'Fresh Prince of Bel-Air' actor, children's author to visit FGCU to talk Black achievement

At 6 p.m. Thursday, actor Karyn Parsons, known for her role as Hilary Banks in the '90s sitcom "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," will share the stories of unsung historical figures.

The event is open to the public and admission is free at the Cohen Center Ballroom,10501 FGCU Boulevard, on the campus of Florida Gulf Coast University.

Parsons, 56, is the founder and president of Sweet Blackberry, a nonprofit organization that highlights historical figures in a series of children’s books and animated films. Parsons is the author of two children’s books, “Flying Free: How Bessie Coleman’s Dreams Took Flight”, “Saving The Day: Garrett Morgan's Life-Changing Invention of the Traffic Signal” and a young teen novel “How High The Moon”.

We talked to her about her inspiration for Sweet Blackberry and passion about telling stories about Black achievement.

Q. What inspired you to launch Sweet Blackberry?

A. My mom was a librarian. When I became an adult, she would call me and share these stories that she came across. The story that was the impetus for Sweet Blackberry was the story of Henry Box Brown, the enslaved man who literally mailed himself to freedom. He mailed himself from Virginia to Philadelphia. He spent the rest of his life telling his remarkable story. Such an incredible story which wowed me when I heard it. The fact that I had never heard it was equally amazing to me.

Q. What year did you launch Sweet Blackberry?

A. Right after ‘Fresh Prince’ ended, I started making notes about it and thinking about it as something that could happen while I was on the show. We did the show from 1990 to '96. I launched Sweet Blackberry in 2005. In 2009 we became a nonprofit.

Q. Why do you feel that it’s important to tell these stories?

A. When I started Sweet Blackberry everybody was excited. I was excited. People weren’t bumping up against this or having any problem teaching these stories. My mom grew up in the segregated South and she learned a lot more about Black history than I did. When I was growing up, the teachers only had a handful of Black stories. The thing that really bothers me is by not having those stories. Aside from withholding these stories, stories possibly being lost, there's this subtle message that only every now and then does a Black person come along and do something worthwhile. I really want to drive it home to people that these stories are all of our stories, not just Black stories.

Q. How did you come up with the name Sweet Blackberry?

A. My daughter was a baby when I started the organization and I used to call her Lana Berry. Somehow when tossing names in the hat, Blackberry came up. It came down to two or three names. And when we asked, 100% of the people without fail picked Sweet Blackberry. It also has that, “the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice.” It’s not intentional. But it’s there though. It's a celebration.

Q. What was the process like moving from acting to writing children’s books?

A. When we stopped doing the show, a friend of mine pushed me to take a writing course with an author and teacher at Santa Monica College. I went and I fell in love with it. His name's Jim Krusoe and he was a really great teacher. He challenged us in ways that were very exciting for me. I think it was just a different form of creativity that I was already kind of playing around with for so many years as an actor. When I started acting I used to go to coffee shops. I would sit with a notebook, watch people and I would make notes. When I started writing, I did the same thing. I would go to bars more than coffee shops since I’m older.

Q. What is your favorite thing about being the founder and president of Sweet Blackberry?

A. Visiting schools. Seeing those little kids, talking to them and hearing the amazing things they have to say – their observations and questions. I love reading to them or showing them the Sweet Blackberry films.

For more information about the event visit: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/karyn-parsons-journey-of-unsung-heroes-tickets-591441947787

Erica Van Buren is the underserved communities reporter for The News-Press and Naples Daily News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at EVanBuren@gannett.com or on Twitter: @EricaVanBuren32

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actor and author Karyn Parsons will be at FGCU