African American Cultural Garden celebrates One World Day, makes push for final funding

In just a few days, the annual multicultural sensory smorgasbord that is One World Day will converge on the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, located in Rockefeller Park.  

Celebrating its 77th year and full of food, music, and performances, One World Day will be held on Sunday, Aug. 27, from 11 a.m.– 6 p.m. throughout the gardens on both East Blvd. and Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. The theme is “Peace through Mutual Understanding,” and the event will be hosted by the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation in partnership with Ward 9 Council Member Kevin Conwell and the city of Cleveland. County Executive Chris Ronayne will serve as grand marshal for the parade, which kicks off at 12 p.m. 

Special events include a naturalization ceremony during which 25 people will become U.S. citizens, and the dedication of the new Pakistani Garden. Lori Ashyk, executive director of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, said the dedication, which will take place at 2 p.m. on Sunday, will celebrate the completion of the first phase of the garden earlier this summer.

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The Pakistani Garden is one of nine gardens currently in various phases of development, along with the Colombian, Egyptian, Filipino, French, Korean, Mexican, Peruvian, and Scottish gardens. Visitors will see these new gardens open one by one over the next decade or so, as the process of establishing a garden – from proposal to completion – is often very extensive.

2023 has been an exciting year for another garden: the African American Cultural Garden, located at 890 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. at the St. Clair Ave. exit. The African American Garden unveiled a Cleveland Civil Rights Trail historical marker during Juneteenth weekend this year. The dedication was the result of a collaboration between the Cleveland Restoration Society and the Ohio History Connection. At this weekend’s One World Day, the African American Cultural Garden will host live music, dance performances, crafts, food, and a variety of vendors.  Meanwhile, behind the scenes of these special events, organizers are redoubling efforts to fundraise for the long-awaited completion of the garden. 

Dedication boosts funding efforts

Family members of the late Booker Tall, including his widow and one of his sons, Dr. Reginald Tall, were among the many in attendance at the June unveiling ceremony. Tall, an avid supporter who spearheaded the efforts for an African American garden back in the late 1960s, was also a history professor at Cuyahoga Community College, and he established the first Black studies program at a community college in Ohio.

The marker unveiling also served as a jump start for raising the remaining dollars needed to complete the garden’s monument, which has been the main stumbling block. To date, $1.5 million of the $4 million price tag has been raised from public donations and organizations including the Cleveland Foundation, Cliffs Foundation, Park Foundation, Sherwin-Williams, The Gund Foundation, and the Holden Foundation, say leaders of the Association of African American Cultural Gardens (AAACG).

Design awaits construction

The first phase of the monument – The Door of No Return – was completed in 2015 and dedicated the following year. The monument consists of three components. The Door of No Return represents the past, symbolizing the departure of enslaved people from Africa. Yet to be constructed are the water components – an infinity fountain and a reflecting pool representing the Middle Passage across the Atlantic Ocean, along with a large black granite terrace, etched with the North Star and Little Dipper. The terrace will be used for performances. The final component is a seating area inside the Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. pedestrian and bike trail that includes a celebratory fountain. This area is designated for conversation and reflection.

“Our garden represents the African American experience, because of the unsung heroes in every area of our community and culture,” said AAACG board member Lavita Ewing. 

The African American Cultural Garden was dedicated in 1977. The current blueprint for the monument was designed by Daniel Bickerstaff of Ubiquitous Design, an architectural firm located in Shaker Heights. Other local examples of Ubiquitous designs include Christophier’s Custom Clothiers on the near West Side, and the former H2O Lounge (now Sylk’s) in Maple Heights.

An earlier design for the garden – at a different location – was submitted by another prominent local architect, Robert Madison. Unfortunately, fundraising efforts for that project stalled.

Renewing energy for fundraising – and project completion

“All funding must be in place before work can begin on the remaining components,” said Ewing. “We’re on a journey to complete the garden, and we’re pretty excited about our executive director Obie Shelton, who’s working hard to help us get to the finish line.  A major fundraising event will be held during Black History Month in 2024 on Feb. 24. We’re hoping all our stakeholders will attend to raise funds to reach our goals.”

Shelton, who is currently the director of communications for the Cleveland Municipal Clerk of Courts and was a longtime local journalist, has been at the helm as executive director of the AAACG for less than a year, but his sights are already set on what’s ahead.

“We’re having a rebranding process, where the symbols and the marketing representative of the past are being updated,” said Shelton. “I think it’s important that we constantly show people what the finished product looks like. There’s a video on the Association’s website about the monument. I recruited several of my journalist friends to narrate the video. These are credible voices showing what it’s gonna look like, and explaining the meaning. Now that people have seen the vision and know what it means – hopefully they are inspired by it, and the hope is that they will support the vision – emotionally, intellectually, and most importantly, financially.  I believe the monies needed to finish the monument are in Cleveland’s Black community.  Now is the time for us to pull together.”

Education is also a key component of the Association’s objectives, particularly informing young people about the local leaders and important figures of today.

“Our mission is also to inspire the next generation, to educate regarding the African American experience. One way in which we’re doing so is through our Sankofa web series that focuses on the present generation, looking at their goals and aspirations,” said Ewing.

The Sankofa education web series is a 9-part series (to date) featuring video interviews with many of Cleveland’s leaders and inspiring movers and shakers. The series can be found on the AAACG website, as well as YouTube. “These are stories that show, regardless of the challenges, dreams can come true. People before us have achieved dreams,  and those ahead of us will also. But you need resilience, dedication, and commitment to move forward,” said Ewing.

“We’re a dedicated group,” said Ewing. “One person can’t do it all, but everybody can do something.”

One World Day is Sunday, Aug. 27 from 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Festivities at the African American Cultural Garden, located at 890 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., include live music, dance performances, crafts, food and a variety of vendors. For general information about the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, please visit itswebsite. Information about One World Day can be found here.