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NATCHEZ — A Natchez museum exhibit that opened in recent weeks for public viewing features the poems of a 13-year-old girl whose works have been featured by news outlets and other museums nationally.

The Natchez Museum of African American History and Culture exhibit featuring the work of Arianna Shaprow officially opened Oct. 20. Shaprow’s social justice poems have also been featured in the Natural History Museum in her home of Las Vegas, Nevada as well as the Children’s Discovery Museum, Phoenix Children’s Museum, Savannah Georgia African Art Museum, San Antonio African Museum and the Miami Hip Hop Museum.

Shaprow and her writing have also been spotlighted by the New York Times Kids edition, Fox and ABC News.

Shaprow’s poem “Mississippi,” which is being featured in the Natchez Museum, explores both the natural beauty and simultaneously the issues of poverty and hostility stemming from the systematic and structural racism of the South through the eyes of a child.

Inspired by the stories of her grandmother and her own research into her family history, Shaprow said she writes to spread awareness and to let people know, “These issues have not ended. We’re still fighting for justice. … We are still fighting to put an end to economic disparities and systemic violence.”

Shaprow remembers being called the “N” word when she was seven years old.

“At the time, I didn’t know what that word meant, but I could tell there was a whole lot of hatred behind it,” she said.

Her ancestors from Holly Springs were part of a “mass exodus” of African Americans who migrated from the South to the North and Midwest searching for economic opportunities and seeking refuge from “terror and violence in the South,” she said.

Shaprow’s ancestors moved from Mississippi to Chicago.

“My grandmother was 13 years old, my age when she watched Martin Luther King’s ‘I Have a Dream Speech’ on an 18-inch television. She recalls thinking that maybe things would get better. It’s so interesting to think about how my grandmother felt seeing these things when she was my age,” Shaprow said.
“King had such a hopeful message. My grandmother recalls he said, ‘We must never lose infinite hope.’ My poem reinforces the belief that we must maintain infinite hope despite harsh circumstances and despair. My poem’s message is that there is hope in the midst of darkness. At a horrific time when Black people were lynched for minor social transgressions like not calling a white man ‘Mr.,’ my grandmother was still able to imagine hope for the future.”
The Natchez museum’s exhibits follow the stories, sacrifices, struggles, and legacy of present and past African Americans in Natchez and beyond.

“As I immerse myself in these stories, I realize how easy it is to overlook something equally important — the impressions we leave on our children,” said museum director Bobby Dennis. “In our mission to uncover and preserve the past, we sometimes fail to truly hear the voices of the next generation. We get so caught up in the important work of telling our ancestors’ stories that we forget to listen to the questions, the thoughts, and the perspectives of the young people around us. Their curiosity, their need to understand where they come from, matters just as much as the stories we tell.

“I’ve come to understand that passing down this legacy is a two-way street. It’s not just about what we say, but about hearing what they have to say too. By engaging with their questions and giving them space to interpret history in their own way, we ensure that the legacy of Natchez’s African American community continues to evolve and thrive in the generations to come.”

Despite her young age, Shaprow has not only been nationally noted for her poems but is also a dedicated community activist. At age 12, she founded her organization “Take Time to Remember” in honor of her grandmother who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and uses her platform to advocate for those affected by the disease.

“Through her poetry and activism, Arianna Shaprow exemplifies the resilience and strength that the Natchez Museum seeks to highlight in our exhibitions,” Dennis said. “By featuring her work, we not only celebrate her unique talent and voice but also honor the ongoing struggle for justice, awareness, and community care — values that align with our museum’s mission.”