Black History Month takes place from February 1st – March 1st annually. Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history. Also known as African American History Month, the event grew out of “Negro History Week,” the brainchild of noted historian Carter G. Woodson and other prominent African Americans. Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating Black history (READ MORE BELOW). Join FC Tech this February to celebrate Black History Month by checking out the events below!
ON-CAMPUS EVENTS:
| Event | Date/Time | Location |
| Black History Month: Influential Figures Gallery | February 1st – March 1st | Morss Gallery (Outside Kraft Center for Student Success) |
| Kick-off Black History Month (with Appetizers) | Wednesday, February 12th, 12-1pm | Main Lobby |
| Business Leadership & The Black Community Panel (with Lunch) | Wednesday, February 26th, 12-1pm | Auditorium |
OFF-CAMPUS EVENTS:
Check Out These Off-Campus Events Offered By the City of Boston: Click Here!
HISTORY:
The story of Black History Month begins in 1915, half a century after the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in the United States. That September, the Harvard-trained historian Carter G. Woodson and the prominent minister Jesse E. Moorland founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH), an organization dedicated to researching and promoting achievements by Black Americans and other peoples of African descent.
Known today as the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), the group sponsored a national Negro History Week in 1926, choosing the second week of February to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. The event inspired schools and communities nationwide to organize local celebrations, establish history clubs and host performances and lectures.
President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month in 1976, calling upon the public to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of Black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”
READ:
- Scattered and Fugitive Things: How Black Collectors Created Archives and Remade History by Laura E. Helton
- Dear Black Girls: How to Be True to You by A’Ja Wilson (WNBA Player)
- James by Percival Everett
WATCH:
- Do the Right Thing (1989) Spike Lee has long been among the filmmakers responsible for landmark films depicting race relations in America. Lee’s monumental 1989 drama Do the Right Thing brilliantly captures racial tensions on one blistering hot day in a Brooklyn neighborhood. The film, regarded as one of the best films of the 1980s, received two Academy Award nominations, including one for Lee’s screenplay.
- Fences (2016) Denzel Washington’s 2016 drama, based on the August Wilson play, depicts a working class African American father raising his family and coming to terms with the events of his life in 1950s Pittsburgh. The outstanding cast includes Washington, Viola Davis, and Stephen McKinley Henderson. The film received four Academy Award nominations, and Davis won an Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her moving performance.
- Marshall (2017), Marshall is a 2017 biographical drama in which the late Chadwick Boseman portrays Thurgood Marshall, a lawyer in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case, who went on to become the first Black Supreme Court Justice. The Reginald Hudlin film features “Stand Up for Something,” a song written by Diane Warren and Common — who also appears on the stirring song as a performer, alongside Andra Day. The track was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Song.
- Check-out Rotten Tomatoes List of Top Shows to Binge for Black History Month
LISTEN:
- The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill by Lauryn Hill
- Songs in the Key of Life by Stevie Wonder
- What’s Going On by Marvin Gaye
- A Seat at the Table by Solange
- I AM STORY Podcast
