This was not just another event on the calendar. The 13th Annual Multi-Cultural Black History Program on Feb. 15 filled a top-tier venue – the Ent Center for the Arts – with a packed house, standing as a reminder that Black culture in Colorado Springs is not something waiting to be discovered. It is organized, protected, and sustained by people who refuse to let it fade into the background.
From the moment the program began, the energy in the room reflected the months of labor that most people will never see. The performances were sharp, the storytelling was intentional, and the atmosphere carried the kind of pride that only comes from community-built spaces. OneBodyEnt did more than host a program. They created a living reflection of who we are as Black Coloradans — resilient, rooted, and fully present.
That kind of excellence does not happen by accident. It happens because a small group of committed organizers continues to do big work with limited resources. OneBodyEnt has consistently delivered exemplary community programming while navigating the kind of underfunding and political gamesmanship that would have stopped less committed organizations long ago.
Let’s be clear: our community has not been let down by a lack of talent or leadership. It has been let down by City officials and decision-makers who say they support Black culture while cutting funding, dragging their feet on recognition, and turning meaningful moments into political theater. When Juneteenth funding gets cut and proclamations become bargaining chips instead of genuine acknowledgments, it sends a message. And the message is heard loudly in rooms like the one we sat in tonight.
But what politicians and institutions sometimes fail to understand is that every time they aim to diminish spaces like this, they don’t weaken us; they push us closer together. They force communities to organize around each other instead of relying on systems that should already be standing beside us and helping communities navigate an environment that was built to suppress our outcomes – outcomes that equal our residents on average dying 16 years faster than the rest of the city!
Speaking for myself, I have said for years that our people have every right to organize against structures that refuse to invest in our future generations ability to live here. The fact that OneBodyEnt continues to choose collaboration over confrontation should not be taken for granted.
The City should be grateful that OneBodyEnt is still willing to work with them. Because this event proved that this organization is not waiting on permission to lead. It has already built a culture, while strengthening identity, and creating spaces where our history is not imported from somewhere else but lived and practiced right here in Colorado Springs.
And that is what made the evening powerful beyond the performances. This was not just a celebration of Black history in a broad national sense. It was a declaration of Blackness in Colorado, shaped by migration, military families, entrepreneurship, and neighborhoods that learned to survive without ever being seen. Our story carries a different rhythm than the narratives centered elsewhere, and programs like this remind us that our legacy exists at a mile high, sustained by people who show up even when support systems fall short.
The packed seats and standing applause were more than appreciation. They were accountability. Our community is watching who shows up, who invests, and who treats grassroots leadership like an afterthought. OneBodyEnt continues to demonstrate what real community organizing looks like, and the City’s response to that work will define more than a single event or budget cycle. It will define trust.
As the lights dimmed and the crowd slowly filtered out, one truth remained clear: Colorado Springs does not lack Black culture or leadership. What it lacks is consistent institutional courage to match the level of commitment already present in the community. OneBodyEnt has shown what is possible when people lead with purpose. Now the question is whether those in power are ready to meet that example, or continue forcing the community to carry the weight alone and thrive in spite of what they’re doing, instead of thriving because of what they are doing.
Congratulations to D and Jenn Smith and all of my Sisters and Brothers of OneBodyEnt! #WeAreStillNeighbors #WeAreOneBody
Learn more about OneBodyEnt, and how to support the organization, on their website.
Shaun Walls is a member of the Pikes Peak Bulletin board. He is not paid for his writing here.