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For the American Girl Historical Characters from Kaya to Courtney, this is what life would have been like for them when they grew up based on where, when, and the context of when they would be in their teens, twenties, and thirties followed by how they spent their forties and beyond and where they are today (if still alive). I did a lot of research on the eras and their contexts and also their outfits. The pieces of art are drawings of them at age 30.

Melody Ellison Sterling

Melody Ellison came of age during the 1970s, a decade that helped continue the 1960s, where marginalized groups started to let their voices be heard, and unfortunately also the start of the repudiation of the 1960s. When Nixon was elected in 1968, the Vietnam War still continued and then there was the Kent State shootings of four innocent students two years later and the coinage of the term "silent majority". However, the backlash didn't stop Melody from her activism against war and gender and race discrimination and also as an intersectional second wave feminist. After Watergate, Melody withdrew from politics and then spent her youth and college years at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor listening to 8-track tapes of disco artists like Donna Summer, Abba, and the Bee Gees and also taking some music lessons and learning to play instruments. However, there was also the struggle with the long lines at the gas stations due to the energy crisis and the rise in gas prices.

The 1980s was not only the death of disco, but it would also continue the rise of the new right and also the beginning of the AIDS crisis and the War on Drugs. Even as a Yuppie, Melody did not support the conservative agenda and Reagan's trickle-down economic policies as she voted for Jimmy Carter both times. Most of all, she despised how the war on drugs was affecting people of color, especially as a teacher herself. When the rise in ER visits due to crack increased, so did strict anti-drug policies and Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No" campaign and also Ronald Reagan's policies of mandatory minimums. This hurt communities of color. Even when she had no drugs in her possession, Melody had often found herself getting racially profiled. In addition, the AIDS epidemic wasn't helping at all, because it also hurt drug users as well and AIDS was also deeply stigmatized. In fact, her brother Dwayne was both gay and had used drugs and succumbed to AIDS. During the day, Melody worked as an elementary school music teacher (often using jazz, rap, and hip hop - which was starting to become popular - in her lessons) and also volunteered at programs that helped drug abusers instead of punished them. At home, she was a family woman and enjoyed TV shows like The Cosby Show and Facts of Life.

She married childhood friend and high school art teacher Julius Sterling in 1977, moved to Indianapolis, and then started a family with him in the mid 1980s, which came with many miscarriages and losses before and in-between from 1979 to 1991. They had four children together - Danielle, Michael, and twins Erin and Paige. As of today, Melody and Julius are happily retired and are grandparents to three grandchildren. To this day as she still resides in Indianapolis, Melody not only spends time with her husband, children, and grandchildren, but also plays the piano and volunteers at youth programs for at-risk children, especially those whose parents abused drugs. She also likes to write rap songs as a hobby.

She is one of the historical characters who would still be alive as of today (along with Molly, Emily, Julie, Ivy, Maryellen, Nanea, and Courtney).

Her colorful outfit of thin acid-washed jeans, tennis shoes, and a baggy oversized sweater is based on images of 80s fashion for black women. Her hair, as you expected, is based off of those big curly perms from the 1980s.
*Pin on Project time (pinterest.com)
*170 Best 80's Sweater Weather ideas | 80s sweater, sweater weather, sweaters (pinterest.com)
*Dance Moves Sweater Dress 80s Oversized Colorful... - Depop | Unique sweaters, Sweater dress, Striped sweater dress (pinterest.com)
*Iconic perms, famous 80s perms | Glamour UK (glamourmagazine.co.uk)

Links About the Eras
*The 1970s - HISTORY
*1970s Energy Crisis - Causes, Effects, OAPEC - HISTORY
*The 1980s - HISTORY
*“Just Say No” And Its Effects - Landmark Recovery
*The war on drugs, explained - Vox
*The Night Disco Died | The Racist and Homophobic End to Disco — Blk Girl Culture
*Watergate scandal | Summary, History, Timeline, Deep Throat, & Facts | Britannica
*HIV/AIDS Timeline - Crisis, 1980s, Protests - HISTORY
*Kent State Shooting - Causes, Facts & Aftermath - HISTORY
*Conservative Resurgence of the 1980s and 1990s | Texas Gateway
*The Birth of Rap: A Look Back : World Cafe : NPR

Description
For the American Girl Historical Characters from Kaya to Courtney, this is what life would have been like for them when they grew up based on where, when, and the context of when they would be in their teens, twenties, and thirties followed by how they spent their forties and beyond and where they are today (if still alive). I did a lot of research on the eras and their contexts and also their outfits. The pieces of art are drawings of them at age 30.

