Sherman Church will be hosting two events this weekend in celebration of Juneteenth. On Friday, June 16, there will be a showing of Spike Lee’s School Daze from 5-8 p.m. at Lakeview Library, the co-host of the event. On Sunday, June 18, there will be a Juneteenth/Father’s Day celebration at Sherman Church from 3-4:30 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public.
Sherman Avenue United Methodist Church, a multicultural community of faith on Madison’s North Side, will follow the showing of School Daze with a panel discussion around topics that the movie addresses. Issues discussed in the 1988 movie are still relevant in today’s world 35 years later according to Sherman Church Reverend David Hart.
“It’s a movie that considers many issues that were salient in 1988 still being talked about and even today,” Hart told Madison365. “Upward mobility, classism, sexism, colorism, and the need to support Black institutions and Black schools. These are all things that are vital for our discussion and discourse.”
Sherman Church is no stranger to engaging with important conversations as their message and stance of inclusivity, affirmation, and progressive action give more space for people who have trouble searching for a spiritual home.
“We at Sherman church really are working to address and eradicate disparities in the world, and just all of the ‘isms,” said Hart. “We really strive to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ, which is to spread love and kindness, and to pursue and seek justice in its rawest form … working with compassion and humility in this world.”
On June 18, Sherman Church will be holding a family-friendly event with free food at 3705 N. Sherman Ave. With plenty of other events to be held throughout the weekend, be sure to swing by Sherman to celebrate and be in community on Madison’s North Side.
“As we always seek to do here at Sherman, we want to focus on and highlight the fact that there are more things that unite us, particularly here on the North Side, than divide us,” Hart assured. “We find ourselves celebrating our similarities, but standing with people in the beauty of their differences, as well.”
