2019 Black History Month Celebration
Black Migrations: From Enslavement to Defining the Movement
The story of Black migration does not begin nor end with the enslavement of African people and bringing them to North American shores. Since arriving in North America on slave ships, people of African descent have been in a constant state of movement, whether by force or their own volition. Despite the numerous obstacles and setbacks, African Americans have persevered and created ongoing movements: the Underground Railroad, the Freedom Rides, and Black Lives Matter, for example. Join the James Farmer Multicultural Center as we celebrate the achievements of African Americans in every field, from science and the arts to politics and religion.
Gospelfest
Saturday, Feb. 2 | 3 p.m. | Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall
Join gospel choirs and praise dance teams from several Virginia colleges and universities as they engage in spiritual song and dance.
Human Rights Film Series: The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
Monday, Feb. 4 | 6 p.m. | Colonnade Room, University Center
In the turbulent 1960s, change was coming to America and the fault lines could no longer be ignored — cities were burning, Vietnam was exploding, and disputes raged over equality and civil rights. A new revolutionary culture was emerging and it sought to drastically transform the system. The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense would, for a short time, put itself at the vanguard of that change. The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution is the first feature-length documentary directed by Stanley Nelson to explore the Black Panther Party, its significance to the broader American culture, its cultural and political awakening for black people, and the painful lessons wrought when a movement derails.
Black History Month Kick-Off Lunch: Creole/Cajun Mardi Gras
Tuesday, February 5 | 11:30 a.m. | Dining at the Top of the UC
Cost: 1 meal swipe, Cash/Credit/EagleOne $9.25
The History of Sampling Records in Hip-Hop
Wednesday, Feb. 6 | 6 p.m. | Chandler Ballroom C, University Center
This interactive presentation will be led by Ronald Turner II, known as DJ R-Tistic and Chris Williams as they take the audience on a listening and visual tour about the history of sampling classic R&B, soul, funk, and jazz records that laid the foundation for the creation of hip-hop, and how the usage of sampling continues to thrive in today’s musical landscape.
Between a Rock and a Hard Place: A Discussion on the Slave Auction Block
Thursday, Feb. 7 | 6 p.m. | Colonnade Room, University Center
In 2017, the Fredericksburg City Council took up the question of the historical meaning and current location of the slave auction block located in the downtown historic area. This action prompted a range of responses from local city leaders and citizens regarding the historical significance and legacy of this artifact. This program will provide an overview on the history of the slave auction block and discuss the different perspectives on its future.
The Hate U Give
Friday, Feb. 8 | 7 p.m. | Monroe Hall, Room 116
Sponsored by Campus Programming Board
Blackkklansman
Friday, Feb. 8 | 10 p.m. | Monroe Hall, Room 116
Sponsored by Campus Programming Board
Blackkklansman
Saturday, Feb. 9 | 7 p.m. | Monroe Hall, Room 116
Sponsored by Campus Programming Board
The Hate U Give
Saturday, Feb. 9 | 10 p.m. | Monroe Hall, Room 116
Sponsored by Campus Programming Board
Intergenerational Dialogue on Black History
Monday, Feb. 11 | 5 p.m. | Chandler Ballroom A&B, University Center
This event will be a dialogue and discussion with local members of the Black community. Attendees will hear stories of the Civil Rights movement told by those who were actively involved within the movement.
Black History Month: Southern Soul Dinner
Tuesday, February 12 | 5 p.m. | Dining at the Top of the UC
Cost: 1 meal swipe, Cash/Credit/EagleOne $12.25 + tax
Black History Month Keynote Speaker: Karen Hunter
Wednesday, Feb. 13 | 7 p.m. | Chandler Ballroom C, University Center
Karen Hunter is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who has blazed a trail by bringing more action and less talk to talk radio. Essence Magazine named her one of the “Woke100” in 2018. The industry’s Talkers Magazine named her one of the 100 most important radio talk-show hosts in America, called its “Heavy Hundred,” because she not only has some of the most provocative interviews with some of the biggest movers and shakers in the world, she also is a change agent. Distinguished Lecturer at Hunter College, Hunter was awarded the Gene Burns Memorial Award for Freedom of Speech – considered the Oscars of radio – by Talkers Magazine. As a sports and news reporter with the New York Daily News for 16 years, she was the paper’s first African-American female news columnist.
