Black History Month: Jesse Owens

This October, people all over the world will be marking Black History Month. This is the chance to celebrate significant black figures in history and their contributions to their chosen field.

Maple class decided that they would like to study Jesse Owens as part of this occasion and found out some fascinating facts. 

Jesse Owens was most famous for his 4 gold medal wins in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. This was the same Olympic Games that Hitler had intended to use to promote his Aryan race's strength and superiority. 

The wins by Owens proved Hitler's theory wrong and Adolf refused to shake his hand. Instead he left the stadium before the medal presentation began. 

In 1976 Jesse Owens was made part of the Olympic Order for his work against racism. He sadly died in 1980, but his work and determination was never forgotten. 

He famously said:

"We all have dreams,but in order to make dreams come into reality,it takes a lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline and effort."

Today, Dara and Jordan brilliantly presented Maple's work in E for Excellence assembly. Over the coming weeks leading up to half term, the other Key Stage Two classes will also present their research about their chosen black figure.