Yale Peabody Museums entomology division will finally have spotted lanternfly specimens for scientists to use for research thanks to Bobbi Wilson, the 9-year-old girl from New Jersey whose neighbor called the police on her last October while she was doing her part to rid the state of the invasive species.

As the Peabody Museums very first contributor of the spotted lanternfly, Bobbi will be recognized on Friday at an event at the Yale University School of Public Health.

The ceremony at Yale follows a string of recent honors for Bobbi, including awards given to her by New Jersey Institute of Technology, Montclair police officers and state and federal officials for her environmental work.

Bobbi made national headlines last fall when her family spoke out after a neighbor called police to report he was scared because a little Black woman was spraying something on trees and the sidewalk in Caldwell. The 9-year-old was in her own yard killing spotted lanternflies with a homemade, natural solution she created, according to her family, who accused the neighbor of racial bias.

When Ijeoma Opara, a Yale School of Public Health assistant professor and New Jersey native, heard about the incident she invited Bobbi and her older sister to take a tour she created to introduce the girls to Black women scientists at Yale.

A core of my research focuses on empowering Black girls against gendered racism, so when I heard about the story of Bobbi, it was personal to me and I wanted to do everything in my power to make sure that that bad memory was replaced with a good one, Opara said.

I wanted her to be exposed to not just Yale but other women scientists and students who can inspire her and her sister, she added.

The groups last stop was the Peabody Museums entomology collection, which is comprised of over 1.5 million insect specimens. Bobbi learned the museum did not have any lanternfly specimens, according to Lawrence Gall, the entomology collections manager.

So, Bobbi shipped lanternflies she worked to catch last November to Peabody. They were recorded as the museums first lanternfly specimens and the collection was named after her, officials said.

Any scientist or researcher who uses Bobbis collected lanternfly specimens will have to credit the young Essex County resident in their research, according to museum officials.

Once I told my department chair, Dr. Trace Kershaw, about my idea to have this event at school, he was in full support, said Opara, who organized Fridays event honoring Bobbi and sponsored by the Yale School of Public Healths department of social and behavioral sciences.

Yale Peabody Museums entomology division doesnt usually have ceremonies for collectors, according to the Yale officials.

But we were all so touched by this story that the Yale community came together to make this happen, said Opara.

Bobbi Wilson shipping her collected spotted lanternflies to Yale Peabody Museum, making these the entomology division's first lanternfly specimens.

Since the alleged racial profiling incident, Bobbi has received multiple honors for being a young leader in New Jerseys Stomp it Out! campaign which urges people to kill the spotted lanternflies because of the damage the species can cause to crops.

Monique Joseph, Bobbis mother, first shared the alleged racial profiling story in November when she spoke at a Caldwell Borough Council meeting about how their neighbor of eight years reported Bobbi to the police.

According to the police call, the neighbor told dispatchers, Theres a little Black woman, walking, spraying stuff on the sidewalks and trees. I dont know what the hell shes doing. Scares me though.

When a police officer showed up at her house, Bobbi asked if she was in trouble. The officer said no, according to his bodycam footage.

Though the police officer handled the call well, Bobbi was traumatized, her mother said at the Caldwell Borough Council meeting.

Im not here to label anyone, only to share my point of view as a Black woman, a Black mother and a Black resident in this town, to bring awareness on racism and implicit bias that we experienced on the very street that we live on, Joseph said at the meeting.

Since then, state officials, including Gov. Phil Murphy have expressed their support for Bobbi.

Racism has no home here. No mother should have to worry about the cops being called on their child for trying to make the world a better place, Murphy said in a tweet.

Last Friday, the Montclair Township Police Department was joined by state Attorney General Matt Platkin, U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-11th Dist., and children and parents in the community to give Bobbi a big Montclair hug, as Sherrill said.

Her perseverance reminds us all that we can overcome hate together, Platkin said in a statement. She is a leading light, not just for her community, but our entire state.

Montclair police officer Erica Peterson, who is Black, said she heard about Bobbis incident late last year and told the family she wanted the department to recognize Bobbi in some way. The idea was brought to Montclair Police Chief Todd Conforti, who agreed to celebrate Bobbis environmental work.

I just want you to know, I am you, I see, I represent you, Peterson told Bobbi at the event.

Sherrill presented Bobbi with a state award for her environmental stewardship and the Montclair Minority Police Officer Association presented Bobbi with the Community Care Taking Award, according to her mother.

U..S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-11th Dist. presents Bobbi Wilson with a state award for her environmental stewardship at the event that honored her hosted by the the Montclair Township Police Department on Friday.

We felt like celebrities, Joseph said about last weeks event.

There were officers outside waiting to guide us to the parking lot, they ordered a spread of food and snacks. They wanted us to feel special and we did. I felt special. I felt honored. I felt my community, said Joseph.

Hayden, Bobbis 13-year-old sister, who publicly defended the girl at the Caldwell council meeting last November, was honored along with her sister by the New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark for being courageous young scientists.

The college offered the sisters full scholarships in December to attend the universitys month-long Women in Engineering and Technology Initiatives FEMME Program in July.

I was excited when they surprised us, Bobbi said at the time. Now, Im looking forward to being back this summer.

Jacqueline Cusack, New Jersey Institute of Technology's director of Center for Pre-College Programs, presents Bobbi and Hayden with scholarships to attend NJITs pre-college STEM summer programs.

With some of her school friends, Bobbi has also made her way to Princetons Plasma Physics Laboratory, whose organizers wanted to encourage her to keep pursuing science.

The Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions also recognized Bobbi during a Caldwell council meeting last month, giving her a sustainability award for her work to save trees. That was less than a week before the U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded the young environmentalist with a certificate of appreciation.

Joseph said the girls understand that all the recognition they are getting is because their community wants to show them that they dont agree with their neighbors actions and Bobbi wasnt doing anything wrong when she sprayed trees with her solution to kill lanternflies.

Weve learned that our community is not just Caldwell, our community is the surrounding towns, said Joseph.

This is helping Hayden to have her light back on and to not dim it down because shes Black in a community that does not look like her, said Joseph. And Bobbi will never lose her steam for STEM.

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Nyah Marshall may be reached at [email protected]