Stories about "Sankofa"
Sankofa presents Invisible WomenPerformance. Sankofa presents an opportunity for the Bates and Lewiston communities to witness the work of Bates students creating a message to be valued and reflected upon. For Sankofa 2020, the show will focus on the stories and perseverance of women of color that are ignored within the Bates and Lewiston community. SOLD OUTSchaeffer Theatre
Video: Sankofa on MLK Day, where ‘reality isn’t a one-way street’

Friday, January 24, 2020 12:04 pm

This setting of this year's Sankofa show, presented on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, was the mythical Mays College — an intentional allusion to Benjamin Mays, Class of 1920.

Video: MLK Day’s Sankofa gives voice to Bates students and community

Friday, January 17, 2020 11:24 am

This year's edition of the popular student-run performance explores the experiences of women of color at Bates and in Lewiston.

Hour by hour, MLK Day pictures, quotes, readings, ideas, and gestures

Wednesday, January 20, 2016 12:53 pm

Here's how MLK Day 2016 looked: what was said and read, and what was acted, sung, and pondered.

Video: ‘Same Different’ — Students prepare annual Sankofa performance

Tuesday, January 7, 2014 6:26 pm

Jourdan Fanning '14 of Memphis, Tenn., and Courtney Parsons '15 of Atlanta, Ga., comment on the upcoming Sankofa performance, an exploration of blackness within African diasporic experiences.

As nation ponders rich-poor divide, King Day observances to explore debt and inequality

Wednesday, December 19, 2012 9:51 am

Spotlighting a less-known aspect of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s work, King Day at Bates will explore issues of economic justice.

Video: Sankofa’s Cross Cultural Journey

Friday, March 30, 2012 1:00 pm

Rob Little '12 looks at a Sankofa production, an exploration of African diasporic experiences through performing arts.

King Day and Weekend events

Tuesday, December 20, 2011 9:33 pm

Here's a schedule, updated Jan. 12, of events related to the observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Jan. 16, 2012.

King Day to showcase environmental justice

Tuesday, December 20, 2011 9:30 pm

Julian Agyeman, a pioneering environmental justice and sustainability advocate, offers the King Day keynote Jan. 16.

Culminating the college's Jan. 17 observances of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, students used music, dance, poetry and prose to survey the vast landscape of the African Diaspora, and their own diverse backgrounds, in an evening performance in Schaeffer Theatre.Titled Sankofa, a term from Ghana's Akan language referring to the idea of going back for what you have forgotten, the show emphasized the importance of remembering the past in order to appreciate the present and improve the future.Ashley Booker '12Ashley Booker '12 of New York City performs during the Poetry Slam.Reflecting the concept "Get Up, Stand Up: The Fierce Urgency of Now" -- the theme for this year's MLK Day programming at Bates -- the performers captivated audience members with their talent, pride and intensity. Fellow students, faculty and townspeople including members of the local Somali community filled the theater. The production, the first of its kind, drew hoots and hollers, laughter and tears from the audience.The production featured emotional readings, striking dance and uplifting music, displaying the talents of students from myriad backgrounds and disciplines. Directed by Linda Kugblenu '13 of New York City and produced by Cynthia Alexandre-Brutus of Brooklyn, N.Y., the production was as much a lesson in history and culture as entertainment.In one piece, actresses Omosede Eholor of New York City and Brittney Davis of Chicago, both first-years, performed Alexandre-Brutus' adaption of Sojourner Truth's speech "Ain’t I A Woman?" Rendered as a dialogue, the scene juxtaposed the inequalities facing black women in the 18th and 19th centuries with the modern context, a contrast heightened by stage lighting and costumes.In "Four Blast From the Past," four performers portrayed liberation movement leaders from across Africa. Raina Jacques '13 portrayed Yaa AsanteWaa, queen mother of the Asante confederacy. She vehemently delivered the speech that stirred the men of the community to fight
‘Sankofa’: Reflections of the African diaspora on the Schaeffer stage

Thursday, January 20, 2011 1:45 pm

Culminating the college's observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day 2011, students used music, dance, poetry and prose to survey the vast landscape of the African diaspora.

2011 King Day events include debate, performance

Tuesday, January 4, 2011 1:42 pm

Here’s a detailed schedule of events for the 2011 Martin Luther King…