The beginning of October marks the start of Black History Month. Our history lead Mrs Marcuccilli led an assembly celebrating Simone Biles the famous gymnast. In previous years, Biles has struggled with ‘the twisties’. In gymnastics, it can cause a person to lose their sense of space and dimension as they’re in the air, causing them to lose control of their body and do extra twists or flips that they hadn’t intended. In the worst cases, they can find themselves suddenly unable to land safely. Biles has opened up about her struggles with mental health and the pressures of being one of the greatest gymnasts at all time. In the most recent Olympics, Biles came back to the sport with a bang, overcoming her difficulties to win several medals. Biles was inspired by the poem ‘Still I Rise’ by Maya Angelou. To celebrate Black History Month and to recognise Biles’ strength, a group of year year 6 students performed a powerful and moving abridged version of the poem (see below).
You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I’ll rise.
Just like moons and like suns,
With the certainty of tides,
Just like hopes springing high,
Still I’ll rise.
Did you want to see me broken?
Bowed head and lowered eyes?
Shoulders falling down like teardrops,
Weakened by my soulful cries?
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I’ll rise.
Out of the huts of history’s shame
I rise
Up from a past that’s rooted in pain
I rise
I’m a black ocean, leaping and wide,
Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
