‘Keep the kids reading.’ New Overtown exhibition combines Black history, banned books

Imagine America’s response after David Walker published “An Appeal to the Coloured Citizens of the World” in 1829.

A Black man, writing a book, trying to unite a race of enslaved people. An uproar ensued and the book became considered contraband, even more so due to the mention of the Haitian Revolution of 1804.

Walker’s “Appeal” helped inspire “On the Ban Wagon: The Power of the Pen,” an art installation currently on display at the D.A. Dorsey House in Overtown through Dec. 20, 2024. Curated by My Urban Contemporary Experience (MUCE) CEO Bart Mervil in partnership with the Black Archives History and Research Foundation of South Florida, the exhibit is designed to probe the idea of book banning in order to get visitors interested in why restrictions on literature even exist.

“David Walker’s ‘Appeal’ was one of the main catalysts for banning Blacks from reading and writing,” said Mervil, the founder of the MUCE, a Miami-based arts production company. ”I feel like for us, even generations later, it’s important to make sure that we keep those authors alive.”

Kamila Pritchett, the executive director of the Black Archives who conceptualized the idea, agreed: “I want to spark a curiosity so that when people leave here they want to check out a banned book, they want to see why it’s banned.”

The installation comes as states across the country continue to ban books in public schools under the auspices of “parental rights.” Florida, in particular, accounts for about 40 percent of book ban cases in the nation, according to PEN America. This came in large part due to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Parental Rights in Education Act, the Florida law that is supposed to stop teachers from using books that contain “bias or indoctrination,” “pornography” or content “harmful to minors.” That and the Stop WOKE Act, with its directive to not teach in a way that could make children feel bad because of the past actions of someone who shares their ethnicity or cultural heritage, have caused confusion among educators about what is even allowed to be taught.

As graduate of the Miami-Dade Public School System, Mervil says he has survived what he deems the shortcomings of the Southern education system.

“Education in the south has always been poor because it’s intentional,” Mervil said. “An exhibition like this here is right on time.”

The installation features the commissioned work of 10 artists – Anthony Lumpkin, Azizi DeSouza, Everton Allen, Godwin Ferrier, Inna Malostovker, Melissa Martinez, Nate Dee, Nica Sweet, Sukii Qi and Tierra Armstorng– who are either from or based in South Florida. Each artist was given a portion of the home to decorate.

DeSouza’s room includes portraits of acclaimed authors like James Baldwin and Malala Yousafzai, whose biography “I am Malala” was banned in Pennsylvania and her home country of Pakistan.

“I wanted to try to find the thread for the viewers so it boils down to people just trying to tell their stories, whether it’s a religious or from a lifestyle point of view,” said DeSouza. In his portrait of Yousafzai, her headscarf is made up of pages from the Quran. The very idea that someone’s own lived experience could be banned didn’t make sense to DeSouza.

“It’s baffling, you know,” he said. “You might understand why the person might personally object to some things but I can’t I find why it’s an issue.”

Qi felt similarly. The mother of a sixth grader, she homeschools her daughter. And while that decision was made way before Florida led the nation in book bannings, Qi feels justified.

“As a mother, you want to be as involved in what your kid consumes,” said Qi, though she questioned any parent who wouldn’t want their child to learn about perspectives outside of their own.

“Why are we banning children’s books talking about self-confidence?” she said, referring to the book “Hair Love” which has been barred in certain parts of the country.

In Qi’s untitled work at the exhibit, she adorned a wicker chair reminiscent of the one in the Huey P. Newton portrait from 1968 with different colored plants. Some of the plants are painted. Others are not. The idea is that while the vegetation will change over time, the center piece – the wicker chair – will not, similar to how an author’s book exists in perpetuity though the forces around it might alter.

“As artists, we create a thing and it lasts forever,” Qi said, adding that the chair “gives flowers” to all writers.

That the installation is located at the Dorsey House goes hand-in-hand with the Black Archives’ mission of documenting Black Miami history. The first Black millionaire in Miami, Dorsey made his fortune by building housing for workers of African descent. Dorsey also planned to build a resort for Black visitors but due to the racism of the time, he was forced to sell the plot of land to Carl Fisher. That land would become Fisher Island.

“This is Dorsey’s wildest dream: for Black people to find a way to thrive in Miami as a collective,” participating artist Everton Allen said of the collection of artists. A graphic artist who handled the creative direction of “On the Ban Wagon,” Allen himself has been inspired to read more due to the exhibition.

“If we’re talking about the ‘Appeal,’ in particular, people used to be killed for even having this,” he continued.

“On the Ban Wagon” itself will be a “living and breathing” project, according to Allen. They are currently in talks for the exhibit to be a required field trip for Miami-Dade County Public Schools. The exhibition can evolve to celebrate events like Miami’s birthday in July. And the existing artists will be adding new work.

“This is a true community initiative,” Allen said. “It’s way bigger than us. We want to keep the kids reading.”

Added Mervil: “The pages will continue to turn. Every time you come, you’ll get a new chapter.”

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “On the Ban Wagon: The Power of the Pen”

WHEN: Now until Dec. 20

WHERE: D.A. Dorsey House, 250 NW Ninth St., Miami

Tickets: Free