A historical blast from the past is to make its way to the Manhattan High School commons this week. Led by Sara Rempel and Sonda Copeland, the point of the event is to celebrate the history the Harlem Renaissance left behind and give the historic black figures of the time the spotlight for their accomplishments.

This Wednesday, several fine arts classes will come together to celebrate through several mediums. Drama classes will be teaching students different dances that were popular during the Harlem Renaissance, culinary classes will be preparing food and treats, and various students will be displaying and modelling common fashion trends throughout the 20’s. Along with that, the MHS jazz band will be playing music, and visual arts students will be displaying 2-D or 3-D art to represent the Harlem Renaissance. Students have been spending a lot of their time preparing for this event.

“The Harlem Renaissance had a big part in black history,” Copeland said. “A lot of those things that came out of that have made a big difference in black culture being accepted by our society.”

This celebration is set to take place during advisory. All teachers have been notified that students are invited to come down to the commons and take part in the festivities if they wish to do so. The goal of the event is not only to celebrate, but to also educate students on the influence the Harlem Renaissance had on today’s culture and to appreciate it. Not only that, but it gives fine arts students a chance to show off their skills in a comfortable environment to their peers and fellow students.

To top it all off, this event will also have a canned food drive taking place, referring to a “rent party” from the 20’s, where people would come together to raise funds to help a person pay their rent.

“We can of course help our community with [the canned food drive], ” Copeland said.