believe in life/and love and equality and come together/in a Utopian Society/and watch with grace as our children play /And find a way to ascend into/the Light of Truth/and renew our enthusiasm /for these pursuits,” he read to the crowd.

Lesley Bracero, one of the founders of Melanated Authors and a preschool teacher at Greenwood Elementary School in Waukegan, read from a new book, “Secrets in Grandma’s Attic.” It is about a brother and sister who dreamt they met with Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald.

“Ellington wrote (and performed) his own music,” Bracero said. “Ella Fitzgerald was told she couldn’t sing everywhere. She said she could, and she did.”

Waukegan- and Highland Park-based Sistema Ravinia is an orchestra program for youths in fourth grade through high school from Waukegan who learn to play classical instruments at no cost to them and perform concerts throughout the area.

Reading from her latest book, Lesley Bracero tells the story of two children dreaming of an encounter with Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald during the Waukegan Park District’s Black History Month event Saturday at the Jack Benny Center. (Steve Sadin/For the Lake County News-Sun)

JoAnne Flores-Dieter, the founder of Sistema Ravinia, said the group is celebrating its 10th anniversary and is doing 10 concerts in the area to mark the occasion. The sixth was Waukegan Community Unit School District 60’s Black History Gala on Thursday, and the seventh was Saturday for the Park District.

Playing the “Old Boatman” by Florence Price, an African American symphonic composer, and “When the Saints Go Marching In,” Flores-Dieter said the music was a part of Black history.

Younger performers like the orchestra and Evelyn Rivers, a Carmel Catholic High School freshman and a Waukegan resident, were part of the program. She said it was important to her to take the stage.

“I really like singing here,” Rivers said. “I feel honored to spread my message of happiness.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/10/black-history-month-waukegan/