finally tonight a full-fledged kickoff on this first day of Black History Month for planfield public school students where students today helped open a pop-up museum at the high school that'll allow them to explore historical moments of the civil rights movement and experience the power of voting both past and present Melissa Rose Cooper was there one two three and with the snip of scissors planfield Public Schools officially opened this pop-up museum inside planfield High School in honor of Black History Month today we embark on a Journey Through Time exploring pivotal moments and individuals who shaped the course of history and who've paved the way for a more inclusive and Equitable future people like Ruby Bridges who became an icon of the Civil Rights Movement depicted in this exhibit through her eyes as you walk through the the segreg ated classroom you will witness the challenges faced by Ruby Bridges as she took those courageous steps towards education capture a moment in history by sitting behind the desk and immerse yourself in the struggles and triumphs of a young tra B our history and our Rich culture should be celebrated all year round every day you all should be uh speaking the words of our ancestors and our leaders who paved the way for us and you all um living here today and being able to sit in these seats and do what we're here to do and be educated and learn so that we can then Inspire the generations to come planfield Public Schools teaming up with the nonprofit Civic engagement group project ready to present the museum we started a little over five years ago with the intention of bringing black and brown communities together so that they can understand the importance of Civic engagement and the through line in between Equitable education chief executive officer Chanel McLoud says she was excited to work with the district after hosting a voting exhibit in Newark last year it is not lost on me that we were able to create this experience in the library a place where so many people are trying to ban books a place where so many people are trying to ban history and the fact that planfield high school was ready and willing to open up its space so that we could evaluate so that we could relive and so that we could plan for a future while viewing the voting power experience the goal is to make sure students understand the importance of exercising their right to vote at all levels so they can select people who best represent their perspectives and voices who better than the young people in this room to stand and fight for Injustice in this world whether it be internationally when you open your phones Instagram Tik Tok Facebook and you see lifeless bodies that's not normal we need someone to stand up and fight who better than the young people in this room I just want us all to ensure that we take in this moment that we live in this moment that we remember this moment and each moment that we continue to make moving forward and that we think about all that has transpired before us and continue to use that to energize and mobilize as we move forward trying to make a difference in the lives of each other and uh future generations to come day in and day out the pop-up music Museum will remain open at planfield high school for the next 2 months for NJ Spotlight news I'm Melissa Rose Cooper