Creating Love in Jefferson Middle School
“It is empowerment, it is the embodiment of our values and actions, our strength as a community and when we work together, what we’re able to do. All the layers of metaphors within, to me, all the meaning I get out of it, everything we do is grounded in love.”
Teacher Jennifer Vena Levesque has been wanting to work together to bring a mural to her school for years, and one day at the end of January, I received a random email that we could finally do it! In disbelief I called and we began making plans to work with her LGBTQ BIPOC Student Leadership Group on workshops and mural creation at Jefferson Middle School in Madison, WI.
It took 2 weeks (and a little extra) for us to create the beautiful piece that will be hung in their lunchroom, just past the office and main entrance. Students who were able to take some time from their scheduled classes to come in and work, joined the painting, or switched out during their morning Leadership Group time. The other classes that were passing through commented on our work, giving encouragement, and people began to stop in Miss V’s classroom to see what was going on. This positive attention empowered the students and staff creating a bond. Staff also stopped by to help, and students who weren’t in the class, asked to be a part of it, too. I saw a community being strengthened, that to me is power, that to me is love.
We worked on our individual projects and held discussions. It was through these images and conversations the design was born. The image is a beautiful single rose, with a mixture of bright colors fading into each other and the word “Love” at the top.
I asked the students, “What does this mean to you?”
“The colors are fading into each other like all the different people being together.”
“It’s not like, oh you have to be one way, it’s like different, you can be what you are. You can be what you want and have passion for what you want. It’s not like the rose has to be one color, or one way.”
“I feel like it’s an accomplishment. It’s really cool. People be like ‘Oh that’s so pretty’ and to be like I helped do it, is really cool.“
“I liked the moments, like everything, like them painting over there, them talking at the table.”
I want to thank Miss V, the students, the staff- everyone who made this happen. Even if you didn’t help create it, just walking by and saying something positive, you were part of it.
