Avoyelles African-American Heritage Society event aims to increase cultural awareness

   There is temptation to just call the annual event “Heritage Day” or “Black Pot Cook-Off.”

  To do so, however, would be to miss the full message and significance of the -- here we go -- 6th Annual Avoyelles African-American Cultural Heritage Day and Black Pot Cook-Off.

  Event coordinator Jeralyn Young knows a major attraction is the cook-off, which pits expert backyard and kitchen chefs against each other in three sumptuous categories -- wild game, traditional meats and vegetables, and gumbo, soups and stews.

   But the initial goal behind the event was to create opportunities for people to learn more about African-American culture and history.

   The unofficial motto of the event could well be, “Come for the food; stay for the lessons.” Those lessons will remain  with the visitor when the cook-off dish is just a pleasant memory.

   The Avoyelles African-American Heritage Society puts on the annual event. Young is the society president.

   The event came about when various organizations were working together on Black History Month programs and it was decided to have a larger program to focus on African-American history and culture.

  “This was something I always wanted to do,” she said. “It just came together. In the past, we had themes -- church, school, colleges. This year we will not have a specific theme. We are hoping for a mix of exhibits.”

  The event was held this past Saturday at Marksville’s D.A. Jordan Center and Park on Martin Luther King Street. A few hundred came out to enjoy the weather and the activities. 

  There were some exhibits from Africa, some on local history, some on sports and other aspects of black history.

  “This is a way for local people to participate,” Young said. “They can display their own exhibits on their family history or their personal collections.”

  There were coloring books on cultural education for the children, teaching them about black history in education, entertainment, sports and politics.

  “This is an opportunity for everyone to learn a little history and an opportunity to share with the public the aspects of this culture,” Young said.

  For the past three years, the festival was hit with rain or the muddy aftermath of rain. On Friday, she was looking forward to a forecast beautiful day.

   In the main event, nine judges -- three in each category -- tackled the daunting task of choosing the champion chef.

  All entries had to be prepared in a cast-iron black pot and cooked outside.

  “They get to use gas,” Young said with a laugh. “We don’t make them cook over an open fire.”

  In past cook-offs, the team of judges had to pick the winner in each category.

  “It was a hard job eating that much food -- going from a venison dish to a jambalaya to a gumbo,” she said. “We changed it last year, and it works better.”

  Young said the Heritage Society’s mission is to “promote cultural education and have that narrative shared like everyone else’s -- Cajun, Creole, other cultures -- because we all learn from everyone’s culture.”