Great Lives Series: Billie Holiday
Thursday, Feb. 14 | 7:30 p.m. | Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall
How did legendary jazz singer Billie Holiday come by her distinctive style and sound? From the Catholic convent in Baltimore where she was sent to live as a child, to the echoes of black Southern church sounds in the blues she first heard in brothels, to the secular riffs on ancestral faith in the poetry of the Harlem Renaissance, to the mostly-Jewish songwriting of Tin Pan Alley, religion mattered for Billie Holiday’s singing. Tracy Fessenden, author of Culture and Redemption: Religion, the Secular, and American Literature, brings unexpected materials and archival voices to bear on the production—both the exquisite craft and the indelible persona—of Billie Holiday.
Colors of Africa
Saturday, Feb. 16 | 6 p.m. | Chandler Ballroom, University Center
Sponsored by the African Student Union, Women of Color, Brothers of a New Direction, and the James Farmer Multicultural Center
Colors of Africa seeks to celebrate the culture that Black people create. Whether it is Black people of the African continent, African Americans, or the Caribbean, Blackness is a transnational and multicultural experience and it ought to be celebrated as such.
Midterm Elections 2018: Change is Coming
Monday, Feb. 18 | 6 p.m. | Colonnade Room, University Center
The 2018 midterm elections had a historic number of African American men and women run for the House of Representatives and win. Come learn about the country’s new politicians and how their political viewpoint will impact your life starting in 2019.
Black History Month: African Dinner
Tuesday, February 19 | 5 p.m. | Dining at the Top of the UC
Cost: 1 meal swipe, Cash/Credit/EagleOne $12.25 + tax
Jazz Ensemble Black History Tribute: Iconic Jazz Greats
Tuesday, Feb. 19 | 8 p.m. | The Underground, Lee Hall
Celebrate Black History Month with the UMW Jazz Ensemble! Doug Gately, a senior lecturer in the Department of Music, directs this concert featuring music from iconic jazz artists.
Black History Month Karaoke
Wednesday, Feb. 20 | 7 p.m. | The Underground, Lee Hall
Sponsored by Campus Programming Board
Join us for a fun-filled karaoke program for all UMW community members, honoring Black History Month with a very special playlist. Come out and sing your favorite songs by musicians who have shaped and changed the music industry forever from genres ranging from blues, R&B, jazz, gospel, and more!
Resistance Through Poetry
Friday, Feb. 22 | 7 p.m. | The Underground, Lee Hall
Sponsored by the Political Poets Collective and the African Student Union
Resistance Through Poetry will explore the multiplicity of black identity focusing on the ways in which we resist oppression and create beautiful art in the process.
Step Show
Saturday, Feb. 23 | 7 p.m. | Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall
Join regional college and universities’ Greek step teams as they engage in a high-energy, entertaining competition.
My Masculinity Helps
Monday, Feb. 25 | 6 p.m. | Colonnade Room 315, University Center
Sponsored by the Office of Title IX and Empowerhouse
My Masculinity Helps explores the role of African American men and boys in the prevention of sexual violence. The film serves as a counter-narrative to often inaccurate and misleading portrayals of African American masculinity.
Black History Month: Caribbean Lunch
Tuesday, February 26 | 11:30 a.m. | Dining at the Top of the UC
Cost: 1 meal swipe, Cash/Credit/EagleOne $9.25
Great Lives Series: Nelson Mandela
Tuesday, Feb. 26 | 7:30 p.m. | Dodd Auditorium, George Washington Hall
Nelson Mandela, who died in 2013 at the age of 95, was many things: warrior, martyr, husband, statesman, and moral leader. Having spent 27 years in prison, he succeeded in liberating a country from a system of violent prejudice and united oppressor and oppressed in a way that had never been done before. As he famously wrote: “No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin or his background or his religion . . . People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love . . . for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.” His remarkable career led him to be described as “the closest thing the world has to a secular saint.” No one has explained this complex man better than Richard Stengel, author of on Mandela’s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, former editor of Time magazine, and MSNBC commentator.
“Florida Bound: James Monroe’s Slaves”
Thursday, Feb. 28 | 7 p.m. | Monroe Hall, Room 116
In 1828, James Monroe sold a group of enslaved people to Colonel White in Florida, who owned the plantation Casa Bianca. Miranda Burnett and Martin Violette delved into the records and found that Casa Bianca was not a typical plantation. The establishment of Casa Bianca in Jefferson County, Florida (near the town of Monticello) involved a President, two congressmen, a slave ship, and the richest man in America. However, the majority of the population living and working at Casa Bianca were enslaved men, women, and children. Burnett’s and Violette’s research uncovered the names of the families that Monroe sold to Colonel White, as well as details about their lives, successes, and losses after emancipation.
All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. For more information, please contact the James Farmer Multicultural Center at 540/654-1044 or visit www.students.umw.edu/multicultural.