Melody Ellison Sterling

Melody Ellison came of age during the 1970s, a decade that helped continue the 1960s, where marginalized groups started to let their voices be heard, and unfortunately also the start of the repudiation of the 1960s. When Nixon was elected in 1968, the Vietnam War still continued and then there was the Kent State shootings of four innocent students two years later and the coinage of the term "silent majority". However, the backlash didn't stop Melody from her activism against war and gender and race discrimination and also as an intersectional second wave feminist. After Watergate, Melody withdrew from politics and then spent her youth and college years at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor listening to 8-track tapes of disco artists like Donna Summer, Abba, and the Bee Gees and also taking some music lessons and learning to play instruments. However, there was also the struggle with the long lines at the gas stations due to the energy crisis and the rise in gas prices.

The 1980s was not only the death of disco, but it would also continue the rise of the new right and also the beginning of the AIDS crisis and the War on Drugs. Even as a Yuppie, Melody did not support the conservative agenda and Reagan's trickle-down economic policies as she voted for Jimmy Carter both times. Most of all, she despised how the war on drugs was affecting people of color, especially as a teacher herself. When the rise in ER visits due to crack increased, so did strict anti-drug policies and Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No" campaign and also Ronald Reagan's policies of mandatory minimums. This hurt communities of color. Even when she had no drugs in her possession, Melody had often found herself getting racially profiled. In addition, the AIDS epidemic wasn't helping at all, because it also hurt drug users as well and AIDS was also deeply stigmatized. In fact, her brother Dwayne was both gay and had used drugs and succumbed to AIDS. During the day, Melody worked as an elementary school music teacher (often using jazz, rap, and hip hop - which was starting to become popular - in her lessons) and also volunteered at programs that helped drug abusers instead of punished them. At home, she was a family woman and enjoyed TV shows like The Cosby Show and Facts of Life.

She married childhood friend and high school art teacher Julius Sterling in 1977, moved to Indianapolis, and then started a family with him in the mid 1980s, which came with many miscarriages and losses before and in-between from 1979 to 1991. They had four children together - Danielle, Michael, and twins Erin and Paige. As of today, Melody and Julius are happily retired and are grandparents to three grandchildren. To this day as she still resides in Indianapolis, Melody not only spends time with her husband, children, and grandchildren, but also plays the piano and volunteers at youth programs for at-risk children, especially those whose parents abused drugs. She also likes to write rap songs as a hobby.

She is one of the historical characters who would still be alive as of today (along with Molly, Emily, Julie, Ivy, Maryellen, Nanea, and Courtney).

Her colorful outfit of thin acid-washed jeans, tennis shoes, and a baggy oversized sweater is based on images of 80s fashion for black women. Her hair, as you expected, is based off of those big curly perms from the 1980s.
*Pin on Project time (pinterest.com)
*170 Best 80's Sweater Weather ideas | 80s sweater, sweater weather, sweaters (pinterest.com)
*Dance Moves Sweater Dress 80s Oversized Colorful... - Depop | Unique sweaters, Sweater dress, Striped sweater dress (pinterest.com)
*Iconic perms, famous 80s perms | Glamour UK (glamourmagazine.co.uk)

Links About the Eras
*The 1970s - HISTORY
*1970s Energy Crisis - Causes, Effects, OAPEC - HISTORY
*The 1980s - HISTORY
*“Just Say No” And Its Effects - Landmark Recovery
*The war on drugs, explained - Vox
*The Night Disco Died | The Racist and Homophobic End to Disco — Blk Girl Culture
*Watergate scandal | Summary, History, Timeline, Deep Throat, & Facts | Britannica
*HIV/AIDS Timeline - Crisis, 1980s, Protests - HISTORY
*Kent State Shooting - Causes, Facts & Aftermath - HISTORY
*Conservative Resurgence of the 1980s and 1990s | Texas Gateway
*The Birth of Rap: A Look Back : World Cafe : NPR