The annual Black Brown Love Assembly was held on Thursday, February 25 by the Village Nation and hosted by Alejandra Lemus and Lissett Lazo, Cleveland High School graduates from the class of 2008. The goal of the assembly was to promote unity between African American and Latino students, who have a history of racial tension.

"It was great since even more students led this year," Teacher and Village Nation Founder Fluke Fluker said."We want to produce leaders, not followers, and you do so by giving them leadership positions."

This year's theme for the assembly was the crisis in Haiti and focused on connecting its history to black and brown love.

"Haiti's issues, highlighted by the earthquake, unite the black and brown community around what happened there," Fluker said.

The assembly featured many performances, including dancing, singing, spoken word and other poetry, and guitar and trumpet playing, all of which served to further the theme of unity.

Andres Rivera, a Cleveland graduate from the class of 2002, was one of the performers who showcased slam poetry. The first, "Fighting For Ourselves," discussed the importance of black and brown unity, while the other titled, "The Legacy That Follows Me," was about immigration and starting a new life in the United States for his people.

"I thought it was very inspiring," Sophomore Marabi Madrigcel said. "The poet's speech was touching."

Students from Taking Action, a club on campus, were also featured with a combination of poetry and dance. They performed the story of Haiti's history, including the revolution in which Haiti gained independence from France leading up to the recent earthquake. According to Senior and Taking Action member Preyanka Gulati, the club was spreading the idea that black and brown people need to use Haiti's revolution as inspiration to fight against injustice today.

Despite the range of talents, many expressed how they felt this year's assembly was a disappointment compared to last year.

"I think last year's was more interesting." Junior Jenae Smith said. "This year, they basically focused on Haiti. I think they could have done more, and my friends felt the same way."

Nevertheless, students still got the message that unity can accomplish more than racial division.

"It was interesting," Junior Jenae Smith said. "I learned a lot and that Black and Brown people are closer than you think."

The assembly went beyond black and brown love as students realized unity should be a goal for everyone.

"It felt good as if we were one," Senior Karina Ruvalcaba said. "It should be everybody. The conflicts aren't just about black and brown people."