New diversity mural dedicated at Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School
Jun. 13—OLD LYME — Situated on a wall outside the middle school gymnasium, a new mural portrays students of different backgrounds and abilities holding hands as they trek through troubled waters.
Public Art for Racial Justice Education (PARJE) dedicated the mural Sunday at Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School with one central message: Welcome.
"It brightens up the hallway," said middle school student Maggie Thuma of the new mural in her school. "It's really cool how different nationalities and religions are in it and that shows the welcoming topic."
The mural is the third dedicated by the group over the past two years, as it creates a series of "sister murals" across the region designed to foster education and stimulate conversations regarding systemic injustices that predominantly affect people of color. Last month, a mural was unveiled at Fulton Park in New London.
PARJE Steering Committee Co-chair Nancy Gladwell said Sunday the newest mural pays tribute to Old Lyme's history of welcoming refugees from countries such as Laos, Congo and Pakistan. She said the children of Old Lyme have been welcoming to the new families and received them open-heartedly.
"It was awesome," said lead artist Jasmine Oyola-Blumenthal on the mural collaboration. She said it started with a workshop of more than 60 students who brainstormed ideas about what welcome means and looks to them.
"Together, we discussed that the word welcome means to embrace diversity, differences and to promote equality," she said.
Oyola-Blumenthal, who is based in Virginia and attended the Lyme Academy of Fine Arts, said she worked on the painting with middle school art teacher Thelma Halloran and about 30 students.
Many of the images in the mural are representative of historical figures and events. Oyola-Blumenthal said the 14 stacked stones to the bottom left of the mural symbolize the many enslaved individuals from the Lyme area and symbolize perseverance and balance.
Eddie Long, the other co-chair of the PARJE steering committee, said the installation of the mural is just the beginning of the group's work.
"This is about more than beautification," he said during the dedication cermony in the auditorium. "This is about community engagement at its core."
Long said the locations for the sister murals serve as places to hold presentations, lectures and performances on issues that affect everybody but disproportionately minorities. He said the organization is looking to tackle other conversations about topics such as housing and the environment.
The group expects to complete two more murals. One is underway in East Lyme and the other is in the beginning stages in Groton. But Long said they do not intend to stop there and hope to draw more communities to the project.
The dedication lasted about two hours and featured 13 speakers, including First Selectman Tim Griswold and Sistah Anyango of the Freedom to Love the You in You Movement program from West Hartford, who energized the room with a chant. The event also had performances and poetry readings by students.
Norwich city councilor and art gallery owner Swaranjit Singh Khalsa spoke and attested to how the sister mural in Norwich has been a source of tourism and a place for conversation. He said just recently it was the chosen site for a vigil to commemorate the victims of the Buffalo mass shooting.
