BALTIMORE — It’s a stage play that’s spotlighting a symbol of hope and a piece of Baltimore’s rich history and pride. The story of the Harvey African American Flag is also one that some say has been forgotten.
The flag, dedicated to the song “Lift Every Voice and Sing” known to many as the Black National Anthem, was just a fun family tale for Chloe and Kaylah Harvey when they were kids. It was also a way to remember the flag’s creator, their father David.
At just 36 years-old he died suddenly, while Chloe was an infant and Kaylah wasn’t even born yet.
Some of their fondest memories of their dad have been through their mom, Tonya, and other family members. More than two decades later, Chloe’s dilemma on her way to graduating college opened another door. She found herself one credit short of earning her degree from Towson University and she needed to pull off a project in a hurry.
“So, I wanted to do a really simple independent study and I said maybe the easiest way to do that is to research my family’s flag because I kind of already know about it.”
Chloe recalls the story of how the Harvey African American flag came to be back in 1991. “They were just graduating college,” she remembered.
“They’d just got married and they were at an alumni banquet for my father’s fraternity Omega Psi Phi. They were singing Lift Every Voice and Sing, and they realized they had no focal point so that very night they went and created the flag on the floor of their living room.”
David and Tonya’s goal was to create a flag that could serve as a non-political symbol of hope for African Americans, not just in Baltimore, but everywhere.
Here’s a breakdown of everything the flag represents, detailed in its fabric:
- Purple base – symbolizes regal history of African-Americans
- Gold flashes of light around the star – represents perseverance, love , knowledge and spirituality.
- Black stripe – symbolizes African-American closeness to regality.
- Green stripe – symbolizes abundant life in Africa.
- Gold Stripe- symbolizes riches of Africa.
- Red, white and blue stripes – represents African-Americans’ significance in American History
- Eight-pointed black star – each point of the star stands for an African-American principle:
A = Aspirations
F = Family
R = Righteousness
I = Individuality
C = Community
A = Ability
N = Nobility
S = Scholarship
The more Chloe and Kaylah learned about the story the more it turned into a script. Then theater programs at Morgan State University and their own school, Towson, got wind of what they were working on, after a conversation with their mom Tonya.
They decided to partner up for the first time in a play production and help the sisters bring their story “20|02” to the stage. The play takes you back to the creation of the flag and the impact.
Chloe and Kaylah credit the play for giving them a way to have a deeper relationship with their dad while re-igniting the conversation around the flag and its purpose.
“Through our research with the flag, we learned about our own lives, and we were not expecting to be healing from this and growing from this in the way we did,” Chloe said. “We really just wanted to teach everybody about the flag.”
They planned to debut 20|02 at the Towson University Center for the Arts stage first and then take it back to where it all started at Morgan State.
They still remember how it felt to put their words on the stage for the first time in a script reading.
“I will never forget when people kept coming to us and they were like you brought your father back to life,” “That meant so much to us.”
Even Chloe and Kaylah are impressed with the performance, directed by Ruben Del Valle Jr. and the cast made up of Towson U and Morgan actors.
“We’ve seen it a million times at this point and every time we almost shed a tear,” Chloe said.
Hearing sentiments like that is music to actor, Keyana Lang’s ears, as a member of that cast and a proud Morgan State student. She remembers being in attendance for one of the early script readings and being in awe of the sisters and their story when it was just on paper.
“It’s just so amazing to see work transform into something great,” Keyana said.
As someone who’s now a part of telling the story, she’s absorbed knowledge of the Harvey African American Flag and the family.
“It’s history," she said. “They literally made this flag, not just for themselves, not just for the kids, not just for their family but for everybody on this earth. No matter how you see it, just know that the flag should mean something to you in some kind of way and it will when you see the play.”
Kaylah talked about what it was like to see their mother’s reaction to seeing the production on the stage for the first time.
“Our mother had to bring a whole box of tissues [and] she probably needed another one for everybody else around her,” Kaylah said. “It’s very emotional.”
The more Chloe and Kayla thought about bringing their parents’ story this far, the more it feels like them telling this story was meant to be.
“They were 21 [years-old] and 23 when they made this and I’m about to be 21 and she’s 23,” Kaylah said.
“He made such an impact on lives for him not to be here right now, but it feels like when you walk on the stage or even when we read the script in practice it feels like he’s there in some kind of way,” Keyana said.
It’s also keeping David Harvey’s legacy alive, letting people know who their dad was and maybe even feel his presence. They hope the play makes it to even bigger stages on Broadway and even the big screen one day, so more and more people can know this story.
“That was our parents’ goal and our goal is really to continue what they started,” Chloe said. “As far as this flag can go, that’s where we want to take it.”
We asked Chloe, Kaylah and Keyana if they had a message for David what would it be
“Just one big thank you and a really big I love you,” Chloe said.
“I love you and thank you for everything,” Kaylah added.
“I didn’t even know you before I got to learn about this flag and this play,” Keyana said. “It’s honestly just a thank you because now I know.”
The last question they answered: If you could describe the Harvey African American Flag in one word, what would it be?
“Magic,” Chole said. “Love,” Kayla said. “Unity,” Keyana added.
Morgan State held a rededication to the Harvey African American Flag on February 23, 2023.
You can visit HEREto grab tickets to see “20|02” at The Murphy Art Center’s Turpin-Lamb Theatre. Shows are happening March 9th and 10th at 7:30 p.m.
