“So, I'm from Cincinnati originally; born and raised here. My parents took me to the Freedom Center when I was very young… probably in primary school, around second or third grade. I specifically remember the Tom Feelings mural. We had a docent talking to us, and she told us about the symbolism and the different interpretations of what the mural was supposed to be, what the mural is trying to get across, particularly pertaining to the two figures at the bottom of the mural.

“I remember being sad when she said that one of the interpretations is that the two individuals on the bottom have passed away, and yet they're still dreaming of home in Africa. But she also said that there's another interpretation that I kind of chose to pick instead, which was, it's symbolic of them going over in the middle passage. But it's almost like they're bringing Africa with them, because they have those African motifs on the bottom of the mural.

“And that was kind of the main thing that I took away was just this, this really, really, vast space of artistic interpretation. And I knew, even back then, that the Freedom Center was really important because my family never stopped talking about it. They really wanted me to be in touch with my history, you know, ‘Easton, this is how we as Black people came to this country. This is why we're here.’

And it was always very empowering. They made sure that, even though I went to a predominantly white school, I was in touch with what it meant to be a Black man in this country.”

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