Members of the Exalt Choir including, from left, Alonzo Jones and Amos Hamrick, both of Providence, and Jason Quinn, of Pawtucket, perform during yesterday’s event at the Cathedral of Life Christian Assembly, in Olneyville.

The Providence Journal / Connie Grosch

PROVIDENCE

The sound of gospel music filtered from the second-floor windows to the streets of Olneyville below.

Inside the sunlit auditorium at the Cathedral of Life Christian Assembly, Rhode Islanders of every age and race sang along with the group on stage, their hands held high.

Yesterday’s concert rounded out an afternoon of artistic performances –– part of Freedom Festival, a month-long calendar of activities commemorating the bicentennial anniversary of the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

Throughout October, the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities is sponsoring lectures and films, presentations and cultural gatherings, all celebrating the same message: freedom is too precious to ever be taken for granted.

“We put our heads and talents together to create a series of events that not only commemorate the bicentennial … but also to celebrate the many accomplishments of African-Americans in our state,” said program director Risa Gilpin.

Yesterday’s event offered a chance for the youngest Rhode Islanders to learn about the history of African-Americans in this country through stories, drumming and song.

“I think it’s important for her to understand her heritage,” said Shareese Simmons, who brought her 13-year-old goddaughter Gazimine Mason to the event.

“It’s not something we sit down and talk about,” Simmons said, pulling Gazimine close. “I’m in my 30s and a lot of us weren’t directly affected, so we don’t necessarily know what it took to get freedom. To hear some of the stories makes it more real for me and more a part of my identity. I wanted my goddaughter to be a part of that too.”

On stage, the gospel music ended and Valerie Tutson, of the Rhode Island Black Storytellers, took the floor, her rich voice carrying the tale of a young girl marching in Selma, Ala., on March 7, 1965 –– Bloody Sunday.

Even the youngest in the audience sat rapt.

Given Rhode Island’s deep ties to slavery and the slave trade, Gilpin said it’s particularly important for people in this state to learn about the long history of African-Americans.

“Freedom Festival also helps us focus on some of the neglected stories of free black life in Rhode Island,” she said. “Our purpose in making this all happen is to reintegrate those stories into the collective consciousness of all of the citizens in our state.”

“It’s not just about oppression and slavery,” said Heidi Harris-Lemmel, who came to the event with her husband, David, and their 5-year-old twins, Faith and David. “It’s also a celebration of freedom.”

“That’s the message I want to give to my kids: strength and freedom,” she said.

Coming programs in the Freedom Festival series include a screening of Oscar Micheaux’s film Within Our Gates at the Providence Public Library tonight at 6:30 and a keynote address by noted historian and author Ira Berlin on Thursday at 8 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church, 1 Benevolent St., Providence.

A complete listing of Freedom Festival events can be found at the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities Web site — www.rihumanities.org — or by calling Risa Gilpin at (401) 273-2250.

cneedham@projo.com