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Sheryl Lee Ralph offers poem celebrating inauguration of Mayor Cherelle Parker
Miss Sheryl Lee Ralph reads a poem in the celebration of the inauguration of Mayor Cherelle L. Parker: "We are witnessing history"
PHILADELPHIA - Philadelphia’s mayoral inauguration ceremony was filled with many great moments, but folks can’t stop talking about the poem Sheryl Lee Ralph recited to new Mayor Cherelle Parker.
Cherelle Parke made history, becoming Philadelphia's 100th mayor and the first woman to ever take on the leadership role for the city.
Parker took the Oath of Office during the inauguration ceremony in front of supporters, fellow lawmakers and her community at the MET Philadelphia.
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Philadelphia makes history swearing in its 1st female Mayor
Cherelle Parker is officially the Mayor of Philadelphia after she was sworn in during an inauguration ceremony Tuesday afternoon.
The new mayor was serenaded with many speeches, prayers, a choir performance, and a poem created by the "Moesha" actress.
Read Sheryl Lee Ralph's poem transcribed from FOX 29's video footage of the event:
In the sister, the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection, there beats a heart
Where history weaves, birthing an unlikely trailblazer among golden leaves
Her path, a tale of strength untold, the first female, a mayor so bold
Through cobblestone streets and echoing city halls, she's shattered ceilings, scaled some mighty walls
Her voice, a deep melody, resilience in rhyme, a beacon for change, transcending time
With grace, she danced in the steel face of doubt
In every step, a legacy laid out
A symphony of progress, notes pure and clear
A melody that silenced the whispers of fear
In heritage rich, where painful shadows persist
She is painting futures with a color named "resist"
A canvas to be transformed by her guiding hand
A portrait of hope, a woman determined to take a stand
North, south, northeast and west, she spoke of unity, a city tapestry anew
Stitching dreams for every color, every shade and every hue
Her mayoral throne a symbol profound
Breaking barriers as the walls, oh, they will come down
The city, Philadelphia, will echo her historic name
A testament of courage forever a flame
In the annals of time, her story will be etched
Philadelphia's first female mayor, a Black queen firmly fetched
The honorable mayor Cherelle L. Parker
Sheryl Lee Ralph has many ties to the city of brotherly love.
Not only does she play a teacher at a Philadelphia school in "Abbott Elementary," but she is also married to Vincent J. Hughes who is a Philly native and Democratic member of the Pennsylvania State Senate.
Philadelphia's new mayor said she is "fully committed to ending this sense of lawlessness, and bringing order, and a sense of lawfulness, back to our city" by enacting new approaches, initiatives and policies within her first 100 days in office.