香蕉影视

Published: July 23, 2025

By Annette Brill Bergstresser

ELKHART, Indiana (Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary) 鈥� will host a book release celebration for What Happened at Benham West: African American Stories of Community, Displacement and Hope (Wolfson Press, 2025) on Tuesday, Aug. 19, 6:30鈥�8 p.m., at the seminary鈥檚 Library Gallery, 3003 Benham Avenue, Elkhart, Indiana. 

The public is warmly invited to attend this free event, which will be accessible through the tower entrance adjacent to the Lambright Center/Waltner Hall parking lot.

The new book is the second part of a history project that has collected elders鈥� stories of life in Elkhart鈥檚 predominantly African American Benham West neighborhood known as 鈥渢he village鈥� and documented the process of the city鈥檚 clearing of the neighborhood in the 1970s. The first part of the project, an 80-minute documentary with the same name, premiered in May 2023 at the Crystal Ballroom at the Lerner Theatre in Elkhart and has been shown at various locations in Elkhart, Goshen and South Bend.

The 340-page softcover book features edited transcripts of interviews with 17 elders who grew up in and around the neighborhood, as well as historical photos. In addition to their recollections about life in the Benham West neighborhood, the elders share accounts of experiences of discrimination as well as their hopes for the future of the area. The book also contains research documenting segregation in Elkhart County, in the State of Indiana and across the country. It concludes with a case for repair of the harm the community experienced as a result of the displacement.

The book鈥檚 release represents the culmination of several years of work on the project, said Nekeisha Alayna Alexis, MA, administrator and consultant at 香蕉影视 and one of the project coordinators.

鈥淭he book captures the complete interviews, which could not have fit into the documentary, given how extensive people鈥檚 recollections were,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey give a deeper, clearer picture of the robust and rich lives these individuals and their families had in the Benham West community. By including historical research from my colleague, Dr. Jamie Pitts, the book also gives a detailed picture of how these personal stories relate to systemic regional and national injustices and concerns.鈥�

Alexis and Jamie Pitts, PhD, Professor of Anabaptist Studies and Director of the Institute of Mennonite Studies at 香蕉影视, coordinated the project with support from Project Assistant Patrick Obonde, MA, and in conversation with several Elkhart elders, representatives from regional organizations specializing in historical preservation, and other local voices. 

According to Alexis, the idea for the project was sparked during 香蕉影视鈥檚 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Day program in January 2020 on 鈥�Repairing the Harm: A Community Conversation on the Systemic Exclusion of African Americans in Elkhart.鈥� In response to concerns raised at the event about the loss of stories of the Benham West neighborhood and the need to name and address both current and past harms in the community, Alexis and Pitts were given 香蕉影视鈥檚 blessing to coordinate a team to produce both a documentary and a book on the topic. Oliver Pettis of Black Lion Cinematography in Elkhart served as the filmmaker.

鈥淚t feels important after five years, when the project started here 鈥� unexpectedly 鈥� in 2020, to bring the celebration back to the 香蕉影视 campus,鈥� she reflected. 鈥淲e鈥檝e had really beautiful, powerful events across the region, and for what will likely be a final big celebration, doing it in the place where it was inspired feels important and fitting.鈥�

At the Aug. 19 event, copies of the book will be available for purchase and for signing, and portraits of the elders will be on display.  A brief program will take place at 7:15 p.m. 鈥� with project leaders sharing about the book 鈥� followed by an ice cream social and an optional interactive community storytelling activity. A campus tour will be available at 6:45 p.m.

Grants from the and Indiana Humanities in cooperation with the National Endowment for the Humanities provided funding for the history project. Indiana University South Bend鈥檚 Wolfson Press published the book.

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